HE RE WARD T HE WAKE

‘
L AS T OF T HE E NG L I S H ’
 Fi rst E d i t i o n (2 v o ls .
Gro w n 8 v o ) 1 866 .

N ew E d i ti o n (1 v ol

1 883 , 1 88 4 , 1 8 86 , 1 88 7 .

N ew E d i ti on (1 v ol . C ro w n 8 v o ) 1 889 .

E versley E d i ti o n ( 2 v o ls . G lo b e 8 vo ) 1 8 81 .

P ri n t e d éy R 8: R C L A RK , E d z yz ozz rg/
’

. . z .
 TO T HO MAS W RIG HT , E SQ , ET C . ET C.

MY DE AR W R I G HT ,

T H Udoes Hereward the hero of you r youth

S , ,

re a pp e ar at last in a gu ise fit t ed for a m odern drawing room -

.

T o you is due whate v er n ew renown he may win for h im self

in that new fi eld Yo u first disinterred him long ago when
.
, ,

scarcely a hand o r foot o f him was left standing o u t from

beneath the dust o f ages You taught m e since then h o w
.
, ,

to furbish his rusty harnes s botch his bursten saddle and send
, ,

him forth on ce more upon the ghost o f his gallant mare

,
.

T ruly h e should feel obliged to you ; and though we cannot

believe that the last infirmity o f n oble minds endures beyond
t he grave o r tha t any touch o f his o ld vanity still stains the
,

s p irit o f the mighty Wake ; yet we will please ourselves

why should we n ot (l— W ith the fancy that he is a s grateful to
you as I am thi s day .

Your s faithfully ,

C KI N GS LEY
. .
 CONT ENT S

C HA P

P REL U D E — OF TH E F ENS .

I . H OW HERE WA R D WA S O U T L AW E D A N D W E N T N O R TH
,

T O SEE K H I S FO R T U NES
II . H OW HERE WA R D SLE W TH E B E A R
III . H OW HERE WA RD S U CC O U RE D A P R I NCESS O F CORN W A L L
IV . H OW HERE W A R D T OO K S ER V I CE W I TH RAN A L D K I N G,

O F W A T E RFO RD
V . Ho w H ERE WA R D S U CC O U RE D TH E P R I NCESS O F CO RN
WA LL A S EC O N D T I M E
VI . H OW HERE WA R D WA S W REC K E D U P O N TH E F L A N D ERS
S H O RE
VII . H OW HERE WA R D W EN T T O TH E W A R A T G U I S N E S
VIII . H OW A FA I R L A DY E X ERC I SE D TH E MEC H A N I C A L A R T
T O W I N HERE WA R D S L O V E
’

H OW HERE WA R D W EN T T o TH E W A R I N S CA L D M A RI L A N D
H OW HERE WA R D WO N TH E MA G I C A RM O U R
H OW TH E H O LL A N D E RS T OO K HERE WA R D F O R A MAG I C I A N
H OW HERE WA R D T U RNE D B ERSER K ER
H OW HERE WA R D WO N MA RE S WA LL OW
Ho w HE RE WA R D R O D E I N T O B R U G ES L I K E A B E GGA R M A N
Ho w E A RL TO S T I G OD W I NS S O N C A M E T O ST O M ER
.

H OW H ERE WA R D WA S A S K E D T O SL A Y A N O L D CO M R A D E
Ho w HERE WA R D T OO K TH E N E W S F R O M STA N F O R D
B RIC G A N D H A S T I N G S
XVII I . H OW E ARL G O D W I N S W I D OW C A M E T O ST OM ER
’
.

XIX . H OW HERE WA R D CL E A RE I) B O U RN E O F F RENC HM EN

XX . H OW HERE WA R D WA S M A D E A K N I G HT A FT ER T I I E
FA S H I O N O F T I I E E N G L I S H
 CON T EN T S
C HA P .
P AG E

XXI . H OW I V O T A I LLE BO I S M A RC H E D O U T O F S P A L D I N G
T OW N
XXII . H OW H ERE WA R D S A I LE D F O R E N G L A N D O N CE A N D
F O R A LL
XXIII . H OW H ERE WA R D GA TH ERE D A N A R MY
XXIV . H OW A RC H B I S H O P A L D RE D D I E D O F S O RR OW
XXV . Ho w HERE WA R D F O U N D A W I SE R MA N I N E N G L A N D
TH A N H I M SEL F
XXVI . H OW HERE WA R D F U L F I LLE D H I S W O R D S T O TH E
P R I O R O F TH E G O L D EN B O R O U G H
XXVII . H OW TH E Y H EL D A G RE A T MEE T I N G I N TH E H A LL
OF E LY

XXVIII . H OW TH E Y F O G HT A T A L D E T
U R E

XXIX . H OW S R DE D A B R O G HT N E W S F R O M E
I U LY

XXX . H w HERE WA R D PL A Y E D TH E P O TT ER ; A N D H OW
o

H E C H E AT E D TH E K N G I

H OW TH E Y F O G HT AGA N A T A
U I H L D RE T

H OW K N G W LL A M T OO K CO NSEL O F A C H RC HM A N
I I I U U

H OW TH E MO N K S O F E D D A FT ER TH E R K N D
LY I I I

H OW HE RE WA R D W EN T TH E G REEN WOO D
T o

H OW A BBO T T H O R O L D WA S P T T O R A NS O M U

H OW A W R O T E T O HERE WA R D
L FT RU D A

H OW HERE WA R D L O S T S WO R D B RA IN B I T E R

H OW HERE WA R D C AME N T O TH E K N G I I

H OW T O RFR I D AC O N F ESSE D TH A T S H E H A D B EEN IN

SP RE D B Y TH E DE L
I VI

XL . H OW E A RL W H AL T WA S M A D E A S A N T
E OF I

XLI . H OW HERE WA R D B E GA N T O G E T H S S O L S P R CE I U
’
I

X L II . H OW DEEP N G F WA S D R A NE D
I EN I
 HE RE W A RD T HE W A KE
‘
LAS T OF T HE EN GLIS H ’

P RE L U D E

OF T HE FE N S

T HE heroic deed s Of highlander s both in th ese island s and ,

elsewhere have been told in verse and prose and n o t more

, ,

Often n o r m ore loudly than they d e se rv e Bu t we must remem

, ,
.

ber now and then that there have been heroes likewise in the
, ,

l owland and in the fen Why however p oets have so seldom .

, ,

sung Of them why n o h istorian save M r Motley in hi s Ri se ,

.

o t h e D u t ch Rep u b lic has c ondescended to tell the tale Of their

,

o u gh t y deeds is a question not difficul t to answer

, .

In the firs t place they have been fewer in number T h e

, .

l owland s Of the world being the richest spo t s have been gener
, ,

ally the soonest conquered t he soonest civilise d an d t herefore

, ,

the soonest taken o u t o f the s p here of romance and wild a dv e n

ture into that o f order and law hard work and common sense , ,

as well as — t o o Of t en — into the S p here O f S lavery cowardice , ,

luxury an d ignoble greed T h e lowland p opula t ions for the

,
.
,

same reasons have been generally the firs t to de t eriorate

, ,

though n o t o n account o f the vices Of ci v ilisation T h e vices o f .

in c iv ilisat io n are far worse and far more destructive Of human ,

life an d it is j ust because they are so tha t rude tribes d e t e rio ,

rate physically less than p olished nations In the savage .

struggle for li fe none but the stronges t healthiest cunningest

, , , ,

have a chance Of living pros p ering and propaga t ing their race
, ,
.

In the civilised sta t e o n the contrary the weakliest and the

, ,

silliest p rotected by law religion an d humani t y have their

, , , ,

chance likewise and t ransmit t o their O ffspring their o w n

,

weakliness o r silliness In t hese islands for instan c e at the

.
, ,

time Of the N orman C onquest the average O f man was d oub t ,

less superior bo t h in body and min d to the average Of m an

, ,

n o w S imply because the weaklings could n ot have lived at all 5

,

B Q3 H . T . W .
2 H E R EWA R D T HE WA KE
and the rich and delicate beauty in which the women Of the ,

E astern C ountie s s till s urpa ss all other race s in the s e isles wa s ,

doubtle ss far more common in proportion to the number s Of the

population .

‘
Another rea s on why lowland heroe s c are n t vate s acro i s ,
’

that the lowlands and those w h o liv e in them are wanting in

the poetic and romantic element s T here i s in the lowland n one .

o f th at background O f the unknown fanta s tic magical terrible , , , ,

per p etually feedin g curiosity and wonder which s till remain s ,

in the S cotti s h highland s and which when it disappears from ,

thence will remain embalmed fo r ever in the page s Of Walter

,

S cott Again s t that half m agical background his heroe s s tand

.
-

o u t in vivid reli ef and j u stly S O It wa s n o t put there by him .

for s tage p urpose s ; it wa s there a s a fact ; and the men Of

whom he wrote were consciou s o f it were moulded by it w ere , ,

n o t ashamed Of its influence Fo r nature among the m ountains

.

i s too fierce too strong for man He cannot con q uer her and
, .
,

she a w es him He cannot dig down the cli ff s o r chain the

.
,

s torm blasts ; and hi s fear o f them takes bodily s hape : h e

-

begin s to people the weird laces Of the earth with weird

beings and sees nixe s in the ark linns as he fishe s by night
, ,

dwarf s in the caves where he digs half trembling m orsels Of ,

-
,

iron and copper for hi s weapon s witches and demon s o n the ,

s no w bla s t which overwhelms his herd and hi s hut and in the

-
,

dark cloud s w hich brood o n the untrodden mountain peak He .

lives in fear and yet if he be a valiant hearted man his fear s

,
-
,

do him little harm T hey may break o u t at time s in witch

.
, ,

manias with all their horrible s uspicion s an d thu s breed

, ,
cruelty which i s the child Of fear : but o n the whole they rather
,

produce in man th oughtfulnes s reverence a s ense confu s ed yet , , ,

preciou s Of the boundless importance Of the unseen world His

,
.

super s tition s develop hi s imagin ation ; the m oving accident s

Of a wild life call o u t in h im s ympathy and patho s ; and the
mountaineer become s in s tinc t ively a poet .

T h e lowlander On the other hand ha s hi s o w n stren gth hi s

, , ,
’
own
‘
virtues o r manfulne ss es in the good Old s ense Of the
, ,

w ord u t they are n o t for the m o s t part picture s que o r even

p o e t ic a b ,

He finds o u t s oon enough f o r hi s weal and his bane that he

, ,

is stronger than nature and right tyran nously and irreverently

he lords it over her clearing delving dyking building without
, , , , ,

fear o r S hame He knows Of no natural force greater t han

.

himself save an occasional thunderstorm ; and against that

, ,

a s he grow s m ore cunning he in sures his crop s Why s hould , .

he reverence nature ? L e t him use her and live by her O n e , .

cannot blame him Man was sent into the world ( so says the
.

S crip t ure ) to fill and subdue the earth But h e was sent into .

t he world f o r other purposes also which the lowlander i s but ,

too apt to forget Wit h the awe Of nature the awe o f the
.
,
 OF T HE F ENS 3

un s een die s o u t in him Meeting with n o vi s ible s uperior he is

.
,

a p t to becom e not merely unpoetical and irreverent but some ,

what Of a sensualist and an atheist T h e s ense Of the beautiful .

dies o u t in him more and m ore He has little or nothing .

‘

arou nd him to refine o r lift u p hi s soul and unless h e m eet '

with a religion and with a civilisation w hich can deliver him

, ,

he may sink into that dull brutali ty which is too common

am on g the lowest classes o f the E nglish lowlands and remain
for generation s gifted with the streng t h and in d ustry Of the o x ,

an d with the courage Of the lion but alas ! with the in t ellect , ,

Of the former and the self —restraint o f the latter .

N evertheless there may be a period in the history Of a

,

lowland race when they t o o becom e historic for a while

, ,
.

T here wa s s uch a period for the men Of the E astern and

C entral C ounties for they proved it by t heir deeds .

When the men Of Wessex the once conquering and even to, ,

the la s t the most civilised race Of Britain fell at Hastings once

, ,

and for all and s truck n o second blow then the m en Of the
, ,

D anelagh disdained to yield to the N orman invader For seven .

long years they held their o w n n o t knowing like true E nglish , ,

men when they were beaten ; and fought o n desperate till

, ,

there were non e left to fight T heir bones lay white o n every.

island in the fens their corpse s rotted o n gallow s beneath every

N orman keep ; their few su rvi vors crawled into m onasteries ,

with eye s picked o u t hand s an d feet cut O ff ; o r took to the

,

wild wood as stron g outlaws lik e their s ucces s or s and re p re

,

se n t at iv e s Ro b in Hood S carlet an d L i t tle John ; Adam Bell

, , , ,

and C lym Of th e C leugh and Wil liam Of Clo u d e sle e But they
, .

never really bent th eir n eck s to the N orman yoke : they kept
alive in their heart s that p roud S pirit O f personal independence
which they brought with them from the moors Of D enmark and
the dale s Of N orway ; and they kept alive t o o though in , ,

abeyance for awhile those free institu t ion s which were without
,

a doubt the germ s Of o u r British li berty .

T hey were a changed folk s ince first they s ettled in that

D anelagh — s ince first in the days Of Ki ng B e o rh t ric in th e ,
‘

year 7 8 7 three s hi ps Of N orthmen cam e from Hae re t h a land

, ,
’
and the k ing s P eev e rode to the place and would hav e driven ,

them up to the kin g s town f o r h e knew n o t what men they

’

were : but they S lew him there and then and after that the
S axons and Angles began to find o u t to their bitter bale w h at
men they were those fierce Vikings o u t Of the dark nor t h —east
, .

Bu t they had long ceased to burn farms sack convent s , ,

torture m onk s for gold and slay every human being they met
, ,

in mere Berserker lust Of blood N O B arn akill could n o w earn .

h is nicknam e by entreati n g his com rades as the tossed the

children o n their spear points to N a kill the barns
-
y Gradually
,

, .

t hey had se t tled down o n the land intermarried with the Angles ,

and S axon s , and colonised all E ngland north and ea s t o f Watling

 4 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E
S treet ( a rough line from L ondon to C hester ) a s far a s the T ee s 1
, .

Gradually they had deserted T hor and O din for the White
C h rist
’
had their o w n prie s t s and bishop s and built their o w n ,

minsters T h e convents which the fathers had destroyed the

.
,
sons o r at least the grand s on s rebuilt and Often casting away
, , ,

sword and axe they entered them as m onk s themselve s ; and

,

P e t erborough Ely and above all C rowland destroyed by them

, , ,
’
in Alfred s time with a horrible destruction had becom e their ,

holy places where they decked the altar s wi t h gold and j ewel s
, ,

with silk s from the far E ast and furs from the far N or t h and ,

where a s in s acred fortresses they and the liberty Of E ngland

, , ,

with them made their last unavailing stand

, .

Fo r awhile they had been lord s o f all E ngland T h e Anglo .

S axon race was wearing o u t T h e men o f Wessex priest — ridden .

, ,

and enslaved by their o w n aristocracy quailed before the free ,

N o rse m e n , among whom wa s not a single serf T h e Go d .

des c ended line Of C erdic and Alfred wa s exhau s ted Vain in .

,

capable p ro fiigat e king s the tools Of su ch prelate s a s O d o and

, ,

D unstan were n o match for s u ch wild heroe s as T h o rkill the

,

T all o r O laf T rygv asso n o r S w e n d Forkbeard

,
T h e D ane s had ,
.

gradually s eiz ed not only their o w n D anelagh and N orthumbria ,

but great part Of We s sex Vast sums o f D anegelt were yearly .

sent o u t Of the c o u n t ry t o buy O ff the fresh invasions which were 4

p erpetually threatened T hen E thelred the Unready o r rather .

,

E vil counsel advised himself to fulfil hi s name and the curse

-
, ,

which D unstan had pronounced again s t him at th e baptismal

font B his counsel the men o f Wessex rose against the u n su s
.

’
p e c t in g anes and on S t Brice s E v e A D 1 00 2 mu rdered them .
, . .
,

all o r nearly all man woman and child It may be that they
, , , ,
.

only did to th e children as the fathers had done to them ; but

1
d istrib utio n Of Dan ish an d N o rwegian n am es in En glan d an d
Fo r t h e ,

t h e prev al en ce n o rth O f t h e Dan e l agh fro m T e e s t o Fo rth O f n am e s

, , ,

n e ith e r S can d in avi an n o r Ce l tic b u t pu re ly An g l o S axo n c on su l t t h e ,

-
,

Rev Isaac T ayl o r s b o o k W o rd s an d P laces B e ar in m in d m ean wh il e

’
.
,
.
, ,

th at th e se n am es re pre sen t fo r t h e m o st part i f n o t alto g eth er t h e Dan ish , ,

an d N o rse se ttl e m e n t at t h e en d O f t h e n i n th c e n tu ry b u t th at th i s :

S can di n avi an e l e m en t w as furth er stren gth e n e d b y t h e free m e n w h o c o n

q u ere d E n gl an d u n d e r Sweyn an d C an ute at t h e b egi n n in g o f t h e ,

e l eve n th c e n tu ry T h e se m en see m t o h ave b e c o m e n o t so m uch settl ers

.

O f g re at l an d s as an i n t ru sive m ili tary ari sto cracy w h o g av e fe w o r n o ,

n am e s t o e stat e s b u t am al gam ate d t h e m se lves rapi d ly b y m arri age w i th

,

t h e re m n an ts o f th at E n g lish n o b ility wh ich w as d e st ro ye d at t h e b attl e

o f Assin gd o n T h i s fact e x pl ain s t h e n u mb er O f pu re ly An g l o S ax o n
.
-

n am e s t o b e m e t wi th am o n g He reward s c o m pan i o n s S o m e o f th e m
’
.
,

li k e G o d e ric o f Co rb y th em selve s with E n glish n am e s h el d m an o rs with

,
’
,

D an i sh o n es even in th at part O f L i n c o l n sh ire wh e re t h e S c an d in avian

,

e l e m en t w as stro n g est I n fact t h e ari sto craci e s an d t h e t w o race s h ad

.

b e en th o ro ugh ly am al gam ate d n o t m e re ly in t h e D an e l agh b u t o v er t h e

, ,

gre at er part Of E n gl an d an d m u st b e c all e d as in t h e case o f Kin g Haro l d

, ,

G o d w in sso n n e i th e r S ax o n s n o r An g l o S axo n s b u t rath e r A n g l o D an e s

,
-
,
-
.
 OF T HE F ENS 5

’
the deed wa s worse than a crime ; it wa s a mistake T h e
‘
.

D ane s Of the D anelagh and N orthumbria their brothers Of ,

D enmark and N orway t he O rkneys and the east coast Of Ire,

land remained u nharmed A mighty h ost Of Vikings o u re d

, .

from t hence into E n gland the very next year under wend ,

Forkbeard and the great C anute ; and after thirteen fearful

campaigns came the great battle Of A ssin gd o n in E ssex w here ,
‘
Canute had the victory ; and all t he E nglish nation fough t
against him and all the nobility Of the E nglish race wa s there
’
destroyed .

T ha t same year saw the mysteriou s death Of E dmund Iron

’
side the last man Of Ce rd ic s race worthy O f the name For the
,
.

next twenty fi v e years D anish kings ruled from the Forth to

-

the L and s E n d ’
.

A n oble figure h e was that great and wise C an ute the friend , ,
’
Of the fam ous Godiva and L eofric Godiva s husband and , , ,

Godw in U lfn o t h sso n and S iward D igre ; trying t o expiate by

,

j ustice and mercy the dark deeds Of his bloodstained youth ;

tryin g ( and not in vain ) to blen d the two races over which b e
ruled rebuilding the churches and m onasteries w hich his father
had des t royed bringing back in state t o C anterbury the body
o f Archbishop E lp h e ge — not unj ustly called by the S axons
mar t yr and saint— whom T all T h o rkill s men had mu rdered ’

wi t h beef bones and o x S k ulls because he would not give up to ,

’
t hem the money destined for God s poor ; rebuking as every ’
,

child has heard his h o u se c arle s flattery by s etting his chair o n

,

the brink o f the rising tide and then layi n g his golden crown ,

in token o f humility o n the high altar Of Winchester never to

, ,

wear it m ore In Winchester lie his bones unto this day o r

.
,

what o f them the ci v il wars have left and b them lie the bones
Of his s on Hardicanute in whom as in his alf bro ther Harold
, ,
-

Harefoot before him the D anish power fell to swift decay by

, ,

insolen c e and drink and civil war while with the D anish power
E ngland fell to pieces likewise .

C anu t e had divided E ngland into fou r great earldoms each ,

ru le d under him by a j arl o r earl a Danish n ot a S axon

, , , , ,

title .

At his death in 10 3 6 the earldoms Of N orthumbria and E as t

,

An glia t h e m ore strictly D anish parts — were held by a true

fi

D anish h ero S iward B io rn a lias D igre t he S tout conqueror

, , ,
‘
,
’

Of Macbeth and son Of the Fairy Bear proving his descen t men ,

said by his poin t ed and hairy ears

, .

Mercia the great central p la t eau Of E n g land was held by

, ,
E arl L eofric husband Of the famous L ady Godiva
, .

Wessex which C anute had at first kept in h is o w n hands

, ,

had passed into those o f t he famou s E arl Godwi n the then ,

ablest man in E ngland P ossessed Of boundless tact and .

cunning gifted with an eloquence which seems from the

,

accounts remaining Of it to have been rather that Of a Greek

6 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E
’ 1
than an E nglishm an and married to Can u t e s niece he wa s , ,

fitted alike by fortune s and by talent s to be the king maker

, ,
-

which he became .

S uch a system may have worked well a s long as the brain o f

a hero wa s there to overlook it all B ut when that brain wa s .

turn ed to dust the history o f E ngland became till the N orman

, ,

C on quest little more than the his t ory Of the rivalrie s Of the t w o
,

great h ou s es o f Godwin and L eofric .

L eofric had the first succes s in king maki n g He though .

,

bearing a S axon name s eem s to have been the champion Of the ,

D anish party and Of C anute S son o r reputed son Harold

’
, , ,

Harefoot ; and he succe eded by the help Of the thane s north Of ,

T hames and the lit h sm e n Of L ondon which city wa s more than

, ,

half D anish in those days in s etting his pup p et o n the throne ,

.

B ut the blood Of C anute had exhau s ted itself Within s even .

year s Harold Harefoot and Hardicanute wh o succeeded him , , ,

’
had died a s foully as they lived ; and Godwin s turn had come .

He thou gh married to a D an i sh princes s and acknowledging

, ,

hi s D anish connection by the N orse name s which were borne b y

hi s three most famou s sons Harold S weyn and T o st ig consti , , , ,

t u t e d himself ( with a sound patriotic instinct) the champion o f

the men Of Wessex and the hou s e Of C erdic He had p ro b ab ly .

cau s ed or at least allowed to be murdered Alfred the E theling

, , , ,
’
K ing E thelred s son and heir apparent when he was sup p orting ,

the claim s Of Hardicanute again s t Harefoot ; he n o w tried to

atone f o r that crime ( if indeed he actually committed it) by
placing Alfred s youn g er brother o n the throne t o becom e at
’
,
once hi s king hi s son i n —law and his puppet
,
-
,
.

It had been well perhaps f o r E ngland had Godwin s p ower , , ,

’

over E dward been even m ore complete than it actually wa s .

T h e C onfessor wa s if we are to believe the monk s unmixed

‘ ’
, ,

virtue and piety meeknes s and magnanimity ; a model ruler o f

,

men . N O wonder therefore that ( according to William o f, ,

Malmesbury ) the happiness Of his times ( famed a s he wa s both

f o r miracle s and the s p irit Of prophecy ) was revealed I n a dream
to B rit h w in bishop o f Wilton who made it p ublic f o r m e dit at
, , ,
’
in g i n K ing Can u t e s time o n the near exti nction Of the royal
race Of the E nglish he wa s rapt up o n high and saw S t P eter , , .

consecrating E dward king His chaste life also wa s pointed .

‘

o u t and the exact period Of his reign ( twenty four years ) deter
,

1
T h e A rch wo logi ca l Jou rn a l in v o l x i an d v ol xi i c o n t ain s t w o e x , . . . .
,

c ellen t articl e s o n t h e L i fe an d D e ath O f E arl G o dwi n fro m t h e pe n o f ,

th at ab l e an tiq u ary E A Fre em an E sq B y h im t h e facts O f G o dwin s

, . .
, .
’

l ife h ave b e en m o re c are fully in v e stig ate d an d h is ch aracter m o re fully

judge d th an b y an y auth o r O f wh o m I am aware ; an d I am t h e m o re
,

b o u n d t o d raw atte n ti o n t o th ese articl es b e c au se so m e ye ars si n c e I h ad , , ,

a littl e pape r c o n tro v e rsy wi th Mr Fre e m an o n th is ve ry su b j e ct I h ave . .

n o w t h e pl e asu re O f sayi n g th at h e h as pro v e d h im se l f t o h av e b een In t h e

right wh il e I w as in t h e wron g
, .
 OF T HE FENS 7

mined ; and when he in q uired about hi s po s terity it was ,

“
answered T h e kingdom o f the E nglish belong s to God
, .

Af ter E dward He will provide a king according to His

,

But the conduct which earned him the title

o f C onfes s or was the direct cau se Of the N orman C onquest
and the ruin Of hi s people ; while tho s e who look at facts will
’
s ee in the holy king s character li ttle but what is pitiable and
in his reign little but what is tragical .

C ivil war s inva s ion s outlawry Of Godw in and his s on s by

, ,

the D anish and French parties then Of Alfgar L eofric s son by ,

’
,

th e S axon party ; the outlaw s o n either s ide attacking and

plundering the E ngli s h s hores by t h e help Of N orsemen Welsh ,

men Irish and D anes — any mercenaries who could be got

, ,

together ; and then In the s am e year Bi s hop Aldred c o n se

crated the minster at Glou cester to the glory o f G o d and o f S t .

P eter and then went to Jeru s alem w ith such s plendour a s n o

,

man had displayed before him and so forth T h e sum and .

‘
s ubstance Of what wa s done in tho s e happy times may be well
described in the words Of the An glo S axon chronicler f o r the -

‘
year 105 8 T hi s year Alfgar the earl was banished : but he
.

came in again with V iolence throu gh aid o f Griffin ( the king Of ,

N orth Wales hi s brother in law )

, A nd this year came a fleet
- -
.

’
from N orway It i s tediou s to tell how the s e matter s went
. .

-
T hese were the normal h e n o m e n a Of a reign which s eemed
to th e e e s Of chroniclers a Oly and a happy o n e because the
king re u se d w h e t h e r from spite o r super s tition to leave an heir
, ,

to the house Of C erdic and s pent hi s time between prayer hunt

, ,

ing the seeing Of fancied vision s the uttering Of fancied pro ~

, ,

ph e c ie s and the performance Of fancied miracles

,
.

But there were excuse s for him An E nglishman only in .

name a N orman not only by his m other s descent ( she wa s

, ,
’

aunt O f William the C onqueror ) but by his early education o n ,

the C ontinent he loved th e N orman better than the E nglish

,

m an N orman knights and clerks filled his court and Often the ,

h igh dig n i t ies Of his provinces and retu rned as o f t e n as they

‘

were expelled ; the N orman French language became fashion -

able ; N orman custom s and manners the S igns Of civilisation ;

and thu s all was preparin g steadily for the great catastrophe ,

by which within a year Of E dward s death the N orman became

,
’

master o f the land .

We have gained doubtless by that calamity By it E n gland

, , .

and S cotland and in due time Ireland becam e integral p arts of

, ,

the comity O f Christendom and p artakers Of t ha t classic civilis ,

ation and lear n ing the fount whereof for good o r for evil was
, , ,

Ro m e and the pope Of Rome : but the method was at least

wi c ked ; t he actors in it tyrannou s brutal treacherous hy p o , , ,

cri t ical and to say that S O it must have been that by no other
m ethod could the result ( or s ome far be tt er result ) have been
Obtained —i s it not to s ay that m en s crime s are n ot merely over
’
8 H E R EWAR D T HE WA K E
ruled by but necessary to the gracious design s Of P rovidence
, ,

and that — t o S peak plainly — t h e D eity has made thi s world

s o ill that He i s forced at time s to do ill that good may com e ?
,

Against the n e w tyranny the freemen Of the D anelagh and

Of N orthumbria rose If E d w ard the descendant Of Cerdic had
.

been little to them William the descendant Of Rollo wa s s till

,

less T hat French speak ing knight s S hould expel them from
.
-

their h omes French chanting monk s from their convents b e

,
-
,

cause E dward had promised t he crown O f E ngland to William ,

his foreign cousin ; o r because Harold G o d w in sso n o f Wessex

’
had sworn o n the relics Of all the saints to be William s man
was contrary t o their comm on sense Of right and reason .

S O they rose and fought ; too late it may be and w ithout

, , ,

unity o r purpose and they were worsted by an enemy wh o had

both unity and purpose whom s upersti tion greed and feudal , ,

discipline kept t ogether at least in E ngland in o n e compact , ,

body Of u n scrupulous and terrible confederates .

And their s wa s a land wor t h fighting for — a good land and

large : from Humber mouth inland to the T rent and merry
S her w ood across to C hester and the D e e round b y L e ic e st e r
‘

, ,

and the five burghs o f t he D ane s eastward again to Hunting

d o n and Camb ridge (then a poor village o n the S ite Of an Old
Roman town ) ; and then northward again into the w ide fens ,

the land Of the G irv ii where the great central plateau Of E ngland
,

S lides into the sea to form from the rain and river wa s hing s Of
, ,

eight S hires ; lowlands Of a fertility inexhau s tible becau s e ever ,

growing to t his day .

In t o those fens as into a natural fortress the An gl o D anish

, ,
-

noblemen crowded down instin ctively from the inland t o make ,

t heir last stand against the French Children Of the Old Vikings
’
.
,

or C re e k e rs they took in their great need to the seaward

, , ,

and the estuaries a s other conquered races tak e to the moun

,

tains and died like their forefather s within scen t Of the salt
, , ,

s ea from whence they came .

T hey have a beauty Of their o w n these great fens even n ow , , ,

when they are dyked and drained tilled and fenced — a beauty ,

as Of the sea Of boundless expanse and freedom Much m ore

, .

had they that beauty eight hund red years ago when they were ,

s t ill for the m ost par t a s God had made them o r rather was
, , ,

making them even then T h e lo w rolling uplands were clothed .

in primeval fores t o ak and ash beech and elm wi t h here an d , ,

there perhaps a group Of ancient pine s ragged and decayed , ,

and fast dying o u t in E nglan d even then though lingering still

in the forests Of the S cotch highlands .

Between the forests were O p en wolds dotted with white sheep ,

and golden gorse ; rolling p lains Of rich thou gh ra gged turf ,

whether cleared by the hand Of m an o r by the wild fires which

Often swe p t over the hills And between the wood and the .

’
wold stood many a Dani s h to w n with it s cluster s Of lo w ‘
,
10 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E
ing al m o s t compell ing to that wild and de s perate drinking
, ,
’
which was the S candinavian s s pecial S in D ark and sad were .

those short autumn days when all the di s tances were S hut O ff , ,

and the air choked with foul brown f o g and drenching rain s
from O ff the eastern sea and pleasant the bur s ting forth o f the
keen north ea s t wind with all it s whirling s now s torm s For
-
, .

though it sent men hurrying o u t into the s torm to drive th e ,

ca t tle in from the fen and lift the s heep o u t Of the s no w -wreaths
, ,

and now and then never to return lost in mist and mire in ice , ,

and snow — yet all k new that after the s now would come the
k een fro s t and bright sun and cloudless blue sk y and the fen ,
’
man s yearly holiday when work being impossible all gave , , ,

themselves up to play and swarmed upon the ice o n skates and ,

S ledges t o run races township against township o r vi s it O ld

, , ,

friend s full forty miles away ; and met everywhere faces as

bright and ruddy as their o w n cheered by the keen wine Of that ,

dry and bracing fro s t .

S uch was the Fenland hard yet cheerful rearin g a race Of ,

hard and cheerful men ; S howing their power in o ld time s in

valiant fighting and for many a century since in that valiant
,

industry which has drained and embanked the land Of the

G irv ii till it has becom e a very Garden Of the L ord
,
And the .

highlander w h o may look from the promontory Of P eterborough ,

’
the golden boro u gh Of Old time or from that Witham o n th e
Hill which once wa s a farm Of H
,
ereward the Wake s o r from ’

the to w er O f C rowland w hile he and T o rf rid a s leep in the ,

ruined nave beneath o r from the heights o f that I s le o f E ly

which was so long the camp Of refuge for E ngli s h freedom ;
over the labyrinth Of dykes and lodes t he squares Of rich corn ,

and verdure will confess that the lowland s a s well a s the

,
-
,

highland s can at time s breed gallant men

,
.

Mo s t gallant Of them all and their leader in the fatal s truggle ,

against William wa s Hereward the Wake L ord Of Bourne and

, , ,

ancestor o f that family Of Wak e the arms Of whom appear o n ,

t he co ver Of thi s book T hese Of course are much later than .

, ,

the time Of Hereward N o t s o probably the badge Of the .

, ,
’ ’
‘
Wak e K not in which (according to tradition ) t w o m onks
,

girdles are worked into the form Of the letter W It and the .
,

mo t to Vigila e t ora may well have bee n used by Hereward

’
‘
,

himself I o w e them ( as I do n umberles s details and corree

.

tions ) to the exceeding courtesy Of that excellent antiquary the ,

Re v E T rollope O f L easingham in those part s

. .
, ,
.

Hereward s p edigree is a m atter Of n o im o rt an c e save to a

’
,

few antiquaries and possibly t o his dese en ants the ancient

, ,

and honourable h ouse Of the Wak es But as I have in this .

,

story followed facts as strictly as I could altering none which

, ,

I found and inventing little m ore than was needed to give the
,

story coherence o r to illustrate the manner s o f the time , I o w e

,
 OF T HE F EN S 11

it to my s elf t o give my reason for be lieving Hereward to have

been the son Of E arl L eofric and Godiva a belief in which I am ,

s upported a s far as I k now only by S ir Henry E llis ( I n t ro du c

, ,

tion to D omesday ) and by Mr T homa s Wright T h e reason s . .

against my belief ( well known t o antiquaries ) are these— Richard

Of E ly calls him S im p ly the so n o f L eofric L ord Of Brunne and , ,

O f E diva and h is MS is by far the m ost important document

.

rela t ing to Hereward But he s ays that the Older MS S which

. .

h e consulted were S O ruined by damp and torn that vix es eis , ,

‘

principium a ge n it o rib u s e j u s in c e pt u m e t pauca interim ex ,

p re ssim u s e t nomen ,in fact that he had m uch d iflic u lt y in

making o u t Hereward s pedigree He says m oreover as t o’
.
, ,

L eofric the Mass P riest s Anglo -S axon MSS

’
In q uibu s (An glic ae .
,

liter ae) vero non licet non sati s periti aut potins e x arare deleta
in co gn it aru m lit e raru m — which passage (W hatever may have
’

been the word now w an t ing to complete it) certainly confe s se s

that he was but a poor adept at deciphering Anglo S axon MSS -
.

He need hardly have confes s ed a s m uch f o r the misspelli n gs Of

E nglish names in his work are more gross than even those in
D omesday ; and it i s not improbable that among the rest he
have rendered Godiva o r it s E ngli s h equivalent, by
n
jécy
a ,

I va .

T hat he s hould have b een ignorant that L eofric wa s not

merely L ord Of Bou rne but E arl Of Mercia will n ot s eem s ur
, ,

prisin g to t ho s e wh o k now h ow u tterly the E ngli s h n obility

were trampled into the mud T O the N ormans they were .

barbarian s w ithout a name o r a race T hey were dead and .

gone too and w h o cared for the pedigree Of a dead man whose
,

lands had passed to another ? T hu s Of Marle sw e yn nothing i s

known O f E dric the Wild a great C hieftain in hi s day all but
.
, ,
’
n othing G o spat ric s pedigree ha s been s aved in part by his
.
, ,

relationship to royalty both S cotch and E nglish ; and S iward

,
’
D igre s lik e that Of Gyda his kinswoman by their relationship
, , ,
’
with the kings Of D enmark and the Fairy Bear But G yd a s .
,

husband the great E arl Godwin had becom e within three

, ,
’ ’ ’
generations a herdsman s son and even Mr Freeman s research ,
.

and j udgment cannot decide his true pedigree As for L eofric .

,

w e know that h e was so n (according to Florence Of Worce s ter )

Of L e o f w i n the Alderman and had two brothers o n e N orman , , ,

killed by C anute with E dric S t re o n 10 1 7 ( according t o In ulf)

the o t her E dri c E dwin killed by the Welsh 1 0 3 9 But w e n o w
,
.

n o more .

T hat Ingulf should mak e him die A D 1 0 5 7 i s n o t strange in .

,

S pite Of his many mistakes ; for the Anglo S axon C hronicle -

gives the sam e date But the m onk w h o p robably a centu ry

.
,

o r m ore after Ingulf interpolated from Richard O f E ly the

,

a ssage beginning At this time a nobleman the L ord Of

,
‘
,
’
Ourme etc sub an n O 1 06 2 may well have been ign o rant that
,
.
,

L eofric L ord o f Bou rne wa s al s o E arl Of Mercia

, ,
But what .
12 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E
need to argue over any statement Of the S O called Ingulf o r -
,

rather I n gu lfic C ycle 2 I shall only add that th e p assage sub

‘

anno 10 6 6 beginning He rw ard who has been previously men

,
‘
,
’
tioned seems to be again by a di ff eren t hand
,
.

Meanwhile t he E x c erp t u m d e Fam i lia Herew ard i calls him

plainly the so n O f L eofric E arl O f Mercia and the L ady Godiva ; , ,

giving to her the same genealogy as is given by Richard Of E ly

to fE d iv a .

T his account O f Hereward s family is taken from a document

’

Of no greater an t iquity t han the fifteenth century a ge n e a ,

logical roll Of the L ords of Bourne and D eeping who traced ,

their descent and t itle to the lands from Hereward s daughter ’

but it was n o doubt taken either from previously existing

record s o r from the O ld tradition Of the family and with n o
, ,

authority for contradicting it and considering its general agree ,

ment with the o t her evidence it is p lain that L eofric Of Bourne ,

was generally u nderstood to be the great E arl Of Mercia o f that

name .

But the strongest evidence o f the identity between L eofric Of

If lr
o u n e and L eofric E arl o f Mercia is to be found in D omesday , ,

l OO
T h e L ord Of Bourne at the time Of the C onquest, as is proved
by the Cla m o res cle Kest ev en , was Morcar , L eofric Of Me rc ia s
’

grandson T his o n e fact is all but conclusive , unless we sup

.

p ose that L eofric Of B ourne had been dispossessed Of his

’
‘
d ominium by Morcar, o r by E arl Algar his father o r, again , ,

by E arl L eofric his grandfather Bu t such an hypothesis .

accords ill with the amity between Morcar and Hereward and
it is all but impossible that if Hereward s family were then ,
’

dis p ossessed the fact S hould not appear in any o f hi s bio

,

gra p hies .

But D om esday book gives no hint o f any large landholders -

in o r near Bourne save Morcar lord thereof whose name s till , , ,

lingers in the Mo rk e ry Wood s a few miles o ff ; E dwin his

’ ‘
,

bro t her and Algar his father son Of E arl L eofric and Godiva ,
.

T h e famous Godiva also was probably a L incoln s hire woman , , ,

though t he manors which she held in her widowhood were

princi p ally in S hropshire T h e domains o f her ancestor the .
,
‘

’
magnificent E arl O sla o wh o lived in the d ays of K ing E dgar , ,

were D eira i e D anish N orthumbria from Humber to T ees ;

,
. .
,

and he m ay have s p rung from (as his name hin t s ) the ancien t
kings O f D eira But charters ( as far as we can tr u st them )
.

c onnect him both wi t h P eterborough and C rowland and his

descendant was T horold Of B u ke n h ale near C rowland S heri ff O f ,

L incoln from wh om the ancient T h o ro ld s Of those p arts clai m

,

des c en t and t his T horold a pp ears in a charter o f 1 0 6 1 attested , ,

by L eofric and Godiva as giving the cell o f S p alding to C row ,

land T h e sam e charter describes the manor o f S palding as b e

.

longing to E arl L eofric His so n Algar who s e name remains in .

,
 O F T HE FENS 13

Algarkirk appear s as a benefactor to C rowland And in fine

1
,
.
, ,

the great folk Of Bourne as well as S p aldin g were w ithou t , ,

doub t the family o f L eofric E arl Of Mer c ia and C heste r and Of

the L ady Godiva ; the pare iI t S as I conceive Of He re w ard He
, ,

, , .

would thus o n t he dea t h Of Morcar son o f his elder brother

, ,

Al gar take possession by natural righ t Of the lor d shi p Of

,

B ourne and keep up a special enmity against I v o T aillebois

, ,

wh o had taken S palding from his p atrim ony .

L astly it is difficult t o me to su p pose that Hereward would

,

h ave been allowed t o tak e the undisputed command Of a rebel

lion S O aristocra t ic as t hat Of the Fens over the heads Of three ,

earls Morcar am ong them had he n ot p ossessed some such

, ,
’
natural right Of birth as an earl s son and probably like most , , ,

great E nglish earls families Of an cient royal and therefore ’

, ,

God descended blood ,

.

O n the sup p osition t o o that he wa s the last re m ain in heir , ,

’
Of the E arls Of Mercia may be ex p lained William s s trong e si re ,

to S pare his life and rece i ve his homage as an atonement fo r ,

his conduct to E dwin and Morcar and a last e ffort t o attach t o ,

himself the ancient E nglish nobili t y But Of t his enough and .

,

more than enough and so to my s tory .

1
T h e fi rst E arl Al gar
ch arter in t h e d ays o f Be o rrh ed ign s
‘ ’

,
wh o S a ,

k in g o f t h e Me rcian s an d w h o d o es d o ughty d e e d s ab o ut A D 8 7 0 is t o
,
. .
, ,

m e as m yth ic al as t h e fi rst Mo rcard L o rd o f B ru n e w h o acco m pan i e s

’

, , ,

h im ; t h e fi rst T h o ro l d o f B u k en h ale w h o g ave th at pl ace t o Cro wl an d ,

ab o ut A D 806 an d t h e fi rst L e o fri c o r E arl o f L e ice ste r (i e

’
. .
, L e v ric ,
‘
, . .

Me rcia) w h o h e l ps t o fo u n d in Crowl an d A D 7 1 6 a m o aste ry O f b lack

, , . .
,
‘
n

Mo n ks T h e Mo n k s o f Cro wla d we re perh aps tryi n g t o wo rk o n Hugh

’
. n , ,

E v e rm u e He rewar d s so n in law o r Rich ard Of Ru l o s h is gran d so n in

’
- - -
, , ,

law as th ey were t ryi g t o wo rk o n t h e N o rm an k in g s wh en th e y

,
n ,

i n ve n te d th ese ch arte rs Of t h e e ighth an d n in th ce n t uri e s with n am e s o f ,

S ax o n k i n g s a d n o b l e s O f Le o fric an d G o d iva s h o u se ; o r agai n t h e

’

,
n , ,

l an d b e in g n o to rio u sly give n t o Crowl an d b y m e n O f certai n n am e s w h o ,

were th en Of n o auth o rity as reb els an d d ispo sse sse d it w as n e cessary t o ,

i n ven t m en O f lik e n am es w h o were s afe ly en tren ch e d b e h i n d S ax o n ,

an ti u i ty with t h e an ce sto rs O f E dward t h e Co n fe sso r B u t in th e ir

q .

cl um sin e ss th ey se e m t o h ave m in gl e d with th e m in t h e sai d ch arters an d ,

th e ir m yth ic b attl e s again st t h e Dan e s pu rely Dan ish n am e s S u ch as , ,

S iward A sk e t yl Az e r Hard i n g G rim k e t yl W u lf k t yl e t c wh ich su rely

, , , , ,
e ,
.
,

pro ve t h e fraud M e an wh ile t h e v e ry n am e s O f L e v ric A l g ar Mo rcar

.
, , , ,

T h o ro l d g e n u in e o r n o t se e m t o pro ve th at t h e h o u ses O f L e o fri c an d

, ,

G o d iva we re an cie n t ru l ers in th ese parts wh o se ph an tom s h ad t o b e ,

e vo k e d wh e n n e e d e d .
 C HA P T E R I
HOW HE RE W ARD W A S OU T L AW E D , AN D W E N T N ORT H T O S E E K
HI S FO RT U N E S

IN K e s teven Of L incoln s hire between the forest and the fen lie s , ,

the good market town Of Bourne the birthplace according to

-
, ,

all tradition Of t w o reat E nglishmen Of C ecil L ord Burleigh

, ,

j ustly remembered t ro u gh o u t all time and Of Hereward the ,

Wake not unj ustly perhap s lon g forgotten T w o long s treets

, , , .

meet opposite the house where B u rle igh was born , o n e from
S palding and the eastern fens the other from the forest and , ,

the line Of the o ld Roman road o n the north From thence the .

Watergang S treet leads by the S ide o f clear running streams to , ,

the Old Priory church and the great labyrin t h Of grass grown
,
-

bank s which wa s once the castle Of the Wakes O riginally it

,
.
,

may be tho s e earthworks were a Roman camp guardi n g the

, ,

King S treet o r Roman road which split s O ff from the E rmine

, ,

S treet near Ca s tor and run s d u e north through Bourne to S le a

,

ford . T hey may have gu ard e d t o o the Car dyke o r great , .

,
-
,

C atchwater drain which run s from Peterborough northward

,

into the heart o f L incolnshire a still enduring m onument Of ,

-

Roman geniu s T heir s ite n o t o n o n e o f the hills behind but

.
, ,

o n the dead flat meadow was determined doubtle ss by the noble ,

fountain bourn o r brunne which ri s e s am ong the earthwork s

, , , ,

and give s it s nam e to the whole town In the flat meado w .

bubbles u p still the great pool Of limestone water cry s tal clear , ,

s uddenly and at once ; and run s away winter and s ummer a , ,

stream large enough to turn many a mill and spread perpetual ,

verdure through the fat champaign land s .

T h e fountain wa s doub tless in the middle age miraculou s

, , ,

and haunted perhap s in heathen times divine and consecrate , , .

E ven till a late date the millers Of Bourne paid water dues to
,
-

those Of a village some mile s away o n the strength Of the u n

doub t ed fact that a duck put into Bourne Pool would pas s
,

underground into the m illh e ad Of the said village D oubtles s .

it was a holy well such as were common in the easte rn countie s

, ,

a s they are still in Ireland ; a well where rag s flower s and , ,

other gew -gaw s might have been s een hanging Offering s to the ,
C H AP . I HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 15

‘ ’
spirit Of the well whether o n e Of tho s e nicker s d e v e le n o r
, , ,
‘ —
luther go s tes which S t Bo t u lf met when he founded Boston
’
, .

near by o r o n e Of tho s e fair ladies

,
el ves o r water —nymphs ‘
,
’ ‘
,
’
,

who exorci s ed from the N orth s till linger in the foun t ains Of
, ,

modern Greece E xorcised cer t ainly the fairy Of Bourne was .

, ,

at an early date ; for before the C onqu est the P e t erborough

monk s had founded a cell outside the ca s tle di t ch and calling , ,

in the aid o f the chief Of the Apostles against tho s e spiri t s Of

darkness w h o peopled innumerable earth air water and fen , , , , , ,
’ ‘
e c h rist e n e d it a s Pe t e rspo o l which name it bear s unto
i
11
t} is g
,

ar
Milifary s kill ha s evidently uti li s ed the water s Of the Peter s , ,

pool from the earliest time s T hey fil led at some remote period .
, ,

the dykes at a great earthwork to the north which has been ,

overlooked by antiquaries because it did n o t ( seemingly ) form ,

part Of the en cein t e Of the m edi aeval ca s tle Of the Wakes It .

still fills the dykes o f that castle whereof n othing remains n o w ,

s ave bank s Of turf an d o n e great artificial barrow o n which ,

’
,

stood the keep even in L eland s time it would s eem s om ewhat

, , ,

d ilapidate
‘
T here appear he says grete ditches and the
‘ ’
.
, , ,

dungeon hill Of an ancient castle agayn the west end O f the

P rior It lo n ggid to the L ord Wake and much s ervice Of
the ake fee i s done to this Castelle and every feodary knoweth ,
’
hi s station and place o f s ervice .

O f the stonework nothing n o w remain s T h e sq uare dun .

‘
geon a fayre and p re t t ie building with iv square tower s
, , .

hall chambers all manner Of houses and OHICC S f o r the lord and
, ,

his train and so forth i s utterly gone T h e gate—hou s e thirty

’1
, , .
,

feet hi gh with it s circular S axon ( probably N orman ) arch has

, ,

been pulled down by the L ord s Of Burleigh to build a farm ,

hou s e the fair park i s di v ided into fair meado w s and a large
part Of the tow n o f Bourne i s probably built Of the materials , ,

Of the Wakes ca s tle and the P riory which arose under its pro
’
, ,

t e c t io n T ho s e Priory land s pa s sed into the han d s Of T rollopes

.

and Po c h in s a s did the lan d S O f the ca st le into tho s e O f the

,
.

C ecil s ; and Of that fee Of the Wakes all as far as I kn ow i s , , ,

’
lost f o rs l h o n n eu r which shone o u t Of late in tha t hero of
,
'
,
’
Arrah who p roved by hi s valou r pertinacity and S hiftfulnes s
, , , , ,

n ot unworth y Of hi s great ancestor Hereward Verily the good .

Old blood Of E ngland i s not ye t worn o u t .

A pleasant ) lace and a rich is Bourne now and a plea s ant

place and ric li m u st it have be en in the Ol d Anglo D anish
, ,
-

times when the hall Of L eofric the great E arl Of Mercia s t ood
, , ,
’
where the Wakes feudal castle s tood in after years T O t he .

s outh and wes t stretched as now the illimitable flat Of fen , , ,

wi t h the spires Of C rowland gleaming bright between hi h tree s

upon the s outhern hori z on ; and to the north from t e very ,

1
Pe ak
’
s accoun t o f t h e to wn s in K esteven .
16 H EREWAR D T HE WA KE CHAP .

edge O f t he town field s rose the great B ru n e sw ald the forest Of

, ,

o ak and ash and elm which still cover s many mile s Of L in c oln
, , ,

shire a s Bourne Wood Grimsthorpe Park and p ark s and wood

, , ,

lands with out number T o the south west it j oined the great.
-

forest Of Ro c kingham in N orthamptonshire T O the west it all

,
.
,

but marched with C harnwood Forest in L eicestershire and to ,

th e north w est with the great S herwood which covered

, ,

N ottinghamshire and reached over the border s Of York s hire

, .

Mighty fowlin g and fishing w as there in the fen below and ,

mighty h unti n g o n the weald above where still hau nt in , ,

Grim sthorpe P ark th e primeval red deer descendants o f those

,
-
,

who fell by Hereward s bow ere yet th e first L ovell had built
’

hi s castle o n the steep o r the C istercian m onks Of Fountain s ,

had found o u t the deep embowered vale o f God and settled -

,

themselves in the glen beneath the castle walls .

It is Of those earlier day s that this story tell s Of the latter

half O f the eleventh century and the eve Of the N orman Co n ,

quest when L eofric the E arl had th e dominion in forest and

,

manorial rights in wood and town and fen ; and beside him
, , , ,

upon the rich strip o f champaign other free D anish holders , ,

whose names may be still found in D omesday book held sm all -

,

estate s and owed probably some military service to the great

, ,

earl at the hall within the Roman earth w ork .

T h e house Of Bourne as far as it can be reconstructed by ,

imagination was altogether unlik e o n e Of the tall and gloom y

,

N orman cas t le s which in the course Of the next f e w genera

,

tion s m ust have taken it s place It was much more like a house
, .

in a C hinese p ainting an irregular group o f low buildings ,

almost all Of o n e storey s tone below and timber above with , ,

high p eaked roofs — at lea s t in the m ore D anish country— a ff ord

-

in g a separate room o r rat her house for each di fferen t n eed Of

, ,

the family S uch a o n e may be seen in the illuminations o f the

.

century In the centre Of the buildi n g is the hall with a d oor

.
,

o r doors opening out into the court and S itting t hereat at the
t he t o p Of a flight Of s t eps the lord and lady dealing clothe s to , ,

the naked and bread to the h u ngry Behind the hall is a round .

t ower seemingly the strong place Of the whole house It must

,
.

have stood at Bou rne upon the dungeon hill O n o n e side Of .

t he hall i s a chapel by it a large room or bower for the ladies ;

o n the o t her side a kitchen ; and stuck o n to bower kitchen , ,

and every other p rincipal buildi n g l ean to after lean to the ,

- -
,

uses Of whi c h i t is impossible n o w t o discover T h e hou s e had .

grown wi t h t he wants Of t he family— as many good Old E ngli sh

houses have done to this day Round it would be scattered .

barn s and stables in which grooms and herdsmen slept side by

,

side wi t h their own horses and cattle beyond the yard garth , , ,

o r garden fence high earth bank s with palisades o n top while

-
,
-
,

the wa t ers O f the Pe t e rsp o o l wandered around outside all S uch .

’ ‘ ’
wa s most probably the villa t o n o r tow n o f E arl L eofric ‘
,
’
, , ,
18 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

’
may be t o s ome son Of L eofric s s taunch friend Old S iward
,

D igre and the mother may be Of the two youn g S iwards the , , ,
’ ‘ ’
‘
white and the red who figure in chronicle and legend as the ,

nephew s Of Hereward B ut this last pedigree is little m ore . ,

than a conj ecture .

Be these thing s a s they may Godiva wa s the greatest lady in ,

E ngland save t w o E di t h Harold s sister the nominal wife Of

’
, , ,

E dward the C onfessor and G it h a o r Gyda as her o w n D ane s , ,

called her Harold s mother niece Of C anute the Great Great

,
’
,
.

wa s Godiva and might have been p roud enough had she been
, ,

inclined to that pleasant sin But alway s ( fo r t here i s a S k e le .

ton they say in every ho u se) she carried that about her w hich
, ,

might well keep her humble namely shame at the misconduct ,

Of Hereward h er son ,
.

N o w o n a day — about the year 105 4 — while E arl S iward wa s

helping to brin g Birnam wood to D unsinane t o avenge h is ,

m u rdered brother — in law L ady Godiva sat not at her hall door -
, ,
-
,

dealing food and cl othing to her thirteen poor folk but i n her ,

bower with h e r younges t son a two years boy at her k nee

, ,
-
’
,
.

S h e wa s listening with a face O f shame and horror to the c o m

plain t Of He rlu in s teward Of P eterborough who had fallen in
, ,

this afternoon with Hereward and his crew o f h o u se c re t e s .

T O keep a following o f stout h o u se c arle s o r men at arm s wa s ,

- -
,

the pride a s well as the duty o f an Anglo D anish lord a s it wa s -

, ,

till lately Of a S coto D anish highland laird And Hereward

,
-
.
,

i n imitation Of his father and his elder brother m u st need s ,

have his following fro m the time h e wa s but fifteen year s Old .

All the unruly youth s o f the neighbourhood sons Of free ,

’
holders who o w ed some sort o f military service to E arl
‘
,

L eofric Geri Hereward s cousin Winter whom he called hi s

’
, ,

brother in arm s the W u lf ric s the W u lfard s the Az e rs and

- -
, , ,

many ano t her wild blade had banded them s elve s round a young ,

nobleman more unruly than themselves T heir names were .

already a terror to all decen t folk at wake s and fairs aleh ouse s , ,

and village sports T hey atoned be it remembered f o r their .

, ,

early sins by making those names in after year s a terror to the

,

invaders Of their native land : but as yet their p rowess wa s

limited to d runken brawl s and faction figh t s to upsetting Old -

women at their work levying blackmail from quiet chapmen o n ,

the highroad o r bringing back in triumph sword in hand and

, ,

cl ub o n shoulder their leader Hereward from some d u el which

,

his insolence h ad provoked .

B ut thi s time if the story o f the steward was to be believed

, ,

Hereward and hi s h o u se c a rle s had taken an ugly stride forward

toward t he pit T hey had met h im riding along intent upon
.
,

his psalter home towards his abbey from its cell at Bourne
,

Whereon your son mos t gracious lady bade me s tand s aying , , ,

that his m en were thirs t y ; and he had no m oney to b u y ale

withal and none S O likely to help h im thereto a s a fat prie s t
,
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 19

fo r s o he scandalously termed me w h o as your ladyship knows , , ,

am leaner than the minster bell ropes with fasting Wednesdays -

,

and Frid ays throughout the year beside the vigils Of the saints , ,

and the former and latter L ents .

‘
B ut when he saw wh o I was as if inspired by a malignant ,

spirit he shouted out my name and bade hi s companions throw

, ,
’
m e to t he ground .

’
T hro w you to the ground Z shuddered th e L ady Godiva
‘
.

‘
In much m ire madam After which he took my palfrey
,
.
,
’
saying that heaven s ga t e was too lo w ly for men o n horseback
’
to get in thereat and then my marten s fur gloves and ca p e
which your gracious self bestowed on m e alleging that th e rule s ,

Of my order allowed only o n e garm ent and no fu rs save catskins ,

and suchlike And lastly— I tremble while I relate thinking

.
,

n o t o f the loss Of my poor money but the loss Of an immortal ,

soul— took from m e a purse wi t h sixteen silver pennies which ,

I had collected from o u r tenants for the u se o f the m onastery ,

and said blasphem ously that I and m ine had chea t ed your lady
shi p and therefore him your son out O f many a fat manor ere
, ,

n ow and it was but fair that h e should tithe t he rents thereof ,

as h e should never get th e l an ds o u t Of o u r cla w s again ; wi t h

m ore Of the like whi c h I blush to repeat— and S O left m e to
,
’
trudge hi t her in t he mire .

’
‘
Wretched b o y ! said the L ady Godiva and hid her face in ,

her hands and m ore w retched I to have brought such a so n ,

into the world I

T h e monk had hardly finished h is doleful story when there ,

was a p attering Of heav y feet a n oise Of men sh outing and ,

laughing outside and a v oice above all calling for the monk by
,

name which made that good man crouch behind th e curtain o f

,
’
L ady Godiva s bed T h e next m oment the door Of the bower
.

was thrown v iolently Open and in s waggered a noble lad ,

eighteen year s Old His face was o f extraordinary beauty save

.
,

that the lower j aw was too long and h eavy and that his eyes ,

wore a strange and almost sinister expressio n from the fact that ,
t he o n e Of the m was gray and the other blue He was short , .
,

but Of immense breadth Of c hest and strength Of limb while his

delicate hands and feet and long locks O f golden hair marked
him o f most n oble and even as he really was Of ancient royal
, , ,

race He was dressed in a gaudy costu m e resembling o n t he

.
,

whole that Of a Highland C hief t ain His wrists and throat .

were tattooed in blue patterns ; 1 and he carried s w ord and

1
S om e an ti qu ari e s h av e d e n ie d , o n t h e g ro u n d O f in su ffi ci e n t e vi d en c e ,
th at t h e E n glish tatto o e d th e m selve s Oth e rs h ave re ferre d t o so m e such
.

cu sto m t h e secre t m ark s b y wh ich h e ro e s are S O O fte n re co gn ise d in O ld

ro m an ce s, as we ll as th o se b y wh ich E d ith t h e S wan -n e ck is s ai d t o h ave
re co gn ise d Haro l d s b o dy o n t h e fi e l d Of Hastin gs Hereward is, lik ewise ,
’
.

re co g n i se d b y sign is sati s e x q u isit is i n c o rpo re d e sign an t ia v u l n e ra t e n u

i ssim o ru m c icat ricu m I am n o t an sw erab l e fo r t h e L ati n b u t as I
’
.
20 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E C HAP .

1
dagger a gold ring round his neck and gold ring s o n hi s wrists
, , .

He was a lad to have gladdened the eyes Of any mother : bu t

’
t here w as n o gladness in the L ady Godiva s eyes as she received
him n or had there been for many a year S h e looked o n him
,
.

with sternness with all bu t horror and he his face flushe d

, ,

with wine which he had t os s ed O ff as he p assed through the hall

,

to steady his nerves for the coming storm look ed at her with ,

smiling defiance the result o f long e s trangement between ,

mo t her and son .

’
Well my lady said he ere she could speak I heard that
‘
, , , ,
‘

this good fellow was here and came h ome as fast as I could to ,
’
see that h e t old yo u as few lies as possible .

H has told me said she that yo u have robbed the C hurch

a
’ ‘

Og
, ,

0f
Robbed him it m ay be an Old h OO d y crow against whom I
‘
, , ,
’
have a grudge of ten years standing .
’

Wretched wretched boy ! What wickedness next ? K now

‘
,

you n ot that he who robs the Church robs God Himself ?

, ,
’

If a m an sin against an other p u t in the monk from behind ,

’

the c urtain the j udge shall j udge him but if a man S in against
,

the L ord who shall intreat for him

,
’
Who indeed ? cried L ady Godiva
‘
T hink think hapless .
‘
, ,

boy what it is to go about the world hencefo rt h wi t h the wrat h

,

Of Him who made it abiding on you — cut O ff from the protection

Of all angels O p en to the assaults Of all de v ils ? Ho w will your
,

life be safe a moment from lightning from flood from slippin g , ,

k nife from s t umbling horse from some hidden and hideou s

, ,

death ? If the fen fi e n d s lure you away to drown yo u in t h e -

river o r t he wood fie n d s leap o n you in the thick e t to wrin g

,
-

your ne c k O f what use to you then the suffrages Of the saints

, ,

or the S ign of the holy cross ? Wha t hel p what h ope fo r yo u , ,

for m e —but that yo u m ust perish foully and it m ay be never , , ,

find a grave ? ’

L ady Godiva— a s the constant associate Of clerks and m onk s

-
s p ok e after an artificial and L a t inised fashion at which ,

Hereward was not wont to lau g h and j est but as he believed ,

n o less than his p ious m other in innumerable devils and ghosts , ,

and o t her u n c anny creatures who would surely do him a mis ,

c hief if they could h e began to feel somewhat frightened but ,

he answered n one th e less s toutly

u d erstan d it it
n , very d e licate m ark s
f
re e rs n o t t o w ar-wo u n ds bu t to .

Mo re o ve r William o f Mal m e sb u ry su b an n o 1 06 6 se e m s su ffi cie n tly e x

, , ,

plic it wh e n h e says th at t h e E n glish ad o rn e d th e ir sk i n s wi th pu n ctu re d

’
d e si o n s
My
.

a n ot o u r sa ilo rs fash i o n
tatto o in g th e ir arm s a d ch e sts with
’
Of n

stra g e d e vi c e s b e a re m an t O f th i s v e ry fash io
n k e pt u p i f o t rigin
n n , ,
n o

at d b y t h e d esire th at t h
e ,
co rpse sh o u ld b e re c g ise d after d e ath e o n
1
E arl W alt h e o f app ars t o I gu l f in a d re am a fe w years afte r wi th a
e n , ,

g o ld to rc ro u n d h is n e ck .
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 21

A s for devils and suchlike I never s aw o n e yet by fl O O d o r

‘
, , ,

field night or day An d if o n e com es I must j ust co p y Old

,
.
,

Baldwin Bras de Fer Of Flanders and see whether the devil o r

- -
,

I can hit hardest As for the m oney— I have no grudge agains t

.

S t P e t er ; and I will warrant myself t o rob some o n e else O f

.

sixteen pennies ere lon g and pay the s aint back every ,

far t hing .
’

‘
T h e saint take s not the fruits O f robbery He w ould hurl .

’
them far away by might divine were they laid upon his altar
, , ,

quoth the steward .

‘
I wonder he has not hurled thee away long ago then with , ,

thy gif t s abou t t hine ears for th ou has t brou ght many a bag Of
grist to his mill ere now t hat was as foully earned as au gh t O f
, ,

mine I tell thee m an if thou art wise thou wilt hold t hy

.
, , ,

tongue and let m e and S t P e t er set t le this quar rel between us

,
. .

I have a long score against thee as thou k n owest which a gen t le , ,

bat t ery in the green w ood has but half paid O ff and I warn t hee
n ot to make i t longer by t hy tongue lest I shorten the said ,
’
tongue fo r thee with cold steel .

W hat does he m ean ? asked Godiva shuddering ’

,
.

‘
T his qu oth Hereward fiercely en ough ; that this m onk ,
‘

forgets that I have been a m onk m yself o r S h ould have been ,

one by now if yo u my pious m o t her had had your will o f me

, , , ,

a s yo u may if yo u lik e Of that baby there at you r knee He .

forgets why I left P eterb orough Abbey when Winter an d I ,

’
turned all the priest s books upside down in t he choir and they ,

would have flogged u s— me the earl s son m e the Viking s son ,

’
-
,
’

—m e the champion as I will be yet and mak e all lan d s ring

, , ,

with the fame Of m y deeds as they ran g with the fam e Of my ,

forefathers before they became the slaves Of m onk s and h o w

, ,

when Winter and I got h old Of the kitchen spits and up to the ,

top Of the peat stack by B O lld yk e gate and held them all at bay
- -
,

there a whole ab b e yf u l O f cowards there against two seven years

,
-
’

children — it was that w easel there bade set the peat sta c k
,
-

alight under us and so bring u s down and would have done it

, ,

t oo had it not been for my uncle Brand the only man that I
, ,

care for in this wide w orld D O you think I have not owed yo u .

a grudge ever since that day monk ? And do you think I will ,

n ot pay it ? D O you t hink I w ould not have burned P eter

borough minster over you r head before n ow had it n o t been for ,
’
uncle Brand s sak e ? S e e that I do n o t d o i t yet S e e that .

when there is another p rior in Borough you do n ot find Here

ward the Berserker smoking you out some dark night as he ,
’
would smoke a wasp s nest An d I will b y .
,

Hereward Hereward c ried his m other godless God for

, ,
‘
,
-

gotten boy what words are t hese ? S ilence before you burden
, ,

your soul with an oath which t he devils in hell will accep t and
force you to k ee p an d she sprang u p and seizing his arm laid
,
’
, ,

her hand upon his m outh .

22 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E C HAP .

Hereward looked at her maj estic face once lovel n o w stern ,

and careworn and trembled for a m oment Ha there been .

any tenderness in it his history might have been a very differ

,

ent o n e : but alas ! there was none N o t t hat she was in her
, .

self u ntender but that her grea t piety ( call it n o t super s tition ,

for i t w a s then the only form known or possible to pure and

devout souls ) was so outraged by this ins u lt to that clergy whose
willing slave she had become that the only meth od Of reclaim ,

ing the sinner had been lo n g forgotten in genuine horror at his

‘ ’
sin . Is i t n o t enough she went o n sternly that yo u s h ould
, ,
‘

have be c om e the bully and the ru ffian o f all the fens — that
Hereward t he leaper Hereward the w restler Hereward t he
, ,

t hrower of the ham mer — sports after all only fit for t he sons Of
slaves sh ould be also Hereward the drunkard Hereward the
, ,

common fighter Hereward the break er O f h ouses Hereward th e

, ,

leader o f mobs Of boon com p anions wh o bring back to u s in ,

shame and sorrow the days when o u r heathen forefathers

,

ravaged this land with fire and sword ? Is it n o t enough f o r m e

that my son should be a comm on stabber
‘
Whoever called me stabber to you lies If I have k illed , .

men o r had them killed I have done it in fair fight

,
’
,
.

Bu t she wen t on unheeding — Is it n ot en ough that after ‘

having squan dered o n you r fellows all t he m oney t hat you could
wring from my b ounty or win at your base sports yo u should ,

have robbed you r own fa t her collected his rent s behind hi s ,

back tak en money and goods from his tenants by threats and
,

blows bu t that after ou t raging t hem yo u mu st add to all this

, ,

a worse sin lik ewise ou t raging G o d and driving me— m e wh o

, ,

have borne wi t h you m e w h o have concealed all f o r your sake

,

to tell your father that Of which the very te lling w ill turn m y
’
hair to gray ?
S O you will tell m y father ? s aid Hereward coolly
’
.

And if I should not this m onk him self is bound t o d o s o o r

‘
, ,

hi s su p erior your uncle Brand

, .
’

’
My uncle Brand will n o t and your m onk dare not ,
.

‘
T hen I m ust I have loved you lo n g and well but there is
.

On e thing which I must lo ve better than yo u and that is my ,

’
c ons c ience and m y Maker .

T h ose are two t hings m y lady m other and n o t o n e so yo u

, ,

had better not confou n d them A s for t he latter do you n o t .

,

t hink that He who m ade the world is well able to defend His
o w n p ro p er t y — if the lands and houses and cattle a n d m oney , , , ,

which these men wheedle and th reaten and forge o u t Of yo u and

m y father are really His property and n o t merel y their plunder ?
, ,

As for you r con science my lady m other really you have done so
, ,

many good deeds in you r life t hat it might be b eneficial to you ,

to do a bad deed once in a way so as t o keep your soul in a ,

’
wh olesom e state o f humility .

T h e monk groaned aloud L ady Godiva groaned ; but it was .

 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 23

inwardly T here wa s silence for a m oment Both were aba s hed

. .

’
by the lad s utter shamelessnes s .

‘
An d yo u will tell my father s aid he again He i s at the .
‘

Old miracle worker s court at Westmi n ster He w ill tell the

-
’
.

miracle worker and I shall be outlawed

-
, .
’

An d if yo u be wretched b o y whom have yo u to blame but your

, ,

self ? Can you expect that the king sainted even as he is before ,

his death dare p ass over su ch an O ffence against Holy C hurch ?

,
’

‘
Blame ? I shall blam e no o n e Pas s over ? I hope he will .

n o t pass over it I only want an excuse like that fo r turning

.

k e m p e ry m an — knight errant as those N orman puppies call it

- -
,
—lik e Re gn ar L o d b ro g o r Frit h io f o r Harold Hard raade ; and ,
,

try wha t a man can do for himself in the world with nothing
to help h im in heaven and earth with neither saint n o r angel , ,

friend o r counsellor to see to him save his wits and his good , ,

sword S O send O ff the m essenger good mother mine and I will

.
, ,

promise yo u I will not have him ham strung o n the way a s -

,

some Of my h o u se c arle s would do if I but held up my hand ;

and let the miracle m on ger fill up t he measure Of his folly by
-

’
making an enem y Of o n e m ore bold fellow in the world .

And he swaggered o u t Of the room .

W hen he was gone the L ady Godiva bowed her head into her
lap and wept long and bi tterly N either her maidens n or the
,
.

priest dare speak to her for nigh an hour ; but at the end Of
t hat time she lifted up h er head and settled her face again till , ,

it wa s like that Of a marble saint over a minster door and ,

called for ink and pap er an d wrote her letter and then asked , ,

for a trusty messenger wh o sh ould carry it u p to Westminster .

‘ ’ ‘
N one so swift o r s ure said the house steward as Martin , ,

L ightfoot
’
.

’ ‘
L ady Godiva s hook her head I mi st rust that m an sh e .

said . He is too fond o f my poor— O f th e L ord Hereward .

He is a strange o n e my lady and n o o n e know s w hence h e , ,

cam e and I sometimes fancy whither he may go either ; but

,

ever since m y lord threatened to hang him fo r talking w i t h m y

young m aster h e has never spoken to him n or scarcely indeed
, , , ,

to living soul And o n e thing there is makes h im o r any man

.

s ure as long as he is well paid and t hat is that he cares fo r

, , ,

no t hing in heaven o r ear t h sav e himself and what he can get .

’

S O Martin L ightfoot wa s sen t for He cam e in stra ight into .

th e lady s bedchamber after the simple fashion Of those days

’
, .

He was a tall bony man as wa s t o be expected from his nick

, ,

name lean as a rak e wi t h a long h ook ed nose a scanty brown , ,

beard and a high conical head His only garm ent was a s h ab b y
,
.

gray woollen tu nic which served him bo t h as coat and kilt and ,

laced brogues o f untanned hide He might have been any age .

from twenty to forty but his face was disfigured with deep scar s
and long exposure to the wea t her He dropped o n o n e knee .
,
’
holding his greasy cap in hi s hand and looked , n o t at hi s lady s ,
24 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CH AP .

face but at her feet with a stu pid an d frightened expression

, , .

S h e knew very li tt le O f h im save that her husband had picked ,

him u p u p on t he road as a wanderer some five years since tha t

he had been employ e d a s a doer Of Odd j obs and runner Of
messages and t hat h e was supposed from his taciturnity and
,

s trangeness’ to h ave something uncanny about him .

Mar t in said the lady they tell me that you are a s ilent
, ,
‘

and a p rudent man .

’

T hat am I .

gu e b re ak eth b an e
T on ,

T h o ugh sh e h e rse l f h ath n an e

’
.

’
I shall try yo u do you know you r way to L ondon ?
‘
Yes C a rd yk e K ing S t reet E rmine S t reet L ondon T own
.
, , ,
.
’

T O your lord s lodgings ?

’ ’

‘
Yes .
’

Ho w long shall you be going there with this letter ? ’

‘ ’
A day and a h alf .

‘
When shall you be back hither ? ’

‘ ’
O n t he four t h day .

’
n d you will go t o m y lord and deliver this letter s afely ?

A
‘

es .
’

And safely bring back an an s wer ? ’

’
N ay n ot t hat ,
.

‘
N o t tha t
Martin m ade a doleful face and drew his hand first acros s ,

his leg and then across his throat as hints of the doom which
, ,

h e expected .

He — t he L ord Hereward — has promised n o t to let thee be

‘

’
harmed .

Martin gave a s t art and his dull eyes flashed o u t a moment ,

but t he nex t he answered as curtly as was his won t ,

T h e m ore fool he But women s bodkins are sharp a s well

‘ ’
.

’ ’
as men s knives .

Bodkins ? Whose ? What b ab b le st O f

T hem Said Mar t in pointing t o the bo w er maiden s — girls O f
’
, ,

good family who stood round c hosen for t heir beau t y af t er the ,

fashion Of t hose times to at t end o n great ladies T here was a ,

.

cry Of angry and contemptuous de n ial not unmixed wi t h some ,

thing like laugh t er whi c h showed that Martin had but s p ok en ,

the tru t h Hereward in S p i t e o f all his sins was t he darling O f

.
, ,

his m o t her s bower and there was n o t o n e Of t he d amsels b u t

’
,

would have done any t hing short Of murder to have prevented

Mar t in c arrying the le t ter .

S ile n ce man 1 said L ady Godiva so sternly that Mar t in

‘ ’
, ,

saw that he had gone too far HO W knows such as thou what .
‘

is in t his le tt er
All t he to w n m ust k now said Martin sullenly
‘ ’
.
,
’
Best th at they should and k now that righ t is done here
‘
, ,

said she trying t o be stern

, .
26 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

you r peace with your fathers In thi s hou s e you never drink .

’
ale agaI n .

T hey look ed at him surprised , .

You are disbanded m y gallant army As long as I could o u t , .

’
long thongs o u t O f other men s hides I could feed you lik e earls ’

sons but now I m ust feed m yself and a dog over his bone ,

want s n o com p any O u t lawed I shall be before the week i s .

Out and unless you wish to be outlawed too yo u will Obey ,

ord ers and h ome, .
’

’ ’
We will follow you to the world s end cri ed some ,
’
T O the rope s end lads that is all yo u will get in m y com ,

pany Go home with yo u and those who feel a calling let them
.
, ,
turn m onks and those who have not let them learn ,

Fo r t o pl o u gh an d t o so w ,

A n d t o re ap an d t o m ow,
An d t o b e a farm er s b o y ’
.

Good night -
.
’

And he went in and shut the great gates after him leaving , ,

them astonished .

T O take his ad v ice and to go home was the simplest thing , ,

to be done A few Of them o n their return were soundly beaten

.
,

and deserved it a few were hidden by their m o thers for a week

’
in hay lofts and hen roosts till their fathers anger had passed
- -
,

away But only o n e seem s to have turned m onk o r clerk and

.
,

tha t was L eofric the Unlucky godson o f t h e great earl and , ,

p oet in ordi n ary t o t h e band

- -
.

T h e next m orning at dawn Hereward m ounted his be st horse ,

armed h imself from head to foot and rode over to P eter ‘

borough .

When he came to the abbey gate he smote thereon with his ,

lance bu t t till t he por t er s tee t h ra t tled in his head for fear

-
,
’
.

‘
L e t m e in l h e shouted I am Hereward L e o f ric sso n I
’
.
‘
.

’
must see m y uncle Brand .

’
O my m ost gra c ious lord cried the p orter th rusting hi s
‘
, ,

head ou t Of the wicket what is this that you have been doing ,
‘

’
to o u r steward ?
T h e tithe o f what I will do unless you Open the gate
O m y lord
‘
said the p orter as he O p ened it if o u r L ady , ,
‘

and S t P eter w ould but have mercy o n your fair face and c o n
.
,

vert your soul to t he fear Of God and man

‘
S h e w ould mak e m e as good an O ld fool a s you Fetch my .

un c l e t he prior .
’

T h e porter obeyed T h e son Of E arl L eofric was as a young .

lion am ong the shee p in those p arts and f e w dare say him nay ,

certainly n o t the m onk s O f Pe t erborough ; m oreover the good ,

porter could not hel p being s t rangely fond O f Hereward — as was

every o n e whom he did no t insul t ro b or kill , ,
.

O u t cam e Brand a n oble elder : m ore fi t from his eye and , ,

gait to be a knight t han a m onk He looked sadly at Hereward

,
. .
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 27

D ear
i s bought the honey that is licked O ff the thorn ,

q uoth Hending said he ,

’
.

Hending bought his wisdom by experience I s uppose said ’

, ,

Hereward and so must I S O I am j ust starting o u t to see the

,
.

’
world uncle ,
.

N aughty naughty boy If we had thee safe here again f o r

‘
,

a week we would take this h ot blood o u t Of thee and send thee

, ,

home in thy right mind .

’

Bring a rod and whip m e then T ry and yo u S hall have your ,

.
,

cha n ce E very o n e else has had and th is is the end Of t h e irlab o u rs

.
,
.
’

’
‘
By the chains Of S t P eter quoth the m onk tha t is j ust .
, ,
‘

what thou needest — T O h oist thee o n su ch another fool s back .

’
,

truss thee up and lay it on lustily till th ou art ashamed T O

, ,
.

treat thee as a m a n is only to make thee a m ore heady blown — u p

ass t han thou art alread y .
’

T rue m ost wise un c le

,
And therefore m y still w iser parent s .

are going to treat m e lik e a man indeed and send m e o u t into ,

the world t o seek m y fortunes

‘
Eh
‘
T
hey are going to prove how thoroughly they trust m e to
tak e care Of myself by outlawing m e E h ? say I in return Is , . .

no t that an honour and a proof t hat I have n o t shown m yself a ,

’
fool t hough I m ay have a madman ?
,
’

O utlaw you ? O m y boy m y d arling m y p ride ! Get O fl

‘
, ,
’
thy h or s e and don t sit up there hand o n hip lik e a turbaned
, , ,

S aracen defying God and man but com e d own and talk reason
,
’
to me for the sake o f S t Peter and all saints
,
. .

Hereward threw himself O ff hi s horse and threw hi s arm s ,

’
round his uncle s neck .

‘
P ish N o w u n c le don t cry do what you will lest I cry
’
, , ,

too Help me to be a man while I live even if I go to the black

.
,
’
place when I die .

‘ ’
It shall n o t be ! and the monk swore by all the relic s
in P eterborough minster .

‘
It must be I t S hal l be I like to be outlawed I want to
. . .

be outlawed It m ak es o n e feel like a man T here is n o t an

. .

earl in E nglan d save m y father wh o has n ot been outlawed in

, ,

his tim e My brother Algar will be ou t lawed before h e dies if

.
,

he has the s p irit O f a man in him It is the fashion my uncle .

, ,

and I must follo w it S O hey for t he merry greenwood and .

,
’
the long ships and the swan s bath and all the rest Of it
, ,
.

’
Uncle you will lend me fifty silver p ennies ?
,

I ? I would n ot lend thee o n e if I had it which I have n o t , , .

And ye t O ld fool that I am I believe I woul d

, ,
.
’

‘
I would pay thee back honestly I shall go down to Co n .

st an t in o p le to t he Varan gers get m y P o lo t asw a rf 1 o u t Of the ,

’ ’
K aiser s treasure and pay thee back five t o o n e ,
.

1
S e e T h e He im skrin gla Haro l d Hard raad e s S aga fo r t h e m e an i n g
‘ ’ ’

, ,

O f th is wo rd .
28 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

‘ ’
What does this son Of Belial here ? asked an austere
voice .

‘
Ah ! Abbot L eofric my very good lord I have come to ask , .

h ospitali t y O f you for some three days By t hat time I shall be .

’
a w olf s head and out Of the law : and then if you will g i ve me
, ,
’
ten minutes start yo u m ay put your bloodhound s o n my track , ,

and see which run fastes t they o r I You are a gentleman ,

.
,

a n d a man Of h onour ; S O I trust to you to feed my horse fairly

the meanwhile and not to let your monk s p o i son me
,
.
’

T h e abbo t s face relaxed He t ried to look a s solemn as he

’
.

could but he ended in bursting into a very great laughter .

T h e insolence Of this lad passes the miracles Of all sain t s

‘
.

He robs S t P eter o n the highway breaks into his abbey insults

.
, ,

him to his face and then asks him f o r hospitality and

,

And gets it q uoth Hereward

’
, .

What I s to b e done with him Brand my friend ? If we turn

‘
, ,

him o u t
’
Which we cannot d O said Brand looking at the well mailed , ,

and armed lad without calling I n half a dozen o f o u r men at

,
‘ -

arm s .

‘
In which case there would be bloodshed and scandal m ade
’
in the holy pre c incts
And no t hing gained ; for yield h e would not till he was
‘

killed outri gh t which Heaven forbid ,

‘
Amen And if he stay here he may be persuaded to
.
,
’
repentance .

’
And restitution .

As for tha t quoth Hereward (w h o had remounted his horse

‘
,
’

from prudential mo t ives and set him a t hwart the gate w ay S O , ,

tha t there was n o chan ce Of the doors being slam m ed behind

him ) if either Of you will lend me sixteen pennies I will pay
,
‘
,

them back to you and S t P eter before I die with in t eres t .

,

enough to satisfy any Jew o n the word Of a gen t leman and an ,

’
earl s son
’
.

‘
T h e abbot burst again into a great laughter C ome I n thou .
,

graceless renegade and we will see to thee and thy horse ; and ,

I will p ra y t o S t P e t er and I doubt n o t he will have patience

.
,

wi t h thee for he is very merciful ; and af t er all thy paren t s

, ,

have been exceeding good to us and the righ t eousness Of the ,

father like his sins is sometimes visi t ed o n the children

, ,
.

N o w why w ere the two ecclesiastics so uncanonically k ind

,

to this wicked youth

Perha p s because both the Old bachelors were wishing from
their hearts that t hey had j ust such a son O f t heir o w n And .

beside E arl L eofric was a very grea t man indeed ; and the
,

wind migh t c h ange ; for it is an uns t able w orld .

O nly mind o n e t hing said t he naugh t y boy as h e dis

‘ ’
, , , ,

m ou nted and halloed to a la —brother to see to his horse don t

, ,
‘ ’

l et m e see t he face o f t h at He rlu in .

’
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 29

And why ? You have wronged him and he will forgive you , ,
’
doubtless like a good Christian as he is
,
.

‘
T hat is his c oncern But if I see him I cu t O ff his head
.
, .

An d as uncle Brand knows I always sleep with my sword

, ,
’
under m y pil low .

O h that such a m other sh ould have borne such a son

‘
,

groaned th e abbo t a s they went in ,

.

O n the fifth day came Mar t in L ightfoot and found Here ,

ward in P rior Brand sp rivate cell ’

.

‘
Well ? asked Hereward coolly
’
.

‘
Is h e Is he stammered B rand and could n ot ,

finish hi s sentence .

Martin nodded .

Hereward laughed — a loud sw agge rin gh u n e asy la u gh , .

S e e what it is to be born Of j us t and p I o u s parents C ome .

,

Master T ro t alone speak out and tell us all about it T h y lean

-
, .

wolf s legs have run to som e p urpose O pen t hy lean wolf s

’
.
’

m outh and s p eak for once les t I ease t hy legs for the rest Of thy ,

life by a cut across t he hams Find t hy los t t ongue I say 1 .

,
’

‘
Walls have ears as well as the wild wood said Martin , ,
’
.

‘
We are safe here said th e prior so speak and tell u s the
,
’
,

whole truth .
’

‘
Well when the earl read the le t ter he turned red and pale
, , ,

again and then nought but

,
Men follow m e to the ki n g at ,
”
Westminster S O we went all with o u r weapons t w enty or
.
, ,

more along t he S trand and u p in t o the king s new hall and a

, ,
’

grand hall it is but not easy t o get into for the crowd O f m onk s
, ,

and beggars o n the stairs hindering honest folks business ,

’
.

And the re sat the king o n a high se tt le with his pink face and ,

white hair looking as royal as a bell wether new washed and

,
-

o n ei t her side o f him o n the sam e settle sat the Old fox and the
, ,
1 ’
young W olf .

‘
Godwin and Harold ? And where was the queen ? ’

‘
S i t ting o n a stool at his fee t wi t h her hands together as if ,

sh e were p raying and her eyes downcast as demure as any cat

, , .

And so is fulfilled t he s t ory how the sheep dog went ou t t o get ,

-

married and lef t the fox the wolf and t he cat to guard the
, , ,

flo c k .
’

‘ ’
‘
If th ou hast found thy tongue said B rand tho u art lik e , ,
eno u gh to lose it again by sli c e O f knife talking such ribaldry ,

Of digni t ies D os t not kno w —and he sank his voice that

.

Abb o t L eofric is E arl Harold s man and that Harold himself ’

,

made h im a b b ot
‘
I said — Walls hav e ears It was you who told me that we .

were safe However I will bri d le the un r u ly o n e

.
,
An d he .
’

went on And yo u r fa t her walked u p t he hall his left hand o n

.
‘
,
—
his sword hil t looking an earl all over as he is ’
, , .

1
I t m u st b e re m e m b e re d th at t h e h o u se O f G o dwi n is spo k e n o f
'

th ro ugh o ut th is b o o k b y h e re d itary e n e m ie s .
30 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E C HA P .

He i s that s aid Hereward in a lo w voice

,
’
.

‘
And he bowed ; and th e m ost m agnificent powerful and , ,

virtuous God w in ( is t hat speaking evil O f dignities would have

beckoned him u p to sit on the high set t le bu t h e look ed
s t raight at the k ing as if there were never a Godwin o r a ,

G o d w in sso n o n earth and cried as he stood ,

“
Justice my lord the king ,
“
‘
And at that the king turned p ale and said Who What ? ,

0 miserable world ! O last days drawing nearer and nearer !

O earth full of V iol ence and blood ! Who ha s wronged thee
,

n o w m ost dear and noble earl ?

”
,
“
Justice agai n st my own son .

At that the fox look ed a t the wolf and the wolf at the fox , ,

and if they did not smile it was no t for want Of will I warrant , , .

B ut your father went on and t old all his story ; and when he ,
— “
came to your robbing m aster monk O apostate cries the
bell —we t her O spawn o f Beelzebub
,
excommunicate him ,

with b e ll b 0 0 k and candle May he be thrust down wi t h

,
'

,
.

K orah Balaam an d Iscariot to the m ost S tygian pot Of the

, , ,

sempiternal T artarus .

“
And at that you r father smiled T hat is bishops work
‘ ’
.
,

say s he and I want king s work from yo u lord k ing O u t ’

, .

’
law m e this young rebel s sinful body as by law yo u can and ,

leave his S inful soul to the priests — o r to God s mercy which is ’

like to be more than theirs .

“
‘
T hen the queen looked up You r o w n son noble earl ? .
,

T hink Of what you are doing — and o n e too whom all say is so , ,

gallant and so fair O h p ersuade him father— p ersuade him .

, , ,

Harold my brother — o r if you cannot persuade him ersuade

the king at least and save this p oor you t h from exile p ,

.
,

P uss Vel v et paw knew well enough said Hereward in a lo w

’
-
,
’
voice that t he way t o harden my father s heart was to se t
,
‘

Godwin and Harold o n softening it T hey ask m y pardon from .

t he king ? I would not take i t at their asking even if my ,

’
father would .

T here spoke a true L e o f ric sso n s aid Brand in s pite Of him

’
, ,

By the ( and Martin

“
repeated a certain very solem n
oath ) said your father j ustice I will have my lord king
, , , .

Who talks to m e Of m y o w n son ? Yo u put me into In earldom

t o see j ustice done and law obeyed and how sh aIl I mak e ,

others keep wi t hin bound if I am n ot t o keep in m y o w n flesh

and blood ? Here is this land running headlong to ruin because ,

every nob leman — ay e v ery churl wh o owns a manor if he dares , ,

—must needs arm and sadd le and levy war o n h is o w n behalf ,
,
’
and harry and slay t he king s lieges if he have no t garlic to his ,

roast goose every t im e he c hooses —and there yo u r fa t her did

“
look at Godwin once and fo r all and shall I let my son
,
-

follow the f as hion and d o hi s be s t to leave the land O p en and

,
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 31

weak f o r N or s eman o r D ane o r Frenchman o r whoever el s e , , ,

hope s next to mount the throne Of a king wh o is too holy to

leave an heir behind him ?
Ah Oi Martin the s ilent Where le arn e d st thou so suddenly
the trade Of preaching ? I thought th ou hadst kept thy wi nd
f o r thy running this two years past T hou wouldst m ak e as .

good a talker amo n g the Witan as Godwin him self T hou .

givest it us all word for word and voice and ge s ture withal
, , ,
’
a s if t hou wert K ing E dward s French chancellor .
’

Martin smiled I am like Falada t he horse m y lords who

.
‘
, ,

could only speak to his own true princes s Why I held m y .

tongue Of late was only lest they s hould cut m y head O ff for
’ ’
talking a s they did poor Falada s
,
.

‘
T hou art a very crafty knave said Brand and ha s t had
‘ ’
.
, ,

clerk learning in thy time I can see and made bad u se o f it I

-
, ,
.

misdoubt very m uch that thou art som e runaway m onk .

’

’
T hat am I not by S t P e t er s chains ! said Mar t in in an
‘ ’
, .
,

L ord Hereward I came hither as your

‘
eager terrified voice
,
.
,

father s messenger and servant You will see m e safe o u t Of

’
.

this abbey like an honourable gentleman

,

I will All I know O f him uncle is that he used to tell m e

.
, ,

storie s when I was a boy o f enchan t ers and k nights and

,
-

d ragon s and suchlike and go t into trouble for filling my head

,
’
with such fancie s N o w let him tell his s t ory in peace . .

‘
He shall : but I misdoubt t he fello w very much He talks .

a s if he knew L a t in ; and what business has a foot running -

’
s lave to do that ?
S O Martin went o n somewhat abashed And said your , .
,

father j ustice I will have and leave inj ustice and the over
, , ,

looking O f it to those who wish to profi t thereby

, .
”

And at that Godwin smiled and said to t he king

‘
T he , ,
earl is wise as usual and speak s lik e a very S olom on You r
, .

Maj es t y must in spite Of your o w n tenderness O f heart ha v e

, ,

these letters o f outlawry made out .

”

‘
T hen all o u r men m urmured —and I as loud a s any But .

Old S urturbrand t he h o u se c arle did more ; for o u t he stepped

’
to your father s side and spok e right u p before the king , .

“ ”
Bonny times he said I have lived to see when a lad Of , , ,
’
E arl O slac s blood is sent o u t Of the land a beggar and a wolf s
’
,
’
head for p laying a boy s trick o r two and upse tt ing a shaveling
, ,

priest We managed such wild young col t s better we Vikings ,

who conquered the D anelagh If C anute had had a s on like .

Hereward — as would to God he had had — h e would have deal t

with him as Old S w e n d Forkbeard ( G o d grant I m eet him in
Valhalla in spite Of all priests did by C anute himself when he
,

was young and kicked and plunged awhile at being first bi t ted
,
”
and saddled .

Wha t does the man say asked the king for Old S u rt u r ,

brand w as talking broad Danish .

32 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CH AP .

He is a h o u se c a rle Of mine L ord K ing a good m an and , ,

tru e but Old age and rough D anish blood have made him forget
”
that he stands before kings and earls .

“ ’
By t he head O f O din s horse earl “
say s S u rturbrand I , ,

have fought knee t o knee beside a braver king than that there ,

and nobler earls than ever a o n e here and was never afraid ,

lik e a free D ane to speak my m ind to t hem by sea or land

, .

And if the king with hi s French ways does not u nderstand a

, ,
’
plain man s t alk the two earls yon d er d o right well and I say
,
—D eal by this lad in the good Old fashion Give him half a .

dozen long ships and what crews he can get toge t her and send
, ,

him o u t a s C anute would have done t o seek hi s fortune like a

, ,

Viking ; and if he comes home w ith plenty Of wounds and

plunder give him an earldom as he deserves D O you ask you r
, .

countess E arl Godwin — S h e is Of t he right D anish blood God

, ,

bless her ! though she is your wife— and see if S h e does not
”
know h o w to bring a naughty lad to his senses .

T hen Harold t he earl said : T h e Old m an is right king

‘ “
, ,
”
listen to what h e says And he told him all quite .
,
’
eagerly .

Ho w did you k now that ? Can you understand French ? ’

’
‘
I am a poor idiot give m e a halfp enny said Martin in a , ,

d oleful voice as he threw in t o his face and whole figure a look

,

Of helpless s t upidity and awkwardness which s et them bo t h ,

laughin g .

B ut Hereward checked himself And thou thi n k est he wa s .

in earnest ? ’

‘
As sure as there are h oly crows in C rowland But it wa s Of .

n o use You r father go t a parchment with an outlandish

.
,

N orman seal hanging to it and sent m e O ff with it that s ame ,

night to give to the lawman S O wolf s head you are my lord .

’

, ,

and t here is no use crying over s p ilt milk .

’

And Harold s p ok e for me

‘
N o t that I care but it will be ,

as well to tell Abbot L eofric that in case he be inclined to turn ,

t rai t or and refuse to Open t he gates O n c e outside t hem I fear

,
’
.
,

no t m ortal man .

My poor boy there will be many a one whom thou hast

‘
,

w ronged only too ready to lie in wait for thee n o w thy life is ,

in every man s hand If the outlawry is p u b lished t hou hadst

’
.
,
’
best s t art to night and get p ast L incoln before m orning
-
,
.

’
I shall s t ay quietly here and get a good ni g ht s rest and ,

then ride out t o m orrow m orning in the face Of t he whole shire

-
.

N O not a w ord ! You would not have me sneak away like a

,

coward
Brand smiled and shrugged his S houlders being very much
Of t he same m ind .

’
A t leas t go n or t h
‘
, .

’
And why nor t h ?
‘

‘
Y o u have no q u arrel in N orthumberland and the king s ’
,
34 H EREWA RD T HE WA K E C HAP .

’
from the ste w ar d and as much more into the bargain And he
, .

t old o u t eight and thir t y p ieces - -

.

T hank God and all his saints cried B rand weeping ,

abundantly for j oy for he had acquired by long devotion t he , ,

donu m lac h rym a ru m — tha t lachrym ose and somewhat hysterical

tem p erament common among pious m onks and held to be a
“

mark O f grace .

Blessed S t P eter thou art repaid and thou wilt be

.
,
’
mercif u l .

Brand believed in common with all monk s then that Here , ,

ward had robbed not merely the abbey Of P eterborough but , ,

what was more S t P eter himself t hereby converting in t o an

,
.

implacable and internecine foe the chief o f the Apostles the ,

ro c k 0 11 which was founded the whole Church .

N o w uncle said Here w ard do m e o n e good deed in return

’
, , ,
.

P romise m e t hat if you can help it none Of my poor house

, ,

carles shall su ffer for my sins I led them into t rouble I am . .

p unished I have made restit u tion — at least t o S t P eter S e e

. . .

t hat my father and mother if they be the Ch ris t ians they call ,

them s el ves forgive and forget all O ffences except mine

,
.
’

I will so help m e all saint s and o u r L ord O my b o y m y .

,

boy thou should s t have been a king s thane and not an

,
’

ou t law
And he hurried O ff with t he news to the abbot .

When Hereward returned to his room Martin wa s gone ,

.

Farewell good men Of P eterborough said Hereward as h e

‘
, ,
’
,

leapt in t o the saddle next m orning I had made a vow against .

yo u and came to t ry yo u and see whe t her yo u would force m e

, ,

to fulfil it o r not B ut you have been so kind that I have half

.

repen t ed thereof and t he e vil S hall n o t come in the days

Of Abbo t L eofric nor o f Brand the p rior t hough it may come
, ,

in the days o f He rlu in the ste w ard if he live long enough ,

.
’

‘
What m eanest th ou incarnate fiend only fit to worship , ,
’
T h or and O din ? asked Brand .

T hat I would burn G o ld e n b o ro u gh and He rlu in the steward ,

within it ere I die I fear I shall do it : I fear I must do i t

,
. .

T e n years ago come L ammas He rlu in bade light the peat stalk -

’
under me do you recolle c t ? ,
‘
And so he did the hound quoth Brand
‘
I had forgotten
,
.

’
t h at .

L ittle Hereward never forget s foe o r friend E ver since On .

,

L am mas night — hold still horse —I dream Of fire and flame , ,

and Of G o ld e n b o ro u gh in t he glare Of it If it is writ t en in t he .

big book hap pen it must if n ot so m uch the better for Gold
, ,

e n b o ro u gh for i t is a pretty place and honest E nglishmen in

, ,

it O nly see t hat there be no t too many Frenchmen cre p t in

.

when I come back beside our French friend He rlu in and see , ,

too t hat there be n o t a peat stalk handy at the BO lldyk e -gate

,
-

a word is enough to wis e men like yo u Good -bye .

 HOW H EREW A R D W AS OU T LAWE D 35

God help thee thou sinful boy said the abbot ,

.

‘
Hereward Hereward C ome back
,
cried Brand .

But the boy had spurred h is horse through the gateway and ,

wa s far down the road .

’
L eofric my friend s aid Brand sadly t h I s Is my sin and no
‘ ‘
, , , ,

man s else An d heavy penance will I do f o r it till that lad

’
.
,

returns in p eace .
’

Your sin ? ’

Mine abbot I per s uaded his mother to send him hither to

, .

be a m onk Alas ! alas ! Ho w long will men try to be wi s er

.

than He wh o m aketh men ? ’

2
1 10 not understand thee q uoth the abbot And no more
h e 1I 5
, .

It was four O clock o n a May m orning when Hereward set

’

o u t t o see the world with good armou r o n his back good , ,

weapon by his side good h orse between his knees and — rare , ,

luxury in those penniless though otherwise plen t iful days ,

good m oney in hi s purse What could a lad Of eighteen wan t .

more who under the harsh family rule of those times had k nown
,

nothing o f a father s and but too little o f a m other s love ? He

’
,
’
,

rode away westward avoiding of course Ke st e rv e n and Bourne

, , , .

T h rough Milton woods he rode and lingered but one moment , ,

as he crossed the K ing S t reet at C as t or Hau gh lan d s to glance ,

u p the straight Roman road which led towards his home .

T hat l ed to the Old world He was going to the new and he .

pricked his horse gaily on thro u gh Bainton woods struck th e ,

E rmine S tree t o n S outhorpe Heath and S O o n towards the ,

Welland li t tle dreaming tha t o n those Open wold s a palace

,

would one day arise beside which K ing E dward s new Hall at ,
’

Westminster would S how but as a t ything barn and that the -

great p atriot who would build that pala c e would o w n as his ,

ir t hplace the very home fro m which Hereward flew that

b
c ay .
,

O ver the Welland to Brig C asterton where D ick T urpin ,

crossed in after times like him avoiding S tamford town and ,

t hen u p the E rmine S treet through prim eval glades Of mighty ,

o ak and ash with holly and thorn benea t h swarming with game
, , ,
’
which was as highly p reserved t hen as n ow under Can u t e s ,

severe forest laws T h e yellow roes stood and stared a t him

.

k nee dee p in t he young fern the pheasant called his hens out
-

to feed in the dewy grass t he blackbird and thrush sang o u t

from every bough the wood lark trilled above the high o ak -

t ops and sank down on them as his song sank down And
, .

Hereward rode on rej oici n g in it all It was a fine world in the

,
.

B ru n e sw ald What was i t then outside ? N o t to him as to us

,
, ,

a world circular ro u nd circumscribed m a pped botanised

, , , , ,

z o o lo gise d a t iny p lanet abou t whi c h everybody kn ows o r ,

thinks they know everything ; but a w orld infinite magical

, , ,

supernatural — becau se unkno w n a vast flat plain reaching no

36 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E C H AP .

on e kne w whence o r where s ave that the m ountain s stood o n ,

t he fou r corners thereof to keep it steady and the four wi nds ,

o f heaven blew o u t o f t hem ; and in the centre which was to ,

him the B ru n e sw ald such th ings as he saw but beyond things

, ,

unspeakable— dragon s giants rocs orcs witch whales griffin s

, , , ,
-
, ,

chimeras saty rs enchan t ers P aynims S aracen E mirs and S u l

, , , ,

tans K aisers of C onstantinople K aisers of Ind and o f C ath ay and

, , ,

beyond them again O f lands a s yet unkn own At the very least .

he could go to Brit t any to the forest o f B ro c h e liau n d e where

, ,

( so all m e n said ) fairies might be seen bathing in the fountains ,

and possibly be won and wedded by a bold an d dexterous

knight after the fashion Of S ir G ru e lan 1 What was there n ot
, .

to be seen and con quered ? Where would h e go ? Where would

he n o t go ? For the spirit Of O din the Goer the spirit which ,

ha s s en t hi s child ren round the world was strong within him ,

.

He would go to Ireland to the O stmen o r Irish D anes at , , ,

D ublin Waterford o r C ork and marry some beautiful Irish

, , ,

prince s s with gray eyes and raven locks and sa ff ron smock and
, , ,

great gold bracelet s from her native hills N O he would go o ff .

to the O rkneys and j oin B ruce and B an ald and the Viking s o f
“

, ,

the n orthern s eas and all the hot blood which had found even
,

N orway too h ot to hold it h e would sail thro u gh witch whale s -

and iceberg s to Iceland and Greenland and the s unny lands ,

which they said lay even beyond across the all but unknown ,

ocean O r he would go up the Baltic to the J o m sb u rg Vikings

.
,

and fight against L ett and E sthonian heathen an d pierce inland , ,

perhaps through P uleyn and the bison fores ts to the land from
, ,

whence came the magic s word s and t he Old P ersian coins which
he had seen s o often in the halls Of his forefathers N O he
‘

would go south to the land Of s un and wine and see the magi
,

c ia n s Of C ordova and S eville and beard Mu ssu lm an hound s

worshipping their Mahomets and perhap s bring home an
E mir s daughter
’
,

With m o re gay go ld ab o ut h er m i dd le ,

T h an wo u l d b u y h al f N o rt h u m b e rlee
’
.

Or he would go up the S traits and o n t o C on s tantinople and ,

the great K aise r Of the Greek s and j oin the Varanger Guard , ,

and p erhaps like Harold Hard raad e in his o w n days af t er bei n g

, ,

cast to the lion for carrying O ff a fair Greek lady tear out the ,
’
m ons t er s tongue wi th hi s own hands and show the E ast e rn s ,
’
what a Viking s son could do And as h e dreamed Of the infini t e .

world and i t s infinite wonders the enchanters he might meet

, , , ,

the j ewel s he might find the ad ventures he might essay he held , ,

that he must su c ceed in all with hope and wit and a strong , , ,

1
Wac e auth o r O f t h e Ro m a n d e Ro u we n t t o Brittan y a gen eratio n
, ,

l ater t o see th o se sam e fairi e s b u t h ad n o spo rt an d san g

, ,

Fo l i al ai fo l m e n re vin s
’
,

Fo li e q u i s po r fo l m e ti n s
’
.
,
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 37

arm and forgot altogether that mixed up with the co s mogony

; ,

o f ari infi n ite flat plain called the earth there was j oined also ,

the belief in a flat roof above called heaven o n which ( seen at ,

times in visions through clouds and stars ) sat saints angels and , ,

archangels for ever m ore har p ing o n their golden harps and
, ,

knowing neither vanity n or vexa t ion of spirit lust n o r pride , ,

mu rder nor war ; and undernea t h a floor the nam e whereof was ,

hel l the m ouths whereof ( as all men knew ) might b e seen o n

,

Hecla E tna and S tromboli ; and the fiends heard within t o r ,

m e n t in g an iid fire and smoke and clanking chains the s oul s Of

, ,

, , , ,

t he endlessly lost .

As he rode o n slowly though c heerfully as a man w h o will

, ,
’
n ot tire hi s horse at the beginn i ng Of a long day s j ourney and ,

knows n o t where he shall p ass the night h e was a w are Of a man ,

o n foot coming up behind him at a slow steady lo p ing wolf , , ,

like trot which in spite Of i t s slowness gained ground o n him so

,

fast that he s aw at once that the man could be n o common

,

ru n n e n
T he man came up and behold h e wa s none other than ,

Martin L ightfoot .

‘
What art thou here ? asked Hereward suspiciously and ’
,

half cross at seeing any visitor from the Old world which he had
j ust cast o ff Ho w go t t e st t hou o u t Of S t Peter s last
.
‘
.
’

nigh t
’
Mar t in S ton gue was hanging o u t o f his mouth like a running
’
hound s ; but he seemed like a hound to persp i re through his , ,

m outh for he answered without the least S I gn Of distress with

, ,

o u t even pulling I n his tongue .

’
O ver the wall the m oment th e p rior s back was turned
‘
,
I .

was n o t goi n gg t o wait t ill I w as chained up in some rat s hole ’

with a half hundred Of iron o n m y leg and flogged till I con ,

—
fessed that I was what I am not a ru n away monk ’
.

’
‘
And why art here ?
‘ ’
Because I am going with you .

with me ? said Hereward ’

G
‘
‘
What can I do fo r
the e o ing
.

‘
I can d o for you said Martin ,
’
.

What
‘
Groom you r horse wash you r s h irt clean you r weapon s fin d, , ,

you r inn fight you r enemies c heat you r friends — anything and
, ,

e v e ryt h ifi g You are goi ng to see the world I am goi ng with

. .

’
yo u .

T
’
ho u cans t be m y servan t ? A right sli p pery o n e I expect , ,
said Hereward looking down o n him with som e suspic i on
, .

S ome are not the rogues they seem I can keep m ysecrets .

’
and yours t oo .

‘
Before I c an trust thee w ith m y secrets I shall expect to ,

know some of t h ine said Hereward ,

.

Martin L ightfoot looked up wit h a cunning smile A man .

‘
38 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

’
can alway s know his master s secret s if he like s But that is no .

’ ’
reason a master should kno w his man s .

T hou shalt tell me thine man o r I shall ride O ff and leave , ,

’
the e .

N o t so easy my lord Where that heavy horse can go

‘
.
, ,

Martin L igh t o t c an follow B ut I w ill tell you one secret .

,
V’h i h I never told to livin g man I can read and w rite like any
0 lerl i
.

’
‘
T hou read and w rite ?
Ay, good L atin enough and Fren ch and Iri s h too what is
‘
, , ,

m ore And now because I love you and because you I will
.
, ,

serve willy n illy I will tell you all the secrets I have a s long
, , ,

as my brea t h lasts for m y tongue i s rather sti ff after t hat long

,

story about th e bell —wether I was born in Ireland in Water .

,

ford town My mother wa s an E nglish slave one o f those that

.
,

E arl Godwin s wife — not this o n e that is now Gyda but the o ld
’

, ,

o n e — used t o sell o u t o f E n gland by the score tied together with ,

ropes boys and girls from Bris t ol town He r master m y father

,
1
.
,

that was ( I shall know him again ) go t tired O f her and wanted , ,

to give her away to one O f his kernes S h e would not have that .

S O he hung her up hand and foot an d beat her that she died , .

T here was an abbey hard by and the C hurch laid o n him a ,

e an c e a ll tha t they dared get o u t Of him — that he sho u ld

p n fl

’
give m e to the m onks being then a s even years b o y Well I ,
-
.
,

grew up in that abbey ; they taught m e my fa fa mi fa ; but

I lik ed better conning ballads and hearing storie s Of ghost s and
enchanters such as I u sed to tell you I ll tell you plenty m ore
,
.
’

’
whenever you re tired T hen they made me work and that I .

n ever could a b ide at all T hen they beat m e every day ; and .

t hat I could abide still less but always I stu c k to my book for ,

one thing I saw — that learning is power my lord and tha t the ,

reason why t h e m onk s are m asters O f the land is they are ,

scholars and you fighting men are none T hen I fell in love (as
, .

young blood will ) wi t h an Irish lass when I was full seventeen ,

years Old and w hen they found o u t that they held me down ,

on the floor and beat m e till I was well —nigh dead T hey put .

me in prison for a month ; and between bread and water and - -

darkness I went nigh foolish T h ey let m e out thinki n g I could .

do n o m ore h arm to man o r las s ; an d when I found out h o w

profi t able folly was foolish I remained at least as foolish as
, ,

seemed good t o me But o n e night I g ot into the abbey chu rc h

.
,

s t ole therefrom that which I have with me now and whi c h shall ,

serve you and m e in good stead yet— o u t and away aboard a

S hip among the buscarles and O ff into the N orway sea B ut
,
.

after a voyage o r two so it befell I was wrecked in the Wash , ,

I ad o pt William O f Mal m esb u ry s O ld sto ry th o u gh th ere is n o g o o d

’
1
,

auth o ri ty fo r i t E v e n i f a c al u m n y i t fit s t h e m o uth O f an adh e re n t O f

.
,

t h e h o u se O f L eo fric an d an E n g lish sl ave trad e c e rtai n ly w as c arrie d o n -

in th o se d ays .
 HOW H EREWAR D W AS OU T LAWE D 39

by B o t u lfst o n D eeps and begging my way inland m et with , ,

your father and took service with him as I have taken service
, ,

now with you .

’

’
N o w what ha s m ade thee tak e s ervice with me ?
,

Because you are you .

’

Give me none Of thy parables and dark saying s but speak ,

o u t like a man Wh at canst see in me that tho u shou ldest share

.

’ ’
an outlaw s fortune with m e ?
I had run away from a m onastery S O had yo u I hated the .

m onk s so did yo u I l iked to tell stories— since I found good

.

to shut m y m outh I tell them to myself all day long som etime s ,

all night t oo Wh en I found out you liked to hear t he m I loved

.
,

you all the more T hen they told m e n ot to speak to you ; I

.

held my tongue I bided my t ime I k new you would be o u t

. .

lawed some day I knew you would turn Viking and k e m p e ry

.

m an and kill giant s and enchanter s and win you rself h onour
, ,

and glory and I knew I should have m y share in it I knew .

you would need m e some day and you n eed m e n ow and here ,

I am and if you try to cut m e down with you r sword I will ,

dodge yo u and follow you and dodge you again till I force yo u
, , ,

to let me be your man I n ever loved yo u as I d o now Y o u . .

let me take t hat le t ter s afe lik e a true h ero Yo u let you r , .

self be outlawed lik e a true hero Y o u made u p your mind t o

, .

see t h e world like a true hero You are the master for me and
, .

with you I will live and die And n o w I can talk n o more . .

‘
And wi t h m e thou shalt live and die said Hereward pull ,
’
,

in g u p his horse and frankly holding o u t his hand t o hi s new

,

f rie n d .

Martin L ightfoot took his hand kissed it licked it alm ost , , ,

‘
as a dog would have done I am your m an he said am en
’
.
, ,
‘

and true man I will prove to yo u if you will p rove true t o m e , .

And he dro pp ed quietly back behind Hereward s h orse as if the ’

,

business of his life wa s se tt led and his mind utterly at rest ,

.

T here is o n e m ore likeness between us said Herewar d after

’
, ,
’
a fe w minutes thought If I hav e robbed a ch urch thou hast
.
,

robbed one too What is this preciou s spoil w hich is to serve

.

m e and t hee in such m ighty stead ? ’

Martin dre w from inside his shirt and u n der hi s waistband a

sm all battle axe and h an ded it u p to Hereward It was a tool
-
, .

th e like of which in S hape Hereward had seldom seen and never ,

i t s equal in beauty T h e handle was some fif t ee n inches long

.
,

m ade Of thick s t rip s Of black whalebone curiously bound wi t h ,

silver and but t ed with n arwhal ivory T his handle was evi
,
.

d e n t ly th e work Of som e cunning N orseman O f O ld But wh o .

had been th e maker Of the blade ? It was some eigh t inches

long wi t h a sharp edge o n o n e side a sharp crooked pick o n t he
, ,

other Of the finest steel inlaid with strange charac t ers in gold , ,

the work p robably Of som e C irca s sian T ar t ar or P ersian su c h , ,

a battle axe a s Ru s tum or Z ohrab may have wielded in figh t

-
40 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E C HAP .

on the bank s Of O xus o n e Of those magic weapon s brought , ,

m e n k now n o t h o w o u t o f the magic E ast which were heredi

, ,

tary in many a N orse family and s ung o f in many a N orse ,

s aga .

’
L ook at it said Martin L ightfoot T here is magic in it
‘ ‘
, . .

It must bring u s luck Whoever h olds that must kill his man . .

It will p ick a lock Of steel It will crack a mail corselet as a .

nut hatch cracks a nut It will hew a lance in t w o at a single

-
.

blo w D evil s and spirits forged it — I know that V irgiliu s the

.

E nchanter perhap s o r S olomon the Great o r whosoever s name

’

, , ,

is o n it graven there in letters o f gold Handle it feel its

,
.
,

balance but no do not handle it too m uch T here i s a devil

-
.

in it w h o would mak e yo u kill me Whenever I play with it I

,
.

long to kill a man It would be s o easy— S O easy Give it m e

. .

back m y lor d give it me back lest the devil com e thro u gh the
, , ,
’
handle into your p alm an d possess yo u ,
.

Hereward laughed and gave him ba ck his battle axe B ut ,

-
.

he had hardly les s doubt o f the magic virtues Of such a blade

than had Martin himself .

‘
Magical o r not thou wilt n ot have to hit a man t w ice with
,

that Martin m y lad S O w e two outlaws are both well armed

, , .

and having neither wife n o r c hild land n o r beeve s to lose ought , ,

to be a match for any six honest men wh o m ay have a grudge

against us and yet have sound reason s at hom e for running
,

away .
’

And s o th ose two went n orthward through the green Brunes

wald and n orthward through merry S herwood and were n o t
, ,

seen in that land again f o r many a year .

C HA P T E R II
1
Ho w HE R E W A RD S LEw T HE B E A R .

OF Hereward s d oings fo r the n ext few m onths nought is known

’
.

He may very likely have j oined S iward in the S cotch war He .

may have looked wondering for the first tim e in hi s lI fe upon

, , ,

1
his sto ry o f t h e b e ar is lik e ly n o t t o b e a m yth b u t am o n g t h e m o st
T ,

auth e n tic o f He reward s fam o u s d e e d s S o li k ewi se is t h e sto ry o f t h e

’
.

Co rn ish prin c ess an d O f h is d e e d s in Fl an d e rs

,
Fo r Rich ard O f E ly i f I .
,

u n d ersta d h im rightly says th at h e go t h is in fo rm atio n fro m t h e actu al

n ,

MSS O f L e o fric O f B o u rn e He re ward s m ass prie st

. u p t o t h e pl ac e
,
’
-
,

wh ere h e cam e h o m e again an d m o re wise th an t h e averag e O f m o k n

writers k e pt t o t h e crud e m atte r t o o little c o m po site an d o rn ate b y t h e

, ,

care o f an y train e d in te lle ct o r b y d ial e ctic an d rh e to ric e n igm as Fo r

,
.
’

always b e w as d e lud e d b y vain h o pe o r fr m t h e b e g in n i n g b y fo l k s say ,

o ,

in g th at in th i s plac e an d th at is a g re at b o o k ab o ut t h e sam e m an s d e e d s
’ ’
,

wh ich b o o k n ever app ari g h e se e m s t o h ave fin ish e d h is wo rk fro m

e n ,

po pu l ar trad i tio n l eavi n g t o d o h im ju stice t h e d ial ecti c an d rh etoric al

, , ,
42 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

of the n O I t h east from the Firth o f Moray to that Of Forth ;,

and f O I m in g a rampart f o r S c otland against the invas i ons o f

S weyn Hard raad e and all the wild Vikings Of the northern
, ,

seas .

Am ongst them I n th ose day s Gilbert o f Ghent seems t o have, ,

been a no t able personage to j udge from the g reat house which ,

‘ ’
he kept and t he milites tyrones o r squ i res I n training for the
, ,

h onour Of knighthood wh o fed at his table Where he lived , .

,

the chroniclers report not T o them the country ultra

‘
.

N o rt h u m b rl am beyond the Forth was as Ru ss ia o r Cathay

, , ,
where
G e o graph e rs o n pathl ess d own s
P u t e l eph an ts fo r wan t O f town s
’
.

As indeed it was to that French map mak er who a s late a s the -

,

middle Of the eighteenth century ( not having been to Aberdeen

o r E lgin ) leaves all the country north Of th e T a y a blank with
, ,

the i nscription : — T erre in cu lt e et sau v age h abi t ee p ar les E ig

‘ ’

,
’
lan d ers .

W he Gilbert lived however he heard that Hereward

i ev er , ,

wa s outlawed and sent for him say s the story 1 having it would
, , , ,

s eem some connection with his father And there he lived

, .
,

doubtless happily enough fighting C elt s and hunting deer so , ,

that as yet t he pains and penalties o f exile did n ot pres s very

hardly y upon him T h e handsome petulant good hum oured lad .
, ,

had become I n a few weeks the dai ling o f Gilbert s ladies and ’
,

the envy Of all his knights and gentlemen Hereward the .

singer harp player dancer Hereward the rider and hunter was
,
-
, , ,

i n all m ou t hs : bu t he himself was discontented at having a s yet

fallen I n with no adventure worthy o f a m an ; and he looked
curiously and longingly at the m enageri e o f wild beasts enclosed
I n strong wooden cages which Gilbert k ept I n o n e corner Of the ,

great courtyard not for any scientific purposes but to t ry with

, ,

them at C h ristma s E aster and Whitsuntide the m ettle Of the

, , , ,

yo u n g e n t le m e n who were candidates for the h onour o f k n igh t

0”
g
1

h ood B u t af t er looking over the bulls and stags wolves and

.
,

bears Hereward se t tled it in hi s mind that there was none

w o rt liy of his steel save o n e huge white bear whom no man
,

, ,

had yet dared to face and whom Hereward indeed had never , , ,

seen yhidden as he was all day within the Old oven —

,
S ha p ed P ict s
’

house of stone which had been turned in t o his den T here was
,
.

a m yst e about the uncanny brute which charmed Hereward .

He was said to be half human perhaps wh olly human ; to be a

son of t he Fairy Bear near kinsm an if n o t brother iI n c le o r
,

, , , ,

cousin of S iward D igre himself He had like h is fairy father

, .
, ,

1
Rich ard E ly iv es as t h e re aso n
Of
p ro il lo m isi : filio lu s e n i m e ra
g t t
d iv it is i lli n s Filio lu s m ay b e pre s m e u d g d
’
t o m e an
’
in t h e
’

. o so n

vo ab l ary O f h a o o m o n
c u b u t it is n o t l e ar O f w o m h e spe a s as
t tg d k . c h k
d ive s ill e P o ssib ly il b e r O f G w as o s o n Of He rewar s fat h e It Gh t g d d
‘ ’ ’
. en .
II HOW H EREWAR D SLEW T HE B EAR 43

iron claw s ; he had human intellect and understood h um an ,

speech and the arts Of war — at least s o all in the place believed
, , ,

and n o t as absurdly a s at first sight seems .

For the brown bear and much more the white was amon g , , ,

the N orthern nations in h imself a creature magical and s u p er ,

h uman He is God s do g whispered the L app and called him

.
‘ ’
,
’
,
‘
the Old man in the fur cloak afraid to use his right name ,
’
,

even inside the tent f o r fear Of his o v e rb e arin g and avengin g

,

He has twelve men s streng t h and eleven men s

’
the insult .
‘ ’
,
’
wit sang the N orseman and prided h im self accordingly like a
, , ,

true N or s eman o n outwitting and slaying the enchanted

,

m onster .

‘
T erri b le wa s the brown bear : bu t more terrible the white
s ea—deer a s the S axons called him ; the hound o f Hrym ir the
’
,
’

’
,

whale s bane the seal s d read the rider Of the iceberg th e sailor
, , ,

Of the fl o e who ranged f o r his prey u nder the S ix mon t hs night

,
’
,

lighted by S u rt u r s fire s even to t he gates Of Muspelheim T O

’
,
.

’
slay h im wa s a feat worthy Of Beowulf s self and the greatest
wonder perhaps among all the wealth Of C rowland was the
, , ,

twelve white bear S kins which lay before the altar s the gift o f
-
,

the great C anute Ho w Gilbert had obtained his white bear .

,

and why he kept him there in durance vile was a m ystery Over ,

which men shook their head s Again and again Hereward .

asked his host to let him try his strength agains t t he m onster O f
the N orth Again and again the shriek s o f the ladies and
.
,
’
Gilbert s o w n pity for the stripling youth brought a refusal , .

But Hereward settled it in his heart nevertheless that somehow , ,

o r other when Christma s time came round he would extract

, ,

from Gilber t drunk o r sober leave to fight that bear and then
, ,

either make himself a name o r die like a m an , .

Meanwhile Hereward made a friend Among all the ladies .

’
o f Gilbert s hou sehold however kind they were incl ined t o be to ,

him h e took a fancy only to o n e — a little girl Of t en year s Old

, .

Al f t ru d a was her name He liked to amu se himself with this .

child without as he fancied any danger o f fallin g in l ove for

, , ,

already his dream s Of love were Of the highest and m ost fan
’
t a st ic and an E mir s daughter o r a P rincess of C onstantin ople , ,

were the very lowest gam e at which h e meant to fly Alft ru d a .

was beautiful too exceedingly and p re c ocious and it m ay be

, , , , , ,

vain enough to repay his a tt entions in good earnest More .

over she was E nglish as he was and royal lik ewise a relation , ,

Of E lfgiv a daugh t er o f E thelred on c e K ing of E ngland S h e

, , .
,

as all kno w married U c h t re d P rince o f N or thumberland the

, , ,

grandfa t her Of G o sp at ric k E arl O f N orthumberland and , ,

1
an c estor o f all th e D unbars Between the E nglish lad then .
, ,

and the E nglish m aiden grew up in a few weeks an innocent

friendship which had alm ost be c ome m ore than friendship
, ,
through the interven t ion o f the Fairy Bear .

1
S ee n o te at e n d o f ch apte r .
44 H E R EWAR D T HE WA K E C HAP .

For a s Hereward was coming in o n e afternoon from hunting ,

hawk o n fi st with Martin L ightfoot trotting behind crane and

, ,

heron d u c k and hare s lung over his shoulder o n reaching the

, , ,

cour t yard gates h e w as aware o f s cream s and shouts within ,

tumult and terror among man and beast Hereward tried to .

force his horse in at the gate T h e beast sto p p ed and turned .

,

snorting wi t h fear ; and no wonder ; for in the m idst Of the

c ourtyard stood the Fairy Bear hi s w hite mane bristled up till
he seemed twice a s big as any Of the sober brown bears which
Hereward yet had seen : his long snak e neck and cruel visage
wreathing about in search o f prey A dead horse its back .
,

b roken by a S ingle blow O f the paw and two o r three writhing ,

dogs showed that the beast had turned (like too many o f his
,
’
human kindred in those days ) Berserker T h e courtyard was ‘
.

utterly empty : but from the ladies bower cam e shriek s and ’

shouts not only Of women but o f men ; and knocking at the

,

bower door adding her scream s to those inside wa s a li tt le

, ,

white figure which Here w ard recognised as Alf t ru d a s T hey

,
’
.

had barricaded themselves inside leaving the child o u t ; and ,

n o w dared not Open the door as the bear swung and rolled ,

towards it looking savagely right and left for a fresh victim

, .

Hereward leap ed from his h orse and drawing his sword , ,

rushed forward with a shout which m ade the bear turn round .

He looked once back a t the child then round again at Here

ward and making u p his mind to take the largest m or s el first ,

m ade straight at him with a growl w hich there wa s n o mis

taking .

He wa s with in t w o paces ; then he rose o n his hind legs a ,

head and shoulders taller than Hereward and lifted the iron ,

talons high in air Hereward knew tha t there was but o n e spo t
.

at which to strik e ; and he struck true and strong before the ,

iron p aw could fall right o n the muzzle Of the m ons t er

. .

He heard the dull crash of the steel he felt the sword j ammed
tight He shut his eye s for an instant fearing lest as in
.
, ,

d reams his blow had com e to nough t ; lest his sword had turned
,

aside o r m el t ed like water in his hand and the next moment

, ,

would find him crushed to earth blinded and stunned S ome ,

.

thing tugged at his sword He opened hi s eyes and s aw the .

,

huge carcase bend reel roll slowly over to one S ide dead tearing
, , , ,

o u t Of his hand the sword which was firm ly fixed in t o the sk ull .

Hereward stood awhile staring at the beast like a man

astonied a t what he himself had done He had had his first .

ad ven t ure and he had conquered He was now a c ham p ion in

, .

his own right— a hero O f t he heroes — o n e who migh t take rank ,

if he went o n beside Beowulf F ro t h o Ragnar L o d b ro g o r

, , , ,

Harold Hard raad e He had done this deed What was t here
. .

af t er t his whi c h he might not do ? And he stood there in t he

f u lness o f his p ride defiant Of earth and heaven while in his
, ,

heart aro s e the thought Of that Old Viking who cried in the ,
II HOW H EREWAR D SLEW T HE B EAR 45

pride s godlessness I never o n earth met him whom I ,

‘

feared and why should I fear him in heaven ? If I met O din I

,

would fi g ht wi t h O din If O din were the stronger he w ould slay

.

m e if I were the s t ronger I would slay him T here h e stood

’
. ,

staring and dreaming over renown to come a true pattern o f

, ,

the half savage hero o f those rough times ca p able O f all vices
-
,

except cowardice and capable too o f all virtues save humility

, , ,
.

’ ‘
D O you not see said Martin L igh t foot s voice close by that
’
, ,

there is a fair lady trying to thank yo u while you are so rude ,

’
o r so proud t hat you will not vouchsafe her o n e look ?
It wa s true L it tle Alf t ru d a had been clinging to him f o r
.

five minutes past He took the child up in his arms and kissed
.

her with pure kisses which for a moment softened hi s hard ,

heart then settin g her down he turned to Martin , .

I have done it Martin ,

.
’

Yes yo u have done it I spied you What will the Old folk s
,
.

’
at h ome say to this ?
’
What care I ?
Martin L ightfoot shook his head and drew o u t hi s knife ,
.

What is that for ? said Hereward ’

.

When the master kills the game th e knave can but skin it
‘
,
.

We may sleep warm under this fur in many a c old night by sea
’
and moor .

N ay said Hereward laughing

’
,
when the m aster kills the ,
‘

game he must firs t carry it hom e L e t u s take him and set him
, .

up against the bower door there to astonish th e brave knights ,

inside And stooping down he at t em p ted to lift th e huge car

.
’
,
’
c ase b u t in vain At las t with Martin s help he go t i t fairly
.
, ,

on his shoulders and the two dragged their burden to the

,

bower and dashed it against t he door shouting with all their

, ,

might to those w i t hin to Open it .

Windows it must be remembered were in those days so few

, ,

and far between that the folks inside had remained quite
,

unaware Of what was going o n without .

T h e d oor was O p ened cau t iou sly enough and o u t looke d to ,

the sham e o f knigh t hood be it sai d two or three knights wh o , ,

had taken shelter in the bower w i t h t he ladies Wha t ever they .

were going to say the ladies forestalled for rushing out across , ,

the prostrate bear they over w helmed Hereward with p raises

, ,

thank s and after the s t raightforward custom O f those d ays

, , ,

wi t h substantial kisses .

Yo u must be knighted at once cried they Yo u have ,

’
.

’
k nighted yourself by tha t single blow .

’ ‘
A p i t y then said o n e o f the knights to th e oth ers that he
, ,

had n o t given that accolade to him self instead o f t o the bear ,

.
’

’
Unless some m eans are found said an other o f taking down , ,
’ ’
this boy s conceit life will soon be not worth having h ere
,
.

’ ‘
E ither he m ust take shi p said a thir d and look fo r ad v e n , ,
’
tures elsewhere or I mu st ,
.
46 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

Martin L ightfoot heard those word s and knowing that envy

and hatred like all other vices in those rough hewn times were
,
-
,

apt to take very s t artling and unmistakable s hape s kept his eye ,

accordingly on those three knights .

He must be k nighted — h e shall be knighted as soon a s S ir

‘
,

Gilbert comes home said all the ladies in ch orus

,
’
.

I should be sorry to think said Hereward wi t h the blunder ,

’
,

ing mock h umility o f a self conceited b o y that I had done any -

,

thing worthy O f such an honour I hop e to win m y S purs by .

’
greater feats than these .

A burst Of laughter from the knight s and gentlemen followed .

Ho w loud the young cockerel crows after his first scuffl e

Hark to him What will he do next ? E at a dragon ? Fly
’ ’
to the m oon ? Marry the S ophy Of E gypt s daughter ?
T his last tou ched Hereward t o the quick for it was j ust what ,

he thought Of doing an d his blood heated enough already beat , ,

quicker as some o n e cried with the eviden t intent Of picking a

, ,

quarrel
T hat was meant for u s If th e man who killed the bear has
.

not deserved k nighthood what must we have deserved who , ,

have no t killed him ? Yo u understand h is meaning gentlemen ,

— d o not forget it
Hereward l ooked down and set t ing his foot o n the bear s ,
’

head wrenched out of it the s w ord which he had left till n o w

, , ,

wi t h pardonable p ride fast set in the sk ull , .

Martin L ightfoot f o r his par t drew stealthily from his bosom

, ,

the little magic axe keeping hi s eye o n the brain pan o f the
,
-

last speaker .

T h e lady o f the house cried S hame and ordered the knight s

away with haughty words and gestures which because they , ,

were so well deserved only made the quarrel more deadly

,
.

T hen S h e commanded Hereward t o sheathe his sword .

He did so and t u rning t o t he knights said with all courtesy

, , ,
‘
Y o u mistake me sirs You were where brave knights s hould
,
.

be within the beleaguered fortre ss defending the ladies Had

, ,
.

yo u remained outside and been eaten by t he bear what must

, ,

have befallen them had he burst O p en the door ? As for t his

,

lit t le lass whom you left outside she is t o o young to requite

, ,

knight s prowess by lady s love ; and therefore beneath your

’ ’

’
atten t ion and only fit for t he care O f a boy lik e me And tak
,
.

in g up Alft ru d a in his arms he carried her in and disappeared ,

.

Who now bu t Hereward was in all men s m ou t hs T he

’

minstrels made ballads on him the lasses sang his p raises (says
the c hronicler ) as t hey danced u p on the green Gilbert s la dy
’

w ould need give him the seat an d all the honours of a belted , ,

knigh t t hough knight he was none And daily and weekly the
, .

valiant lad gre w and hardened into a valiant man and a ,

courteous one withal giving no Offence himself and not over

, ,

ready to take O ffence a t other men .

II HOW H EREWAR D SLEW T HE BEAR 47

T heknights were civil enough to him the ladies m ore than ,

civil ; h e hun t ed he wrestled he tilted he was promised a '

c hance of fighting for glory as soon as a Highland chief S hould

, ,

declare war agains t Gilber t o r drive O ff his cat t le— an even t ,

whi c h (and small blame to the Highland chiefs ) happened every

six mon t hs .

N O o n e was so well content with hi m self as Hereward and

therefore he fancied that t he world m ust be equally c ontent
w ith him ; and h e was m uch disconcerted when Martin drew
him aside one day and whispered ,

If I were my lord I should wear a mail S hirt under my coat

,
’
to m orrow o u t hunting
-
.

‘ ’
What ?
‘ ’
T h e arrow that can go through a deer s blade bone can go -

’
through a man s ’
.

Who should harm me ? ’

‘
Any m an o f t h e dozen who eat at the same table .
’

‘
What have I done t o them ? If I had my laugh at them ,

they had their laugh at m e and we are quits .

’

T here is another s c ore my lord which you hav e forgotten, , ,

an d tha t is all o n you r side

’
.

’
Eh ?
‘
Yo u killed the bear D O you expect them to forgive you
.

’
tha t ill t h e y have rep aid you with interest ?
t
?is }l l
‘
You do not want for wit m y lord U s e it and think ,
.
,
.

What right has a lit t le boy like you to come here killing bears ,

which grown m en cannot kill ? What can yo u ex p ect but j ust

p unishm ent for you r insolence — say a lance be t ween your ,

shoulders while you stoop to drink as S igfried h ad fo r daring ,

to tame Brunhild ? And more what right have you to come ,

here and so win the hearts Of the ladies that the lady o f all t h e
, ,

ladies should say If aught happ en to m y p oor boy— and he

“
,

cannot live long— I would ado p t Hereward for my o w n son and ,

S how his m other what a fool some folks t hink her S O my lord .
, ,

pu t o n your mail shir t to m orrow and take care of narrow ways

-
,

and sharp corners For to m orrow it will be t ried tha t I know

.
-
, ,
before my L ord Gilbert comes back from the Highlands : but
by whom I k now not and care little seeing that there are
, , ,

h lf a dozen in the house who would be glad enough O f the

c fian c e .
’

Hereward took his advice and rod e o u t with three o r four ,

knigh t s t he next morning into the fi r—forest ; n o t afraid but ,

angry and sad He was no t yet Old enough to es t i m ate t he

.

virulence O f envy ; to take ingrati t ude and treachery f o r

granted He was t o learn t he lesson then as a wholesome
.
,

chas t ener to the p ride Of success He was to learn i t again in .

later years as an addi t ional bitterness in t he humiliation O f

,

defeat ; and find o u t tha t if a man once fall o r seem to fall a , ,

48 H EREWAR D T HE WA K E CHAP .

h undred cur s s pring up to bark at him who dared n o t open ,

their m ouths whi le he was o n his leg s 0

.

S O t hey rode into the forest and parted each with hi s foo t , ,

man an d his dogs I n search o f boar and dee r ; and each had his
,

sp ort without meeting agai n for some two hours o r more .

Hereward and Martin came at last to a narrow gully a mu r ,

derons place enough Hu ge fi r trees roofed it i n and made a .

,

night of noon High bank s Of earth and great boulders walled

.

it in right and left for twenty feet above T h e track what .

,

with pack —h orses feet and what with the wear and tear Of five
’
,

hundred years rainfall was a ru t three feet deep and two feet
’
,

broad in which n o horse could turn Any other day Hereward

, .

would ha v e cantered down it with merely a tightened rein .

T O dayy he turne d to Martin an d said ,

‘
A very fit and proper p lace for this s ame trea s on : unles s
’
thou hast been drinking beer and thinking beer .

But Martin was nowhere to be seen .

A pebble thrown from the I igh t bank struck him and he ,

’
looked u p Martin s face was peeri ng through the heather
.

o verhead hi s finger o n his lips T hen he pointed cautiously

, .
,

first u p the pa s s t hen down ,

.

Hereward felt that his swor d was loose I n the S heath and ,

hen gripped hi s lan ce with a heart beating but not w ith

Ec ar
, ,

T henext m oment he heard the rattle o f a horse s hoof s behind ’

him looked back and sa w a knight charging desperately down

, ,

the gully his b o w in hand and arrow drawn to the head

, ,
.

T O turn was impossible T o stop even to walk o n wa s to be .

, ,

ridden over and hurled to the ground hel p lessly T o gain the .

m outh o f the gully and then tu rn on his pursuer was his only
, ,

chance Fo r t he first and almost the last time in his life he

.
,

struck spurs into hi s horse and ran away As he went an ,

.
,

arrow s truck him sharply in the ba c k piercing the corslet but , ,

hardly entering the flesh A s he neared the mouth two other .

,

knights crashed their horses t hrough the brushwood from right

and left and stood awaiting him t heir spears ready to strike
, ,
. .

He wa s caught in a trap A shield might have s aved him b u t .

he had none .

He did n o t flinch D ro pp ping hi s rein s and dri v ing in the

.
,

spurs on c e m ore he m et t hem I n full shock With his left hand

,
.

he thrust aside the left hand lance with his ri ght he hurled his ,

o w n with all his force at the right h a nd f o e gand saw it pas s ,

clean through the felon s che s t while his lance — p Oint dropped
’
, ,
an d passed h aI m le ssly .

S o m uch for lances I n front B ut the knight behind ? Would .

not his sword the next m oment be through his brain ?

T here was a c la tt er a crash and looking back Hereward saw , , ,

horse an d man rolling in the rut and rolling with them Martin ,

L igh tfoot He had already pinned the knight s head against

.
’
50 H E R EWA R D T HE WA K E C HAP .

NO T E
I in se rt o n t h e foll owin g pag e t h e pe d igree O f G o spat ric an d t h e D u n
b ars with m an y th an k s t o t h e g al lan t D u n b ar t o wh o m I o w e t h e g reate r
,

part th ere o f . It ill u strates th at c o n n e cti o n b e twe en t h e ro yal h o u se s O f

S c o tlan d an d o f En gl an d wh ich i n fl u e n c e d so m uch t h e c o u rs e o f t h e N o r
m an Co n q u e st . T h e si n gu l ar n am e G o spat ric o r Co spat ric is i t sh o u ld
, , ,

b e re m e m b ere d re m ark ab l e as pe rh aps t h e e arli e st i n stan ce o f an h e re d

, ,

it ary n am e . I am so rry t o say th at S co ttish an tiqu ari es c an as ye t th ro w

n o light o n i ts e tym o l o gy .
II Ho w H EREWAR D SLEW T HE B E AR 51

H c
< H m
A o
2
a Q
o
m
s fi
A

5 fi Hs
a
c H a S 3m «0 u
q
A 6
é 3 mg: o
q
o
w 8w E o
o
Rfi
.

o 8fi B 0 q s a 3 e
: E
S
Q m
A 8 m fi m o
h
o
E8 5 3
BS 0
m SR a
3
0
B fi g w
g

R
.

H m
S ? S z m a m
a E 2
fi oE
a E “

E
e E
m a M E
o n
v m S 1 Q
d
m
O
E
O s
5 o £
m £N
B 3
H
: 9s
0
o m
b fi w
m 5 a

e e
mS n
a m 5
q
9
.

5 2fi3
o
a a S
o
fl
a
4 5 g5
m m
o
u 0
.

m5
o
a m 3m

S A w
n

E d e w gBA
fi E no v
o x a é E8
c m s E
mS $ ah
84
o S
;
” o
2 g h
S x
fi ? m
fi2
.

88
.
5 o
a n afl
m 2
q o
o
2 G S 3 n
: 3 99
d: 5 8 4 S
fi
0

p
S w
e
e
5 8 H d
p s 0 w E
,

a 8
3e
.

m e

5
2
5 8
m
w
c q 8
o 9
H a
fl
E
3m J5 u
Z
p m
o 2 w 5
d
Q o a w 9

m5 fi 8 ew
1
fl
O a 2 fi
G
Z o z 9
m
D m fi 8 o
Q m z 3
w 6 2a
S
.
m
m
52 H EREWA R D T HE WA K E CHAP .

C HA P T E R III

Ho w HE R EW ARD SU CCOU RED A P RI N CE SS O F COR N W A LL

T HE next place I n which He re w ard appeared was far away o n

the s outh west upon t he C ornish shore He went into port o n
,
.

board a merchant ship carrying w i ne and intending to bring ,

’
back tin T e mer c hants had t old him o f o e Alef a valiant
h . n
1 ‘
,

or kinglet living at Gweek up the Helford r i ver who

, , ,

wa s indeed a distant connection Of Hereward himself having ,

married a s did S O many Of the C eltic pri nces the dau gh t e r Of

, ,

a D anish sea rover o f S iward s blood T hey told him also that ’
.

the kinglet increased his wealth not only by the s ale o f tin and ,
‘
o f red cattle b u t by a certain amount Of summer leding (i e ’
-
.
,

p i racy beween seed time and har v est) i n company with his
D anish brother s i n law from D ublin and Waterford and .

Hereward who believed with m ost E nglishmen Of the E ast

, ,

C ountry that C ornwall still produced a fair crop o f giants

, ,

s ome Of them with two and e v en three heads had hope s that ,

Al ef might show him some adventure worthy o f hi s sword He .

sailed in therefore over a rolling bar between j agged point s Of

, , ,

black rock and up a tide r i ver which wandered and branched

away in laIid lik e a landlocked lake between high green walls
,

,
’
Of o ak and ash till they saw at the head Of the tide Alef s town
, ,

n e s tling I n a glen which sloped towards the southern sun T hey .

discovered besides two ships drawn up upon the beach whose

, , ,

long lines and snake head s beside the stoat carved o n the beak -
,

head Of one and the adder o n that o f the other bore witnes s to
, ,

the piratical habi ts o f their o w ner T h e merchants it seemed .

, ,

were well known to the C ornishmen on shore and Hereward ,

went up with them uno p posed p ast the ugly dyke s and m uddy
’
leats where Alef s slaves were streaming the gravel fo r tin o re
,

t hroughg rich alluvial pastures spotted with red cattle ; and up

’
to Ale f s town E arthwork s and stockades surrounded a li t tle
.

church Of ancient stone and a cluster o f granite cabins thatched ,

with turf in which the slaves abode In the centre o f all a vast
, .

’
stone barn with lo w walls and high s loping roof contained Alef s
, ,

family treasures h o u se c arle s horses cattle and pigs T hey

, , , , ,
.

entered at o n e end between the p igst ye s passed o n t h rough the ,

cow stalls then through the s tables till they saw beforegthem
-
,

dim through the reek O f peat sm oke a long oaken table at w h ic li

, ,
-
, ,

sat huge dark haired C ornishmen with here and there among ,
’
them the yellow head o f a N orseman w h o were Alef S following ,

Of fighting men Boiled meat was there in plenty barley cake s

.

1
Pro b ab ly a c o rru pti o n o f t h e N o rse n am e O l af T h ere is m uch N o rse .

b l o o d in t h e s e apo rts of Corn wall an d Devo n , as t h e su rn am es testi fy .

I II HOW HE REWARD S U CCOU RE D A PRIN CESS 53

an ale At the head o f the table o n a high —backed s ettle wa s

d .
, ,

Alef himself a j olly giant who was j us t setting to work to

, ,

drink himself stu p id with mead made from narcotic heather

honey By his side sate a lovely dark haired girl with great
.
-
,

gold torcs upon her throa t and wrists and a great gold brooch ,

fa s tenin g a shawl w hich had plainly come from th e looms o f

S pain o r of the E ast ; and n ex t to her again feeding her with ,

tit bits cut o ff with his o w n dagger and laid o n barley cake
-
,

instead o f a plate sat a m ore gigantic personage even than ,

Al ef the biggest man tha t Hereward had ever seen with high
, ,

cheek bones and small ferret eye s looking o u t fro m a greasy

-
,

mas s o f bright red hair and beard .

N 0 q uestions were asked o f the newcomers T hey set them .

selves down in silence in empty places and according to the ,

laws o f the good o ld C ornish hospitality were allowed to eat ,

and drin k their fill before they spok e a word .

‘
Welcom e here again friend said Al ef at la s t in good , ,
’
,
‘
enough D ani s h calling t h e elde s t m erchant by name
,
D o yo u .

bring wine
T h e merchant nodded .

An d you want tin

‘

T h e merchant nodded again and lifting hi s cup drank Alef s

’
,

health following it up by a coarse j ok e in C ornish which raised

, ,

a laugh all round .

T h e N orse trader o f those day s it mu s t be remembered was , ,

non e o f the cringi n g and e fi e m in at e chapmen who figure in the

’

stories o f the middle ages A free N orse o r D ane himself often .

,

o f noble blood he fough t as willingly as he bought ; and held

,

hi s o w n as an equal w hether at the court o f a C ornish kinglet

,

o r at that of the great K aiser o f the Greeks .

An d yo u fair s ir said Alef looking k eenly at Hereward

‘ ’
, , , ,
‘
by wha t name shall I call you and what service can I do for ,

you ? You look m ore like an earl s son t han a m erchant and ’
,

are c ome here surely for other thing s besides tin .

’

Heal t h to K ing Alef said Hereward raising the cup

‘
,
’
,
.

‘
Who I am I w ill t ell to none b u t Alef s self bu t an earl s so n ’ ’

I am though an outlaw and a rover My lan d s are t he breadth

, .

o f my boo t sole My plough is m y sword My treasure is my

. .

good right hand N o t hing I have and nothing I need save to

.
, ,
’
serve noble kings and earls and win m e a C hampion s fame If ,
.

you have bat t les to fight tell m e ; t hat I may fight them fo r ,

you If you have none thank God for his pea c e and let m e
.
,
’
eat and drink and go in peace ,
.

K ing Alef needs nei t her man nor boy to fight his battle a s
lon as I ro n h o o k 1 si t s in his hall .

t wa s the red bearded gian t wh o spok e in a broken tongue

-
, ,

U l cu s Fe rren s, s Rich ard u rely a m isre adin g fo r u n cu s

1 ’
of Ely s
‘
say .

T he h o o k w as a n o t u n co mm on we apo n am o n g s am en
e .
54 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

p art S cotch , part C ornish part D anish which Hereward could , ,

hardly understand but that the ogre intended to insult him he

understood well enough .

Hereward had ho p ed to find giant s in C ornwall and behold

he had fou nd o n e at on ce ; though ra t her to j u d ge from his ,

look s a Pic t ish t h an a C ornish giant ; and true to hi s reckle ss

,

determination to defy and fight every man and beast who wa s

willing to defy and fight him he turned on his el b ow and st ared ,

at I ro n h o o k in scorn meditating som e speech which might

_
,

prove the hoped f o r quarrel -

.

As h e did so his eye hap p ily caught that of the fair princes s .

S h e was wat c hing him with a strange look admiring warning , , ,

imploring and when she saw t hat he no t iced her she laid her ,

finger o n her lip in token o f silence crossed herself d evoutly , ,

and then laid her finger on her lips again a s if beseeching him ,

to be patient and silent in the name o f the heavenly powers .

Here w ard as is well seen w an t ed n ot for quick wit o r f o r

, ,

chivalrous feeling He had observed the rough devotion o f the

.

giant to the lady He had observed too tha t she shrank from
.
, ,

it 3 that she t urned a w ay with loathing when he offered her hi s

o w n cup while he answered by a d ark and deadly scowl
, .

Was there an adventure here ? Was she in duresse either

from this I ro n h o o k o r from her father o r from both ? D id she
, ,

need Hereward s help ? If so she was so lovely that he could

’

not refuse it And o n the chance b e swallowed down his high

.
,

stomach and answered blandly enough

,

O n e could see without eyes noble sir that you were worth , ,

any ten comm on men : but a s every o n e has not like you the
luck o f so lovely a la d y by your side I thought th at p er c hance , ‘

you might hand over some o f your lesser quarrel s to o n e lik e

m e who has not yet seen so mu ch good fighting as yourself and
, ,

enj oy yourself in pleasant com p any at home as I should s urely ,

’
d o in your p lace .

T h e P rincess shuddered and tu rned pale then looked at

Hereward and smiled her thank s I ro n h o o k laugh ed a savage .

la u gh .

Hereward s j e s t being translated into C ornish for the benefit

’

of the company was highly a pp roved by all 5 and good humou r

,

being restored every man go t drunk save Hereward who found

, ,

the mead too sweet and si c kening .

After which those who could go to bed went to bed not as , ,

in E ngland 1 am ong the rushes on the floor but in the bunk s

, ,

o r ber t hs o f wattle which stood two o r three tiers high along

the wall .

T h e next m orning as Hereward went o u t to wash his face ,

and hands in the brook b elow ( he b eing the only man in the
house who did so ) Mar t in L ightfoot followed him ,
.

1
Co rn wall w as n ot th e co n si d re d part o f E gl an d
n e n .
III HOW HERE W ARD S U CCO U RE D A PRIN CESS 55

What is it Martin ? Hast thou had too mu c h o f that

‘
,

sweet m ead last night that thou m u s t come o u t to cool thy

head t o o ? ’

I came o u t for two reasons — fi rst to see fair play in case that ,

I ro n h o o k should come to wash his ugly visage and find yo u on ,

all fours o ver the brook — yo u understan d ? An d next to tell

’
you what I heard last night among the m aid s .

‘ ’
An d wha t didst tho u hear ?
Fine adven t ures if we can but compas s them Y o u s aw
‘
, .

that lady with the c arrot hea d ed fellow ? I saw that you saw -
.

Well if you will believe m e that man h as n o m ore gentle blood

, ,

than I have He is a N o man s son a P ict from Galloway who

.
-
’
, ,

came down wi t h a pirate crew and has m ade him self the ,

master of this drunk en o ld prince a n d the darling o f all his ,

h o u se c arle s and n o w will needs be his so n —in law w he t her he

,
-

’
will o r n o t .

I thought as mu ch said Hereward ; but how didst thou

‘ ’ ‘
,
’
find o u t this ?
I went o u t and sat wi t h the knaves and the m aids and
‘
,

lis t ened to thei r harp playing ( and harp they can these C ornish -
, ,

lik e very el ves ) ; an d then I t oo sang songs and told them

s t ories for I can talk their tongu e som ewhat till t hey all blest
, ,

me for a right good fellow And then I fell to praising up .

I ro n h o o k to t he women
’
.

’
P raising him up man ? ,
‘
Ay j ust because I su sp ected him ; f o r th e women are so
,

contrary that if you speak evil of a m an they will surel y s p eak

good of him but if you will only speak good of him then you ,

will hear all the evil o f him h e ever has done and m ore besides ,
.

’
An d this I heard that the ki n g s daughter cannot abide him ;
’
and w ould as lief marry a seal .

O n e did n o t need to be told that said Hereward as long

‘ ’ ‘
, ,

a s o n e has eyes in one s head I will kill the fellow and carry ’
.

’
her o ff ere four and t w en t y hours be p ast
,
- -
.

S of t ly sof t ly m y young master

, You need to be told som e
, .

thing tha t your eyes would n o t tell you and t hat is t hat the ,

poor lass is be t ro t hed already t o a son o f o ld K ing Ran ald t he

O st m an of Waterford son o f o ld K in g S igt ryg w h o ruled there
, , ,
’
w hen I was a boy .

‘
He is a kinsman o f m ine then said Hereward
’
All the ,
.
‘

’
m ore reason that I should kill this ru ffian .

’
If you can said Martin L ightfoot , .

If I can ? retorted Hereward fiercel y

’
.

‘
Well well wilful h eart m us t h ave its way only tak e my
, , ,

counsel ; speak to the p oor young lady fir s t and see wha t she ,

will tell you lest you only make bad worse and bring down h er
, ,

father and his m en o n h er as well as you .

’

Hereward agreed and resolved to watch hi s opportunity o f ,

speaking to the princess .

56 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

A s they went in to the morning meal they met Alef He .

w a s in high good humour with Hereward and all the more so

when Hereward told him hi s nam e and how he wa s the s on o f ,
L eofric .

’
I will warrant yo u are he said by the gray head yo u carry
‘
, ,

o n green shoulders N o discreeter man they say in the s e isle s

.
, ,
than the o ld earl .
’

Yo u speak truth sir said Hereward

’
‘
though he be n o , , ,
‘

’
father o f mine n o w for o f L eofric it is said in K ing E dward s ,

court that if a man ask counsel o f h im it i s a s though he had

, ,
a sk ed it o f the oracle s o f G o d .
’

T hen you are his true s on young man

‘
I s aw h o w yo u , .

kept th e peace with I ro n h o o k and I o w e you thank s f o r it for ,

though h e is my good friend and will be m y son in — law ere long ,

-
,

yet a quarrel with him is m ore than I can abide j ust n o w and ,

I s hould n o t lik e to have seen my guest and my kinsman s lain

’
in my house .

Hereward would have said that he thought there was no fear

o f that — but h e prudently held hi s tongue and h avi ng an end ,

to gain listened instead o f ta lking

, .

T wenty year s ago o f course I could have thrashed him a s , ,

easily a s —bu t n ow I am getting o ld and shaky and the man ,

has been a great help in need six kings o f the s e part s has he
killed for m e w h o drove o ff my cattle and stopped my tin
, ,

works an d plundered my monks cells t o o which is worse while

,
’
, ,

I was away sailing the sea s ; and h e is a right good fellow at

heart t hough he be a little ro u gh
, S o be friends with him .

as lo n g a s yo u s tay here and if I can do yo u a service I ,

wfl l
T hey went into their m orning meal at which Hereward re ,

solved to keep the peace which he longed to break and there ,

fore a s was to be expected broke

, ,
.

Fo r during the meal t he fair lady with n o w orse intention ,

p erhaps than that o f teasing her tyrant fell to open praise s o f ,

Hereward s fair face and golden hair and being insulted there
’
,

fore by the I ro n h o o k retaliated by observations about his ,

personal appearance which were more comm on in the eleventh ,

century than they happily are now He to comfort himself .

, ,

drank dee p o f the French wine which had j ust been brought
and broached and then went o u t into the courtyard where in
, ,

the midst o f his admiring fellow ru ffian s h e enacted a scene as -

ludicrous as it was pitiable All t h e childish vani t y o f the .

savage boiled over He strutted h e shou t ed he tossed about .

, ,

his huge limbs he called for a harper and challenged all around
, ,

to dance sing lea p fight do anything against him ; m eeting

, , , ,

with n othing bu t admiring silence he danced himself o u t o f ,

breath and t hen began boasting once m ore o f his fights his
, ,

cruelties hi s b u tcheries his im p ossible escape s and vi c t ories ;

, ,

till at last as luck would have it he e spied Hereward an d

, , ,
5 8 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Martin s pok e My lord here wants a prie s t to shrive him

.
‘
,

and t ha t quickly He i s going to fight the great tyrant Iron .

hook as you call him

,
.

Ii o n h o o k
‘
answered the priest in good L atin enough ,
‘
And he so young ! God hel p him he i s a dead man What ,
.

is this A fresh soul sent to i t s account by the hands of that

man o f Belial C annot he entreat him ; can he n o t m ak e
peace and save hi s you n g life ? He is but a s t ripling and that
, ,

man like Goliath of o ld a man o f war from his youth up

, , .
’

And my master said Martin L ightfoot proudly is lik e

‘
,
’
,
‘

young D avid — one tha t can face a giant and kill him ; f o r he
has slain lik e D avid his lion and his bear ere now At least
, ,
.
,

he i s one that will neither make peace nor entreat the face o f ,

living man S o sh rive him quickly master priest and let him
.
, ,
’
be gone to his w ork .

P oor Martin L i ghtfoot s p oke thus bravely only t o keep up

his s p iri t s and his young lord s— for I n s p ite o f hi s confidence I n ’

Hereward s prowess he had given him u p for a lost man ; and

’
,

the tear s ran down his rugged cheeks a s the o ld priest rising ,

up and seizing Hereward s two hands in his besought him with ’

, ,

the passionate and graceful elo q uence o f his race to have ,

mercy upon his o w n youth .

Hereward understood his meaning though g n o t hi s word s ,

.

’
T ell him he said to Martin that fig h t I m ust and tell him
, , ,

that s hri v e m e he must and that quickly T ell him h ow t h e

fellow met me i n the w ood below j ust n o w and would have slain ,

me there unarmed as I w a s ; and h o w when I told him it was

, ,

a s hame t o s t rike a nak ed man h e told me he would give m e ,

but one hou r s grace to go back o n the faith o f a gentleman for

’
, ,

my arm our and weapons an d m eet h im there aga i n to die by ,

’
his hand S o shrive m e quick sir p riest
.
, .

Here w ard knel t d own Martin L ightfoot knelt down by .

him and with a tremblin g voi c e began to interpret for him

, .

What does he say ? asked Here w ard as the priest murmured

‘ ’
,

som e t hing to hi mself .

He said quoth Martin n o w fairly blubbering that fair

’
, , ,
‘
,

and young as you are you r shrift should be as short and as ,

’ ’
clean as D avid s .

Hereward was touched Anything b u t that said he .

‘
,
’
,

sm it in g o n his breast Mea culpa — m ea culpa— mea maxima ,

‘

’
cu lpa .

T ell him h ow I robbed my father ’

.

T h e p riest g roaned as Martin did so .

‘
And how I m ocked at my m other and left h a in a rage , ,

without ever a kind word between us An d h ow I have S lain I .

know n ot h o w many m en i n battle th ough t hat I t rust need , , ,

lie heavily o n m y so u l seeing that I k illed them all I n fair

gtt
g
o ,
’
!

Again the prie s t groaned .

III HOW HE REWARD S U CCOU RED A PRIN CE S S 5 9

‘
I robbed a certain p riest o f his money and gave
An d h o w
’
i t away to my h o u se c arle s .

Here the priest groaned m ore bitterly s till .

O h m y son my son where hast thou found time to lay all, ,

these burden s o n t hy young soul

’ ‘
It will t ake less t ime said Martin bluntly for yo u to tak e , ,
’
the burdens o ff again .

‘
But I dare not absolve him for robbing a p rie s t Heaven .

help him He mus t go to the bisho p for t hat He is m ore fi t .

’
to go o n p ilgrimage to Jerusalem than to ba tt le .

‘
He has no time quoth Martin for bisho p s o r Jeru ,
’
,
‘

sa1em
’
.

T ell him s ays Hereward that in this purse is all I have

’ ‘
, , ,

t hat in it he will find sixty silver p ennies besides two strange ,

’
coins o f gold .

’
S ir priest said Mar t in L ightfoot taking the pu rse from
‘
, ,

Hereward and keeping it in hi s o w n hand there are in t his

, ,
‘

bag monies .
’

Martin had n o mind to let the priest in to the secret o f the

sta t e of their finan c es .

‘
And tell him continued Hereward that if I fall in this ,
’
,
‘

battle I give him all t ha t money that he may part it am ong t he ,

’
poor for the good of m y soul .

‘
P ish said Martin to his lord ; that is paying him for ‘

’
ha v ing you k illed Y o u should pay him for k eep ing you alive . .

And without wai t i n g for the answer he spoke in L a t in ,

.

‘
And if he comes back safe from t his bat t le he w ill give ,

you t en pennies for yourself and your chu rch p riest and , ,

t herefore expects you to pray you r very lou des t while he is

gone .

’
I will p ray I will pray said the h oly m an ,
I will wre s tle ,

in prayer Ah I that he could slay the wicked and re w ard the

.
,

proud a c cording to his deservings Ah ! that he could rid m e .

and m y master and m y young lady o f this son o f Belial — this

, ,

devou rer o f wido w s and orphans— this slayer of th e poor and

needy who fills t his place with inno c ent blood — him o f whom
,

i t is w ritten T hey s t re tc h forth t heir m outh unto the heaven

, ,

and their t ongue goeth through th e world T herefore fall the .

”
peo p le unto them and thereout su ck they n o small ad vantage ,
.

I will shrive him shrive him of all save robbing the p riest and , ,

for t hat he mu st go to the bisho p if he live : and if not the , , ,

’
L ord have m ercy o n his soul .

And so wee p in g and trembling t he good o ld man pronounced

, ,

the words o f absolu t ion .

Hereward rose thanked him and then hurried o u t in , ,

S i lence .

’
You will pray you r very loudest priest said Martin as he , , ,

followed his youn g lord .

I will I wil l quo t h he and kneeling down began to chant

, ,
’

,
60 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

’
that n oble 7 3 d Psalm Quam bonus Israel which he had j ust , ,

so fi t ly quoted .

T hou gavest him the bag Martin ? said Herewar d a s they

’
, ,

hurried on .

Yo u are not dead yet N o pay no play is a s good a rule .

f o r priest as f o r layman .
’

N o w then Martin L ightfoot good bye

‘
, C om e n o t with ,
-
.

me It m ust never be said even slanderously that I brought

.
, ,

two in t o the field against one and if I die Martin ,

’
You won t die said L ightfoot shu t ting his teeth ,
.

If I die go back to my people somehow and tell them that

, ,
I d ied like a true earl s so n ’
.
’

Hereward held out his hand ; Martin fell o n his knee s and
kissed it ; watched him with set teeth till he disappeared in
the wood and then started forward and entered the bushe s at
a different s p ot .

‘
I must be nigh at hand to see fair p lay he muttered t o ,
’

‘
himself in ca s e any o f his ru fii an s be hangi n g a b out Fair
, .

’
play I ll s ee and fair play I ll give t o o for the sake o f my
,
’
, ,
’
lord s honour though I be bitterly loth to do it S o many times
, .

’
as I have been a villain when it was o f n o use why mayn t I ,

be o n e n o w when it would serve the p u rpose indeed ? Why

,

did we ever come into thi s accursed place ? B ut o n e thing I

will do said he a s he ensconced himself under a thick holly
,
’
, ,

whence he could see the meeting o f the combatant s upon an

‘
O p en lawn some twenty yards away ; if that big bull calf
kills my mas t er and I do not j ump o n his back and pick ,

hi s brains o u t with this trusty s teel o f mine, may my right

arm
And Martin L ightfoot swore a fearful oath which need n o t ,

here be w ri t ten .

T h e priest had j u st finished his chant o f the 7 3 d P sal m and ,

had betaken himself in his spiri t ual warfare a s it was then ,

called to t he equally o pp osite 5 2 d Q uid glo ria ris

, ,

Why boastest thou thyself thou tyrant that thou canst d o

‘
, ,

mis c hief wherea s the goodness of G o d endureth yet daily ?

,
’

‘ ’ ‘
Father ! father ! cried a soft voice in the doorway where ,
’
are you ?
And in hu rried the princess .

Hide this she said breathles s drawing from beneath her

‘
,
’
, ,
m an t le a huge sword ; hide it where no one dare touch ‘
,

it under the altar behind the holy rood : n o place t o o

,

se c re t f
‘ ’
What is i t ? asked t h e priest rising from his knees ,
.

His s w ord — the O gre s — his magic sword which kills whom ’
,

soever it s t rikes I c oaxed him to let me have it last night

.

w hen he was ti p sy for fear h e should quarrel with the young,

stranger and I have k ept it from him ever since by o n e excuse

o r another ; and n o w he has sent o n e o f hi s ru ffian s in for it ,
I II HOW HE REWARD S U CCOU RE D A PRIN CESS 61

saying that if I do not give it up at once he will com e back and

,
’
kill me .

He dare not do that said t he priest

‘ ’
.
,

What is there that he dare n o t ? said she

‘
Hide it at once ; ’
.
‘

I know that h e wants i t to fight with this Hereward .

’

’
If he wants it f o r that said t he priest it is too late ; f o r
‘
, ,
‘

half an hour i s p ast since Hereward went t o meet him .

’

And yo u let him go ? You did n o t persuade him stop him ?

‘
,
’
Yo u let him go hence to hi s death ?
In vain the good man expostulated and explained that it ,

was no fault o f his .

You must come with me this instant to my father— to them ;

they must be p arted T hey shall be par t ed If you dare n o t I . .
,

dare I will throw myself between them and he that s trikes

.
,
’
the other shall s t rike m e .

An d she hurried t he prie s t o u t o f the h ouse down the knoll , ,

and acros s the yard T here they found others o n the sam e .

errand T h e news that a battle was toward had soon spread

.
,

and the men a t arms were h urrying down to the fight ; kept
- -

back however by Alef who strode along at their head

, , , .

Alef wa s sorely perplexed in mind He had taken as all .

,

h onest men did a great liking to Hereward Moreover he was

, .
,

hi s k insman and his guest S ave him he would if he could ; .

but h o w to save him without mortally o ff ending his tyran t

I ro n h o o k he could not see At least he would exert what little .

p ower he had and prevent if p ossible his men a t arm s from

- -
, , ,

h e lpin their darling leader against t he hapless lad .

’
Ale s perplexi t y wa s mu ch increased when his daughter
bounded to w ards him s eized him by the arm and hurried him , ,

on showing by look and word which o f t he combatants she

,

favoured so p lainly t hat the ru fii an s behind brok e into scornful

,

murmurs T hey burst th rough the bushes Martin L ightfoot

. .

happily heard them coming and had j ust time to slip away ,

noiselessly like a rabbit to the other part o f the cover

, , .

T h e combat seemed a t the first glance to be o n e between a

grown man and a child so unequal was the S ize o f the com ,

b at an t s But t he second look show ed that the ad v antage was

.

by no means with I ro n h o o k S tumbling to and fro wi t h t he .

broken shaft o f a j avelin s t icking in his thigh h e vainly tried ,

to seiz e Hereward with his long iron grapple Hereward -

.
,

bleeding but st ill active and u p right broke away and sprang
, , ,

round him watching for an op p or t uni t y to strike a deadly blow

, .

T h e h o u se c a rle s rushed forward wi t h yell s Alef shouted to the .

c ombatants to desist but ere the p arty could reach them ,

Here w ard s O p p or t unity had come I ro n h o o k after a fruitless

’
.

l unge stumbled forward Hereward lea p t aside and spying an .

,

unguarded s p ot below the corslet drove his sword dee p into t he ,

’
g i ant s body and rolled him over upon the s ward T hen arose
, .

shouts o f fury .
62 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

‘
Foul play cried o n e .

’
And o t her s taking up the cry called o u t S orcery ! and
, , ,
‘

‘ ’
T reason !
Hereward s tood over I ro n h o o k as he lay writhing and foam
ing o n the ground .

‘
K illed by a boy at last groaned he If I had but had my .

s word— m y brain biter which that witch stole from me but last
-

night —an d amid f o u l curse s and bitter tear s o f S ham e hi s

m ortal spirit fled to its doom .

T h e h o u se c arle s rushed in o n Hereward w h o had enough to ,

’
d o to keep them at arm s length by long sweep s o f his sword .

Alef entreated threatened promised a fair trial if the men

, ,

would give fair play : when to com p lete the confusion the , ,

princes s threw herself u p on the corpse shrieking and tearing ,

her hair and to Hereward s surprise and disgust bewailed the ’

,

prowess and the virtue s o f the dead calling upon all pre s ent t o ,

avenge his murder .

Hereward vowed inwardly th at h e would never again trust

woman s fancy o r fight in woman s quarrel He was n ow n igh
’
,
’
.

at hi s wits end ; the h o u se c arle s had closed round him in a

’

ring with the intention o f s eizing him ; and however well he

might defend his front he migh t be crip p led at any moment ,

from behind : but in the very nick o f time Martin L ightfoot

burst through the crowd set himself heel to heel with h is ,

master an d broke o u t not with threat s but with a good

, , ,

humoured laugh .

‘
Here i s a p retty coil about a red headed brute o f a Pict ' -

’
D anes O stmen he cried are yo u n o t asham ed to call such a
‘
, , ,
’
fellow your lord when yo u have such a true earl s son as this to
,
’
lead you if you will ?
T h e O stmen in the company looked at each other Martin .

L ightfoot saw that his appeal to the antipathies o f race had

told He therefore followed it u p by a string o f witticism s
.
, ,

upon the Pictish nation in general o f which the only two fit for ,

modern ears to be set down were the t w o old stories th at the ,

P ict s had feet so large that they used to lie upon their ba c ks
and hold up their legs to shelter t hem s elves from the sun and
that when killed they could n o t fall down but died as they
, ,

were all standing

, .

‘
S o that the only foul play I can s ee is that my master
shoved the fellow over after he had stabbed him instead o f ,

l e avi n g him to stan d u pright t here like o n e o f your C ornish ,

’
D olmens till his flesh sh ould fall o ff his bones
, .

Hereward saw t h e e ffect o f Martin s words and burst out in ’

D anish lik ewise with a true Viking chant ,

L o o k at m e d re ad m e ,

I am t h e He reward 1
,

1
Gu ardian of the Arm y .
’
III HOW HEREWARD S U CCOU RE D A PRIN CESS 63

T h e wa tch
e r, t h e am io n ,
p ch
T h e B e rse r er, t h e Vi i n ,
k k g
T h e l an - i e , t h e se a- i e ,
d th f th f
Y o n s m m e r-pira e ,
u g u t
Fam o s lan -was er,
u d t
S laye r o f wi tchb ears, -

Q e lle r o f O res,
u g
Fa e n e r o f rav e n s,
tt
D arlin o f ray wo lv e s,
g g
W il wi ow m a e r
d d k
-
.

T o m e — t o wo l an d
uch f
Rav e n I ive youg .

S i p wih m e b o l ly,
th d
Fo ll ow m e aily, g
O ver t h e swan s ro a , d
’

O ve r t h e w al e s b a ,
h th
’

Far t o t h e so war ,
uth d
W e re su n an d se a m e e
h t
W e re ro m t h e palm -b o
h f ugh s
Appl e s o f o l ang dh g
A n d rei f ght th e re o u r l o n g sn a
ke -

Wi sen al an d o r ray,
th d f
D ar Mo o ris m ai en s,
k h d
A n d go l o f Al i e r
d g ’
.

Hark to the Viking Hark to the right earl s so n shouted ’

some of the D anes whose blood had been stirred many a t ime
,

before by su ch wild words and o n whom Hereward s youth and

,
’

beauty had their due e ffect An d now the counsels o f the .

ru ffian s being divided the o ld priest gained cou rage to step in

, .

L e t them deliver Hereward an d his serving man in t o his cus t ody .

He would bring them for t h o n the m orrow and t here should be ,

full inves t igation and fair trial And so Hereward and Martin .
,

who bo t h refused stoutly to gi ve up their arms were mar c hed ,

ba c k into the town locked in the li ttle church and left to their
, ,

medita t ions .

Herewar d sat down o n the pavement and cur s ed the princess .

’
Martin L ightfoot took o ff his master s corslet and as well as , ,

the dark n ess would allow bound up his wounds which ha p pily
, ,

were no t severe .

’
Were I you said he at last I should k eep m y curses till I
‘
, ,

saw the end o f this ad ventu re .

’

Ha s not the girl betrayed me shamefully ?

‘ ’

N o t she I saw her warn you as far as look s could do not

.
, ,
’
to q u arrel with the man .

T ha t was because she did not know me L i tt le she thought .

t ha t I c ould
’
D on t holloa till you are o u t o f the wood T his is a nigh t
‘
.

’
for p raying ra ther t han boasting .

S h e cannot really lo v e tha t w re t ch said Hereward af t er a

’
, ,
’
p ause T hou saw st how she m ocked him ’
. .
64 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

‘
Wom en are s trange thing s and often tea s e mo s t where they ,
’
love m os t .

But such a misbegotten savage .

’

Women are strange things say I and with s ome a big fellow , ,

i s a pretty fello w be he uglier than seven I ro n h o o ks S till j ust

, .
,

because women are s trange things ha ve patience say I , , .

T h e lock creake d and the o ld priest came in , Martin leapt .

to the open door but it wa s slammed in hi s face by men o u t

side with scornful lau ghter .

T h e priest took Hereward s head in his hands wept over

’

him blest him for having slain Goliath like young D avid and
, ,

then set food and drink before the two but he answered
’
Martin s q uestion s only with s igh s and shakings o f the head .

L e t us eat and drink then said Martin and after that yo u

’ ‘
, , ,

my lord s leep o ff your w ounds while I watch the door I have

, .

n o fancy for these fellows taking u s unawares at night .

’

Martin lay quie t ly across the door till the small hour s listen ,

ing to every sound till the k ey creaked once more in the lock
, .

He started at the sound and seizing the person who entered

’
round the neck whispered O n e word and yo u are d ead
, , , .

’
D o not hurt me answered a stifled voice ; and Martin L ight
,

foot to his su r p rise found tha t he had grasped n o armed man

, , ,

but t he slight frame o f a young girl .

’
I am the prin cess S h e whispered let m e in
‘
,
’
,
‘
.

’
A very pretty hostage for us thought Martin and letting
‘
, ,

her go seized the key lo c king the door in the inside ,

.

‘ ’
T ake m e to you r master she cried and Martin led her u p , ,

the church w ondering but half suspecting s ome further ,

trap .

’
Yo u have a dagger in your hand said he h olding her wrist , , .

‘
I have If I had meant to u se it it would have been used
.
,

first o n you T ake it if you like.

, .
’

S h e hurried u p to Hereward who lay sleeping quietly o n the ,

altar -steps kn elt by hi m w rung his hands called him her ,

.

champion her deliverer ,

.

’ ‘
‘
I am not well awake yet said he coldly and do n o t know , ,

whether this may not be a dream a s more that I have seen and ,

heard seems to be .
’

It i s n o dream I am true I wa s alway s true to yo u Have

. . .

I n o t p u t myself in your power ? Am I not come here to deliver

yo u my deliverer
,

T h e tears which yo u shed over your O gre s corpse seem to

’

have dried quickly enough .

’

C ruel ! What else c ould I do ? You heard him accuse m e

‘

to his rough followers o f having stolen his sword My life my .

,
’
father s life were n o t safe a m omen t had I n o t dissembled and
, ,

done the thing I loathed Ah ! she went on bitterly Yo u ’

. .

men who rule t he world and us by c ruel steel yo u forget t hat

, ,

we poor women have but o n e weapon left wherewith to hold

66 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
I S hall do well here upon the altar step s said she Ho w ,
’
.
‘

can I sp end my time bet t er till the m orning light than to lie
’
here and p ray ?
T h e o ld priest who was plainly in the plot submitted meekly
, ,

to the same fate ; and Hereward and Martin L ightfoot stole

o u t locking the door
,
but leaving t h e key in it outside T o
,
.

scramble over the old earthwork was an easy matter and in a

f e w minute s they were hurrying d own the valley to the sea ,

wi t h a fresh breeze blowing behind them from the north .

’
Did I not t ell yo u my lord said Martin L ightfoot to keep
, , ,
‘

’
your curses till you had seen the end o f this adventure ?
Hereward was silent His brain was still whirling from the .

ad ventures o f the day and his heart wa s very deeply touched, .

His shrif t of the m orning hurried and formal a s it had been , ,

had softened him His danger — for h e felt h ow he had been

.

face to face w ith death — had softened him likewise and he re

p e n t e d somewhat o f hi s vainglorious and bloodthirsty boasting
o ver a fallen foe as he began to see t hat there wa s a pu rpose
,

more noble in life than ranging land and sea a ru fli an am on g ,

ru fli a n s seeking for glory amid blood and flame

, T h e idea o f .

c hivalry of su c co u ring the weak and the oppressed o f keep ing

, ,

faith and honou r not merely towards m en wh o could avenge

themsel ves but towards women who could not the dim dawn
,

of p urity gentlen ess and the conquest o f hi s o w n fierce

, ,

assions — all these had taken root in his heart during his
p
adventure with the fair C ornish girl T h e seed was sown . .

Would it be cut down again by the bitter blast s o f the rough

figh t ing world o r w ould it gro w and bear the noble fruit o f
,
’
‘
gentle very perfect knigh t hood ?
,

T hey reached t he ship clambered o n board without cere ,

m ony at the risk of being taken and killed as robbers and told
, ,

t heir case T h e merchants had not completed their cargo o f

.

t in Hereward o ffered to mak e up their los s to them if

.
,

they w ou ld set sail at once ; and they feeling that the place ,

would be for some time to com e too ho t t o hold them and being -
,

also in high d eligh t like honest O stmen with Hereward s

, ,
’

p rowess agreed to sail straigh t for W aterford and comple t e

, ,
t heir c argo there B ut the t ide was out It was three f u ll
. .

hou rs before the ship could float and for three full hours they
waited in fear and trembling ex p ecting the C ornishmen t o be ,

down u p on them in a bo d y every m om ent u nder which whole

some fear some on board prayed fervently who had never been
known to p ray before .
IV HOW HEREWARD T OO K S E RV ICE W IT H RAN ALD 67

C HA P T E R IV

HOW HE RE W A RD T OO K SER VI CE I
W T H RAN AL D K NG I OF
W A T E RFO RD .

T HE coast s Ireland were in a s tate o f comparative peace in

of
the m id d le o f the eleventh century T h e shi p s o f L o gh lin seen .
,

far o u t at sea n o longer drove the po p ulation shrieking inland

,
.

Heathe n D anes whether fair haired Fio n gall from N or w ay o r

,
-
,

brown haired D ubhgall from D enmark proper no longer burned

-
,

conve n ts tortured monks for their gold or ( as at C lonmacnoise)

, .

set a heathen princess O d a wife o f T h o rkill son o f Harold

, , ,

Haarfagre alof t o n t he high altar to receive the homage o f t he

,

conquered T h e S candinavian invaders had becom e C hristian

.

ised and civilised also — owing to their contin u al intercourse

,

wi t h foreign nations — more highly than th e Irish whom they

had overcome T hat was easy for early Irish civilisa t ion seems
.

to have exis t ed only in the convents and for the religious and
when they were crushed mere barbarism was lef t behind And
,
.

n o w the sam e process went o n in t he east of Ireland which went ,

o n a generation o r t w o later in the east and north o f S cotland .

T h e D anes began to settle down into peaceful colonist s and

traders Ireland was poor ; and the convents plundered once
.

could not be plundered again T h e Irish were desperately brave . .

Ill armed and almost naked they w ere as perfect in the arts o f
-
,

forest warfare as those moder n Maories whom they so much re

sembled and t hough t heir black skene s and light darts were
n o matc h fo r the D anish swords and battle axe s which they -

adop t ed during the middle age o r t heir plaid trousers and felt ,

capes for the D anish helmet and chain corselet still an Irishman ,

wa s so ugly a foe that it wa s not wor t h while to fight with him

,

unless he could be robbed afterward s T h e D anes, who like .

,

their descendant s o f N orthumbria Moray and S utherland were , , ,

canny comm on sense folk with a shrewd eye to interest foun d , , ,

somewhat to their regret that there were trades even m ore pro
,

fi t ab le than robbery and m urder T hey therefore concentrated .

t hemselves round harbou rs and river mouths and sent forth ,

t heir ships to all the western seas from D ublin Waterford , , ,

Wexford C ork o r L imerick E very im p ortant seaport in Ire

, ,
.

land owes its existence to those s t urdy Vik i n gs sons In each ’

.

o f these town s they had founded a petty kingdom which e n ,

dured un t il and even i n som e cases af t er the conquest o f

, ,

Ireland b y Henry II and S trong b ow T hey in t erm arried in .

the meanwhile wi t h the native Irish B rian Boru for instance .

, ,

w as so connected with D anish royalty that it is still a question ,

whe t her h e himself had no t Danish blood in his veins K ing .

S igt ryg S ilk b e a rd who fo u ght against him at Clontarf was

, ,
68 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

actually his s te p son — and so too according to another Irish ,

c hronicler wa s K ing O lafl Kv aran w h o even at the time o f th e

,
'

, ,

battle o f Clontarf was married to Brian Boru s daugh t e r— a

,
’

marr i age which ( if a fact) was startlingly within the prohibited

degrees o f consanguin i ty But t he an c ient Irish were sadly
.

careless o n s uch points ; and as G irald u s Cam b re n sis says ,

‘
followed the example o f men o f o ld in their vice s m ore will
in gly than I n their virtues .

More than forty years had elapsed since that famou s battle
o f C lontarf ,
and s ince Ragn v ald Reginald o r Ran ald so n o f , , ,

S igt ryg the N orseman had been slain therein by B rian Boru .

O n that one day so the Irish sang t he northern invader s were

, ,

exterminated once a n d for all by the Milesian hero who had

, , ,

craftily used the s t rangers to fight his battles and t h en the ,

m oment they became formidable gto himself crushed them till ,

‘
from Howth to Brand on I n K erry there was n o t a threshing ,

fl o o r w ithout a D anish slave thrashing thereon o r a q uern ,

t hout a D anish woman grinding thereat .

N e v e I t h e le ss i n spite o f the total annihilation o f the D anish

,

p ower i n the E merald isle Ran ald seemed to th e eye s o f men to

,

be s t ill a hale old warrior ruling constitutionally— that Is with

, ,

a wholesome fear o f being outlawed o r m urdered if he mis h e

haved — o ver the D ane s I n Waterford ; with five hundred fair
haired warrior s at his back t w o edged axe o n shoulder and
, ,

t w o edged s w ord o n t hi gh His ships drove a thriving trade

.

with France and S pain in Irish fish butter honey and furs , , ,
.

His workmen coined m oney in the old round t ower o f D u n d o ry ,

built by his predecessor and namesake about the year 1 003 ,

which stand s a s Re gin ald s t o w er to this day He had fough t

’
.

many a bloody bat t le s i nce his death at Clontarf by the side o f ,

his o ld leader S igt ryg S ilkb e a rd He had been many a time to .

D ublin to visit hi s even m ore p rosperous and fo rmidable friend ;

and was s o delighted with the new church of the Holy T rinity ,

which S igt ryg and his bishop D onatus had j u s t buil t n o t I n the ,

D anish o r O st m an town but i n the heart o f ancient C eltic

,

D ublin (p lain proof o f the utter overthrow o f th e D anish power ) ,

that he had de t ermined to build a like church I n honour o f the

Holy T rinity in Waterford itself A thriving valiant o ld king
,
.

h e seemed a s he sat in h is g reat house o f p i ne logs under

,

Reginald s tower upon the quay drinking F rench and S p anish

’
,

wines out o f horns o f I vory and cups o f gold ; and over his head ,

han g ing u p on the wall the huge double edged axe with which
, ,

so his fl at t e re rs had whispered gBrian Boru had not S lain him

, ,

but h e Brian Bo I u .

N evertheless then as since alas ! t h e pleasant theory was

, ,

preferred by t he Milesian historians to the plain truth An d .

far away inland monk s wrote and harp ers sung o f t he death o f
,

Ran ald the fair haired Fio n gall and all his mailed swarms
’ ‘
,
.

O n e T eag u e Ma c Mu rro u gh indeed a famous bard o f those

, ,
 HOW HE RENVARD T O O K S E RVI CE W I T H RAN AL D

parts compo s ed unto his harp a song o f Clontarf the fame

, ,

whereof reached Ran ald s ears and so amused him t hat he rested ’
,

n o t day o r night till he had caught the hapless bard and brought

him in trium p h into Waterford T here he compelled him at .

’
sword s point to sing to him and his h o u se c arle s the Milesian
version o f the great historical even t ; and when the harper in
fear and trembling came to t he story o f Ran ald s own death at ’

Brian Boru s hands then the j olly o ld Viking lau ghed till the
’
,
’
tears ran down his face ; and instead o f cu tting o ff T eague s
head gave him a c u p o f goodly wine made him his o w n harper
, ,

thenceforth and bade him send for hi s wife and children and
, ,

sing to him every day especially t he song o f C lontarf and his ,

o w n death trea t ing him very m uch in fact as E nglish royalty , ,

during the last genera t ion t reated another Irish bard who s e
song was even m ore sweet and his notions o f Irish history even ,

m ore grotesqu e than those o f T eagu e Mac Mu rro u gh

,
.

I t wa s to this o ld king o r rather t o his so n S igt ryg god s on , ,

o f S igt ryg S ilk b e ard and distant cousin o f his o w n that Here
, ,

ward n o w took his way and told his story as the ki n g sat in , ,

his hall drinking across the fire after the o ld N orse fashion T h e
, .

fire o f pine logs was in the midst o f the hall and the sm oke ,

went o u t t hrough a h ole in the roof O n o n e side was a lon g .

bench an d in the middle o f it the king s high arm —ch air right
,
’

and left o f him sat his kinsmen and the ladie s and hi s sea ,

captains and men o f wealth O pposite o n the other side o f the .

,

fire was another bench In the middle o f that sat hi s marshal

, .
,

and right and left all his h o u se c arle s T here were other benches .

behind o n which sat m ore freemen but o f lesser ran k

, , .

And they were all drinking ale which a servant poured o u t ,

’
o f a bucket into a great bull s h orn and the men handed round ,

to each o t her .

T hen Hereward cam e in and sat down o n the end o f the ,

hinderm ost ben ch and Martin stood behind him till o n e o f the
, ,

ladies said
Wh o is that you n g stranger wh o sits behind th ere so humbly ,
’
t h ough h e looks like an earl s son m ore fit t o sit here with us o n
’
,

t he high bench ?
‘ ’
S o he does quoth K ing B an ald C ome forward hither
‘
, .
,
’
young S ir and drink , .

And when Hereward came forward all the ladie s agreed that ,
’
he must be an earl s s on for he had a grea t gold torc round his
n eck and gold rings on his wrists and a new scarlet coa t
, ,

bound wi t h gold braid and scarlet stockings cross laced with ,

-

’
gold braid u p to the knee ; and sh oes trimmed with martin s
’
fur and a short blue silk cloak over all trimmed with m artin s ,

f u r likewise ; and by his side in a broad belt with gold studs , ,

was the O gre s sword B rain biter with its ivory hilt an d velvet
’
-
,

sheath ; and all agreed that if h e had bu t been a head taller ,

t hey had n ever seen a properer man .

70 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
Aha ! s uch a gay young sea cock doe s not come hither for -

’
nough t D rink first man and tell u s thy busine ss after and
.
, , ,
he reached the horn to Hereward .

Hereward took it and sang ,

In i s Bra a-b e a e r,
th g k
B rave B an ald I pl e e dg
I n o o li q o r, w i h l i
g d u ghte n s hc
L o n lab o r C II o ar b e n
g u ch -

G o o d liqu o r wh ich swee ten s

T h e so n g o f t h e scal d
’
.

‘
T h y voice
is as fine as thy feath ers m an N ay drink it all ,
.
, .

We ourselves d rink here by the p e g at midday but a stranger

’
is welco m e to fill his inside at all hour s .

Whereon Hereward finished t he horn duly and at Ran ald s ,

’

bidding sat him down o n the high settle He did n o t remark

,
.

h at as he s at down two handsome youth s rose and stood behind

fm
l1 .
,

’
Now then sir prie s t , ,
qu oth the king ,
‘
go on with your
’
story .

A priest Irish by hi s face and dress wh o s at o n the high

, ,

bench rose and renewed an oration which Hereward s entran ce

, ,
’

h ad interrupted .

S o O grea t king a s says Homerus thi s wise king called his

, , ,

earl s knights sea captains and h o u se c arle s an d said unto them

, ,
-
, , ,
“
Which o f t hese two ki n gs i s in the right who can tell ? Bu t ,

mind you that this king o f the E nchanters lives far away in
,

India and we never heard o f him m ore than his name but this
,

king Ulixes and his Greek s live hard by and which o f the two
i s i t wiser to quarrel with him that lives hard by o r him that ,

lives far o ff ? T herefore K ing Ran ald says by the mouth o f

”
, , ,

my humility the great Fe argu s L ord o f I v ark,

T ake example ,

by Alcinous the wise king o f Fairy and listen not to th e am

, ,

b assad o rs o f those lying villains O De a L ord o f S lie v ard a gh

’
, ,

Maccarthy K ing o f C ashel and O S u lliv an L ord o f Kn o c k rafli n ,

’
,

who all three between them could n o t raise kernes enough to

’
drive o ff o n e o ld widow s cow Make friends with me who live .
,

u p on your borders and you shall go peaceably through m y

lands t o con quer and destroy them who live afar o ff as they
,
”
deserve the sons o f B aylial and Judas
,
.

And t he priest crossed himself and sat down A t which ,

.

speech Here w ard was seen to lau gh .

‘
Why do you laugh young sir ? T h e p riest s eem s to talk like ,
’
a wise man and is my guest and an ambassador,
.

T hen rose up Hereward and bowed to the ki n g

‘
K ing ,
.

Ran ald S igt rygsso n i t was not for rudenes s that I laughed f o r , ,

I learnt good m an ners long ere I came here but becau se I find ,
’
c lerk s alike all over t he world .

Ho w ?
‘ ’
 HOW HEREWARD T OO K S E RV ICE W IT H RAN ALD
‘
Quick at hiding false counsel under learned speech I know .

nothi n g o f Ulixes king nor o f this Fe argu s either ; an d I am

, ,

but a lad as you see but I heard a bird once in m y own coun
,
’ ’
t ry who gave a very di ff erent counsel from the p riest s .

S p eak o n t hen T his lad is n o fool m y m erry men all

’
.
, .
,

T here were three copses king in our c ountry and each , , ,

copse stood on a hill In the firs t there built an eagle in the .

,

second there built a sparha w k in t he third there buil t a crow , .

N o w the sparhawk came to t he eagle and said Go shares , ,

W it h me and we will kill t he crow and have her wood to our ~

, ,
”
se lves .

Humph say s the eagle I could kill the cro w without your
“
,
”
hel p however I will think of it
When the cro w heard
.
,
‘
t hat she cam e to th e eagle herself , ,
“ ”
K ing E agle says she w h y do you want to kill m e who live
, , ,

ten miles from you and never flew across your p ath in my life ? ,

Bet t er kill that li t tle rogue o f a sparhawk who lives bet w een us ,

and is always ready to poa c h on you r marches whenever you r

b ac k is turned S o you will have her wood as well as you r
.

’,
own .

Yo u
are a wise cro w said the eagle and he went out and ,
’
killed the sparhawk and t ook his woo d , .

L oud laughed K ing Ra mald and his Vikings all Well .

spoken young man ! We will tak e the sparhawk and let the
, ,

cro w bi d e .
’

N ay but quoth Hereward hear the end of the story After

‘ ’
,
.
,

a while the eagle finds the crow beating about the edge of the
’
sparhawk s wood .

Oho says he so yo u can p oach as well as that little hook

,

nosed rogue ? and h e killed her t o o ”

.

“
Ah says t he c row when she lay a—dying my blood is o n , ,

m y own head If I had but left the sparhaw k between me and

.

t his great t yrant ’

‘
And so t he eagle got all three woods to himself .

At which t he Vikings la u ghed m ore lou d ly than ever ; and

K ing B an ald chuckling at the n otion of ea t in g up the ha pless
,

Irish princes one by one sen t b a c k the pries t ( not without a ,

p resent for his chu rch for Ra n ald was a p ious m a n ) t o t ell ,

t he grea t Fe argu s t h a t u n less h e sent into Wa t erford by tha t

,

day week two hund re d head of ca ttle a hund red pigs a hundred
, , ,

weigh t of clear h oney and as much of wax Ran ald w ould not , ,

leave so mu ch as a s uc king p ig alive in I v ark .

T h e cause o f q u arrel of cou rse was too un i m portant to be , ,

mentioned E ach had robbed and chea t ed the o ther h alf a

.

dozen times i n the las t t wenty years As for t h e m orality .

o f t he transa ct ion Ra n a ld h a d t his salve for his c ons c ience t hat

, ,

as h e in t ended t o d o t o Fe a rgu s so wo u ld Fe a rgu s have gladly ,

do n e t o him h ad he been livin g p eaceab ly in N orway and been

, ,

strong enough t o invade and rob him Indeed so had Fe argu s .

,
72 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C II A P .

d one already ever since he wore beard to every Chieftain o f his

, ,

own race whom he was stron g enough t o ill treat Many a fair -
.

herd had h e d riven o ff many a fair farm burnt many a fair , ,

woman carried o ff a slave af t er that inveterate fashion o f law ,

less feuds which makes the history o f C eltic Ireland from the
earliest times o n e dull and aimless catalogue o f murder and de
vastation followed by famin e and disease and n o w as h e had
,

done to others so it was to be done to him ,

.

And n ow young sir w h o seem as witty as you are good

‘
, ,

l ooking you may if you will tell u s you r name and yo ur busi
, , ,

ness As fo r the name however if you w ish t o keep it to

.
, ,

you r s elf Ran ald S igt rygsso n is not the man to demand it o f an
,

honest guest .
’

Hereward looked round and saw T eagu e Mac Mu rro u gh ,

standing clo s e to him harp in hand He took it from him ,

.

cou rteously enough put a silver penny into the minstrel s ’

h and and running hi s finger s over the strings ro s e and ,

began .

O utl aw an d fre e th i e f
L an d l e ss an d l awl ess
T h ro ugh t h e wo rl d fare I ,

T h o ughtl e ss o f li fe .

So ft is m y h e ard b u t ,

Hard m y Brai b ite r n -

.

Wak e m e n m e c all w h o m
, ,

Warri r an d ward e no

Fi n d e ve r watchful .

Far i n N o rthu m b e rl an d
S lew I t h e w i tch b e ar -
,

Cle av i g h is b rain pan

n -
,

A t o n e stro k e I fe ll e d h im
’
.

And so forth chanting all his doughty deed s with such a

, ,

voice an d spirit j oined to that m usical t alent for which he was

,

afterwards so fam ous till the hearts o f the wild N orsem en re

,

j o ic e d and S k all to the stranger S k all t o the young Viking

‘
,

rang thro u gh the hall .

T hen S howing p roudly the fresh w o n n d s o n his bare arm s h e ,.

sang of his fight with the C ornish ogre and his adven t ure W I t h ,

the princess But always though he went in t o the m ost m inute

.
,

de t ails he concealed the nam e both o f her and o f her father

, ,

while he kept his eyes s t eadily fixed o n Ran ald s el d est son
’

,
’
S igt ryg who sat at h is father s right hand
,
.

T h e youn g m an grew uneasy red a lm o s t angry till at last , ,

Hereward sun g
A g o l d ri n g sh e g ave m e
Right ro yally dwarf wo rk e d -
,

T o n o n e wi ll I pass it
Fo r pr aye r o r for swo r d stro k e ,
74 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

S kall
to the Viking shouted the D ane s once more at thi s ,

o u tburst o f heathendom common eno u gh among their half con ,

-

verted race in t imes when monasticism made so utter a divorce

,

bet w een the life o f t he devotee and that o f the w o rdlin g that it ,

seemed reasonable enough for either party to have their o w n

heaven and their o w n hell Af ter all Hereward was not .
,

original in his wish He had but copied the death song which
.
-

S iward D igre had sung for himself som e three years before .

All praised hi s poe t ry and especially t he quickness o f his ,

alliterations (then a note of the highest art ) and the o ld king ,

filling n ot this tim e the horn but a golden goblet bid him drain , ,

it and keep the goblet for his song .

Young S igt ryg leapt up and took the cup to Hereward , .

‘
S uch a scald h e said ought to have no meaner cup bearer
‘ ’
-
, ,
’
than a king s son ’
.

Hereward drank it dry an d then fixing his eyes meaningly

’
o n the prince dropt the princess ring into the cup and p utting
, ,

it back into S igt ryg s hand sang ’

,

T h e b ea k e r I re a h b ack c

Mo re rich th an I t o o k it .

N o g o l d wil l I grasp
O f t h e k i g s t h e ri n g give r
’
n -
, ,

T ill b y wit o r b y we apo n

, ,

I wo rth i ly w in i t .

Wh e n fe lle d b y m y fau lch io n

Fal se Fe argu s lie s g o ry ,

W h il e o ver t h e w o l f s m e al
’

Wil d wi d ows are waili n g .

’

’
‘
he refu s e my gift ? grumbled B an ald
D oes .

He has given a fair reason said the prince a s h e hid the

‘
,
’
,

ring in his bosom leave him to m e for my brother in arm s

‘

’
h e is hen ceforth .

After which as was the custom o f tho s e parts m ost o f them

, ,

drank too m uch liq u or But neither S igt ryg nor Hereward .

’
d rank and the t w o S iwards stood behind their young uncle s
sea t watching him with that intense admiration which lads can
,

feel for a young hero .

T ha t night when the warriors were asleep S igt ryg and

, ,

Hereward talked o u t their plans T hey would equip t wo shi p s ; .

t hey would fight all the kinglet s o f C ornwall at once if need ,

’
was ; t hey would carry o ff th e I rin c e ss and b u rn Alef s town
over his head if h e said nay N
,

o t h in g c ould be m ore simple .

than the tactics required in an age when might was right .

T hen Hereward turned to his t w o nephews w h o li n gered ,

near him plainly big with news

,
.

And what brings you here lads ? He had hardened his

‘ ’
,

heart and made u p his mind to show n o kindness to his own

,

kin T h e day might come when they might need him the n it
.

would be hi s t urn .
 HOW HE REWARD T OO K S ERV ICE WIT H RAN AL D
‘ ’
Your father as we told you is d ead , , .

S o much t he better for him and th e worse for E ngland And .

Harold and the G o d w in sso n s o f cou rse are lords and masters , ,

far and wide ? ’

’
T osti has o u r grandfather S iward s earldom
’
.

‘
I know t hat I know too that he will no t keep it long u n
.
, , ,

lcass he learns that N orthumbrians are free men and n o t Wessex ,

’
s laves .

‘
And Algar o u r uncle I s outlawed again after K ing E dward ,
’
had g i v en him peaceably your father s earldom .
’

‘ ’
And why ?
’
‘
Why was h e outlawed two years ago ?
‘
Because the G o d w in sso n s hate him ; as they will hate yo u
’
in yo u r turn .

‘
And Al gar i s gone to Griffin the Welshm an and from him , ,

o n to D ublin to get ships j ust as he did tw o years ago ; and

, ,
’
has sent u s here to get shi p s likewise .

‘
An d what will he d o with them when h e ha s go t them ? He
burn t Hereford last time he was outlawed by way o f a w i se ,
’
deed minster and all with S t E thelbert s relics o n board and
, , .
,

slew seven pries t s : but they were only honest canons with wives
at home and not shaveling
, g m onks so I s u p pose that sin was easily ,

shrived Well I ro b b e d a priest o f a few pence and was o u t

.
, ,

lawed ; h e plunders an d burns a wh ole minster and I s made a ,

great earl fo r it O n e law for the weak and o n e f o r the strong

.
, ,

young lads as you will know when you are as o ld as I And

, .

n o w I su p pose he will plunder and h a m m ore minsters an d ,

then patch up a peace with Hal old again ; w hich I advise him
st I o n gly to do ; for I warn yo u young lads and you m ay carry , ,

that message from me to D ublin to m y good brother your uncle ,

that Harold s li t tle finger I s t hicker than his whole body

’
y ; and
that false G o ld w In sso n as he I s h e I s t h e only man with a head
, ,

upon his shoulders lef t I n E n g gla n d now that his father and m y ,

fath er and dear o ld S iw ard whom I loved better than m y

,
’
fa ther are d ead and gone
,
.

T h e lads stood silent n o t a little awed and indeed impo s ed

, ,

o n by the cynical and w orldly w i se tone which their ren owned

,

uncle had assumed

At last one o f them asked falteringly T hen you w ill do ,
‘

’
no thing for u s ?
‘
For you n o thing Against you nothi n g Why sh ould I mix
. .

myself u p I n m y b I other s quarrel s ? Will h e m ake t hat white

headed driveller at Westminster reverse m y o u t laW I y ? And if
’
he does wha t shall I get thereby ? A yo u n ger brother s portion ;
,

a dirty oxgang o f land I n K esteven L e t him leave m e alone as .

I leave him and see if I do n o t come back to him som e d ay for

, ,
’
o r a gainst him as h e ch ooses with such a hos t of Viki n gs son s ,

as Harold Ha rd raad e himself wo u ld be proud o f By T hor s .

’

hammer b oys I ha v e been an ou t law but five years n o w and I

, , ,
76 HE REWARD T HE W AK E C HA P .

find it s o cheery a life that I do n ot care if I am an outlaw f o r ,

fifty m ore T h e world is a fine place and a wide pla c e and it

.

is a very little corner of i t that I have seen yet and if you were
o f my m et t le you would come along with me and see it through
,

o u t t o the fou r c o rners o f heaven instead o f m ixing yourselve s ,

up in these paltry little quarrels wi t h which o u r two families

are tearin g E ngland in pieces and being murdered perchance ,

like dogs at last by treachery as S weyn G o d w in sso n murdered ,

Bio rn U lfsso n his o w n cousin

’
, .

T h e boys listen ed wide eyed and wide eared Hereward ,

- -
.

k n e w to whom he wa s speaking ; and h e had not spoken in

vai n .

Ran ald will ‘

What do you hope to get here ? he went o n ’
.

give yo u n o ships he will have enough to do to figh t this

Fe argu s and he is t o o cunning to thrust h is head into Algar s
’

q uarrels .

‘
We hoped to find Viking s here w h o would go to any war in
the h o p e of plunder .
’

‘
If t here be any I want them m ore than yo u ; and what is
,

more I wil l have them T hey know that they w ill d o finer
,
.

deeds with m e f o r their captain than burning a few E nglish ,

homesteads And so m ay you C om e with me lads O nce and

. .
, .

f o r all com e Help me t o fight Fe argu s T hen help m e to

,
. .

another little adventure w hich I hav e o n hand— a s pretty a o n e

a s ever you h eard a minstrel sing— and then we will fi t o u t a
large ship o r t w o and go where fate leads — to C onstantino p le
, ,

if yo u like What can yo u do better ? You never will get that

.

earldom from T osti L ucky f o r young W alt h e o f your uncle if

.
, ,

he gets it — if he and yo u t o o are not m urdered within seven

, ,

years f o r I know T o st i s h umour when he has rivals in hi s

! ’
,

way
’
Algar will protect u s said o n e ,
.

‘
I tell yo u Algar is n o match f o r the G o d w in sso n s If the
,
.

m onk king died to m orrow neither hi s earldom n or his life

- -
,

would be s afe When I saw your father Asb io rn B a lax lie dead
.

at D unsinane I said T here end s the glory o f the h ou se o f the

, ,

bear ; an d if yo u w ish t o make m y words com e fal s e then leave

”
,

E ngland to founder and ro t and fall to pieces— as all men s ay ,

she is d oing — wi t hout your helpi n g to hasten her ruin and s eek
glory and wealth too with m e around the world ! T h e white
’
b ear s blood is in your veins lads T a k e to the sea like you r ,
.

forefather and com e over the s wan s bath with m e

,
’

And w ell they k ept their

T
h at we will s aid th e t w o l ads
’
, .

w or
 HOW HE S U CCO U RED T HE P RIN CE S S AGA IN 77

C HA P T E R V

HOW HE RE W A RD S U CC O URE D T HE P RI N CES S O

O F C RN W AL L A
S E CO N D T I M E

FA T wa s the feasting , and loud wa s the harping in the halls o f ,

Alef, Ki ng o f Gweek S avoury wa s the smell of fried pilchard

.

and hake m ore savoury s till that o f roast porpoise m os t

s avoury o f all tha t o f fifty hu ge squab pies buil t u p o f layers o f ,

apples bacon onions and m u t ton and at t he bottom o f each a

, , , ,

squab or young cormorant which di ffu sed both through the pie
, ,

and through the ambient air a delicate odour o f mingled guano ,

and polecat And the occasion was w orthy al ik e o f the smell

.

’
a n d o f the noise ; for K ing Alef findin g that after the O gre s ,

death the n eighbouring kings were but t o o ready to mak e

’
repri s als o n h im for his C hampion s murders and robberies had ,

made a treaty o f alli ance offensive and defensive with Hannibal

, , ,

the son o f G ryll K i n g o f Marazion and had confirmed t he same

, ,

by be s towing o n him the hand o f his fair dau ghter Whether .

S h e approved o f the ma t ch o r not w as asked neither by Ki ng ,

Alef n o r by K ing Hannibal .

T o— night was the bridal feast T o m orrow m o rn in the .

-

church was to hallow th e unio n and after that Hannibal rylls ,

was to lea d hom e his bride among a gallant company , .

And a s they ate and drank and harped and piped there , ,

cam e into that hall fou r shabbily drest men— o n e o f them a

sh ort broad fellow wi t h black elf locks and a red beard — and
, ,
-

sat t hem dow n sneakingly at the very lowe s t end o f all th e

benche s .

In hos p itable Cornwall e s pecially o n such a day every guest

, ,

was w el c ome and the strangers sa t peaceably but ate n othing , ,

though there was both hak e and pilchard within reach .

N ext to them by chance sat a great lo u rd an o f a Dane as

, , ,

honest brave and s t upid a fellow as ever t ugged at o a r and

, ,

afte r a while they fell t alking t ill the strangers had heard the ,

reason o f this great feast and all the n ews o f the coun t ry side
, .

‘
But w h ence did they come not to k now it already for all ,

C ornwall w as talking thereof

O h — they came o u t o f D evonshire seeking service do w n ,

west with some merchant o r rover being seafaring men , .

’

T h e stranger w i t h the black h air had been meanwhile , ,

earnestly wa t ching the princess wh o sat at the board s head ,

’
.

He saw her wa t chin g him in return and with a face sad

enough .

At last she burst into tears .

‘ ’
What should the bride weep for at such a merry wedding ? ,

ask ed he o f h is companio n .
78 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

O h — cause enough and he told bl untly enough the

’ ’
rin c e ss story And what is m ore said he the K ing o f ‘

V
.
, ,

Vat e rfo rd sent a ship over last week wi t h forty p ro p er lads o n ,

board and two gallant Holders with them to demand her but
, ,

for all answer they were put into the strong house and there
, ,

t hey lie chained to a log at this minute P i t y it is and shame

, ,
.
, ,

I hold for I am a D ane myself an d pity too that s uch a bonny

, , ,

lass s hould go to an unkem p t Welshman like this instead o f a ,

tight smart Viking s son like the Waterford lad ’

,
.
’

T h e stranger answered nothing but kept hi s eye s u pon the

prince ss till she looked at him stedfas t ly in return
, .

S h e turned pale and red again but after a while she spoke .

‘
T here is a stranger there and what his rank may be I know
not but he has been thrust down to t h e lowest seat in a ,

h ou se t hat used to honour strangers in stead o f trea t ing them ,

l ike slaves L e t him take this dish from m y hand and eat j oy
.
,

fully les t when he goe s home h e may speak scorn o f bridegroom

,
’
and bride and our C o rnish weddings
,
.

T h e ser v ant brought the dish down : he gave a look at the

’
stranger s shabby dress turned u p his n ose and pretending to , ,

mistake p ut the dish into the hand o f the D ane

, .

‘
Hold lads quo t h the s tranger
,
If I have ears that was
’
,
.
‘
,
’
meant for me .

He seized the platter with both hands ; and t herewith the

hand s both o f the C ornishman and o f the D ane T here was a .

’
struggle but so bitter was th e stranger s gripe that (says the ,

chronicler ) the blood burst from th e n ails o f both his op p o n ents .

He was called a savage a devil in man s shape and other ’

,
’ ’
,

dainty name s but he was left t o eat his squab pie in peace
, .

‘ ’ ‘
Patience lads q uoth he as he filled hi s m outh
,
Before I
, ,
.

take my p leasure at this wedding I will hand my o w n dish ,

round as w ell as any o f you

,
.
’

Whereat men won dered but held their tongues , .

And when the eating was over an d the drinking began the ,

princes s rose and cam e round to drink the farewell health

,
.

With her maids behind her and her harper before her (so was ,

the C ornish custom ) she pledged o n e by one each o f t he guests , ,

slave as well as free while the harper played a tune ,

.

S h e cam e d own at last to the s t rangers He r face was pale .

,

and her eyes red with weeping .

S h e filled a cup o f wine and one o f her maids o ffered it to ,

the stranger .

He put it back courteou sly but firmly N o t from your ,

.

’
hand said h e , .

A growl against his bad manners rose straightway and the

minstrel who (as of t en ha pp ened in t hose days ) was j ester like
,

wise made merry a t his ex p ense and advised the company t o

, ,

turn the w ild beast o u t o f the hall .

S ilence fool
‘
said the princess
, Why sh ould he know o u r .
 HOW HE S U CCO U RE D T HE PRIN CES S AG AIN 79

West country ways ? He may take it from m y hand if n ot

-
,
’
from hers .

And she held o u t to him the cup herself .

He took it looking her steadily in the face ; and it seemed

,

to th e m instrel a s if their hands lingered together round the

cup handle and that he saw the glitter o f a ring
-
,
.

L ike many another o f hi s craft before and since he was a ,

vain meddlesome vagabond and must needs p ry into a secret

, ,

which certainly did not concern him .

S o he could not leave the stranger in peace ; and knowing

that his privileged calling protected him from that formidable
fist h e n ever pa s sed h im by withou t a sneer o r a j est as he
, ,

wandered rou nd the table o ffering his harp in the C ornish , ,

fashion to an y o n e w h o wi shed to play and sin g

, .

But n o t to you S ir E lf locks : h e tha t is rude to a pretty

‘
,
-

girl when she offers him wine is t o o great a boor to u nderstan d ,

m y trade .
’

’ ‘
It i s a fool s trick an s wered the stranger at last to p u t o ff
‘ ’

, ,

what yo u m ust do at last If I had but t h e time I w ould pay .

,
’
yo u f o r you r tune with a better o n e than yo u ever heard .

T ak e the harp then boor said the minstrel with a laugh

, , ,

and a j est .

T h e stranger took it and drew from it such m usic as m ade ,

all heads turn to w ard him at once T hen h e began to sing .

,

sometime s by himself ; and sometimes his com rades m ore ,

‘ '

’
Girv i oru m t mp lici t er c an en t es j oined their voices in a Fe n m e n s
’
’
,

three man —glee -

.

In vain t he minstrel j ealous for hi s o w n credit tried to

‘

, ,

sna t ch the harp away T h e s t ranger sang o n till all hearts .

,

w ere sof t ened ; and the pr incess taking t he ri c h shawl from ,

her shoulders threw it over t hose o f the stranger sayin g that

, ,

it was a gift too poor for such a scald .

S cald roared the bridegroom ( now well i n his cups ) from

t he head o f the table ; ask what th ou wilt short o f m y bride ‘
,
and m y kingdom and it is thine ’
, .

Give me then Hannibal G rylls K in g o f Marazion the

, , , ,

D anes who came from B an ald of Waterford

’
.

You shall have them Pity that you have asked for nothing
’
better than such tarry ru fli an s .

A few minutes after the minstrel bursting with j ealousy and , ,

rage was whis p ering in Hannibal s ear

,
’
.

T h e hot o ld P unic 1 blood flushed u p in his cheeks and his ,

t hin P unic lips curved into a snaky smile Perhaps the old .

Punic treachery in his heart for all that Hannibal was heard
to re p ly was We must n o t distu r b the good fellowship o f a
,
‘
-

’
C ornish wedding .

1
Han n ib al ,
s till a co mm o n am e in Co rn w all is h e ld — a d n o t
n ,
n

u n l ik ely— t o h ave b ee n i t ro duc d th e re b y a cie n t P h oe ician c o l o ists

n e n n n .
80 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T he stranger nevertheless and the princes s likewise had

, , ,

seen that bitter smile .

Men drank hard and long that night : and when daylight
came the s t rangers were gone
,
.

In the mornin g the marriage ceremony wa s performed an d

then began the pageant o f leading hom e the bride T he .

minstrels went first harping and piping then K ing Hannibal , ,

carrying hi s bride behind him o n a pillion ; and af t er them a

string o f servants and men at arm s leading country ponies - -
,

laden with the bride s dower Alo n g with them unarmed ’

.
, ,

sulky and s uspicious w alked the forty D ane s wh o were in

, , ,

formed that they s hould go to Marazio n and there be shipped ,

o ff for Ireland .

N o w as all men know those part s of C ornwall flat and open

, , ,

furze down s aloft are cut for many miles inland by long
-
, , ,

branche s o f tide river walled in by wood s and rocks ; and by ,

crossing one o r mor e o f these the bridal party would save ,

many a mile on thei r road toward s the west .

S o they had timed their j ourney by the tides ; lest finding ,

lo w water in the rivers they should have to wade to the ferr ,

boats waist deep in m ud ; and going down the steep h illsi e

-
,

through oak and ash and hazel copse they entered as many
, ,
-
, ,

as could a great fl at bottomed barge and were rowed across

,
-
,

some quarter o f a mile t o land under a j utting crag and go up , ,

again by a similar path into the woods .

S o t he first boat load w ent up the minstrel s in front harping

-
, ,

and piping till the greenwood rang K ing Hannibal next with ,

his bride ; and behind him spear - men and axe men with a -
,

D an e bet w een every two .

When they had risen some two hundred feet and were in the ,

heart o f the fore s t Hannibal turned and made a S ign t o the

, ,

men behind him .

T hen each pair o f them seized the D ane between them and ,

began to bind his hands behind his back .

’
What will you do wi t h us ?
S end yo u back to Ireland —a king never breaks his word
‘
, ,

but p ick o u t your right eyes first to S how your master h o w ,

m uch I care for him L ucky for yo u that I leave you an eye .

a iece to find your friend the h arper whom if I catch I flay

ap
, , , ,

I ve .
’

‘
You promised cried the princ ess .

‘
And so did you traitress and he gri p ped her arm which
, ,

was round his waist till she screamed S o did yo u promise :

‘
.
,

bu t not t o me And you shall p ass your bridal nigh t in my

.

dog kennel af t er my dog whip has taught yo u n ot to give ri n gs

-
,
-

again to wandering harp ers .

’

T h e wretched p rincess shuddered for she kne w t o o well that

such an a t ro c i t y was easy and common enough S h e knew it .

’
well Why should she n o t ? T h e story o f the Cid s D aughters
.
82 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

and there I and these two lads my nephew s offered to go , ,

forward as s p ies while S igt ryg t hrew up an earthwork and

, ,

made a s t and agains t the C ornish We mean t merely to go .

back t o him and give him news But when I found yo u as

,
.

good as wedded I had t o do what I could while I could y and I

, , ,
’
have done it lik e a Wake as I am,
.

Yo u have m y n oble and tru e champion said she ki s sing

‘ ’
, , ,

him .

Hum p h
‘
quoth Hereward laughing
. D o n o t tempt m e , .
‘

by being too gra t eful It I s hard enough to gather honey like

.
,

the bees for other folk s to eat What if I kept you myself
,
.
,
’
n o w I have go t you ?

Hereward ?
‘ ’

O h there i s n o fear pretty lady

‘
,
I have other things to ,
.

w ake over than making love to yo u — and o n e i s how we are to ,

ge t to our ships and m oreover past Marazion town

, , ,
.
’

And hard work t hey had to ge t thither T h e county was .

soon roused and u p in arms ; and it was only by wandering a

’
th ree d ays 0 1 1 c u I t through bogs and m oors t ill the poni es were ,

utterly tired o u t and left behind (t he bulkier part o f the dowry

,

being left with them ) t ha t they y made their a p pearance o n the

,

S hore o f Mount s Bay He re w ard leading the pr i nces s I n triumph

’
,

upon Hannibal s horse ’

.

After which they all sailed away for Ireland and there like , ,

young Beicha n
Pre pare d an o th e r we ddin g ,

Wi all th th eir h e arts so fu ll of gl ee

‘
’

And this is the episode of the C ornish p rincess as told (the ,

outlines of it at least) by Richard o f E ly after L eofric the ,

’
ma s s priest S manu s cript
-
.

C HA P T E R VI
Ho w HE RE W A RD W AS W RE C KE D U P ON T HE FL A N DE RS S HO RE

HE RE W A RD had drunk his S hare at S igt ryg s wedding He had ’

.

helped t o harry the lands o f Fe argu s till ( as Ki n g B an ald had

threatened ) there was not a sucking pig left in I v ark and the ,

poor folk died of famine as t he y did about e v e I y seven years , ,

he had b u rst (says the chronicler) through the Irish camp wi t h

a chosen band of Berserkers slain Feargu s in his tent brought
’
, ,

o fl his war h orn as a t ro p hy

-
and cu t his way back to the ,

D anish army— a feat I n which the t w o S iwards were grievously

wounded ; and had in all things S hown himself a daring and
wakeful cap tain as careless of his o w n life as o f other folks
,
’
.

T hen a great home -S ickne ss had s eiz ed him He would go .

v1 HOW HE REWARD W AS WRE CK E D 83

back an d see the o ld house and the cattle pastures and the , ,

meres and fens o f his boyhood He would see his widowed .

m other Perha p s her heart was softened to him by n o w as his

.
,

was toward her : and if not h e could S how her t hat he could do ,

withou t her ; t hat o t hers though t him a fine fellow if she did
not Hereward knew t hat he had w o n b ono n i and glory for
.

’
himself ; tha t th e Wak e s name was in the m ou t hs o f all
w arri O I s and sea rovers round the coasts as the most likely
young cham p ion o f the time able t o rival if he had the o p po r , ,

t u n i t y the prowess of Harold Ha rd ra ad e himself

,
Yes he .
,

would go and see his mo t her : he would be k ind if she was

kind if she were not he would boast and S W agger as he was
, , ,

but t o o apt p to do T hat he should g go back at t he risk o f his

.

life ; t h at any o n e w h o found him 0 11 E n glish ground might k ill

him ; and t hat many would certainly try to kill him he knew ,

very well But that only gave special z est to the ad venture
. .

Martin L igh t f o o t heard thi s news with j oy

‘
‘
I have no more to d o her e said he I have searched and
’
,
.

asked far and wide for the man I want but he i s not o n th e ,

Irish shores S ome say he i s gone to the O I k n e yS some to

.
,
’
D enmark N e v er mind ; I shall find him before I die
. .

’
‘
And for whom art looking g?
‘ ’
For o n e T h o rd G u n lau gsso n my father , .

‘
And what w an t e st thou wi t h him
To p put this thro u gh his b I ain And he S howed his axe . .

‘ ’ ’
T h y f at h e r s brain ?
‘
L ook yo u lo i d A man owes his father nought and his
, .
,
“ ’
other all At lea s t so hold I Man that I s o f woman born
say all the world a rid they say right N o w if any man hang
,
. .
,

, ,
.

up that mother by hands and feet and fl o g her to dea t h is not , ,

he that I s o f that mother born bo u nd to revenge her u p on any

man and all the m ore if that man had first his wicked will o f
,

t hat poor m o t her ? C onsideri n g that last lord I do not kno w , ,

but what I am bound to aven ge my mother s S ham e upon the ’

man even if he had never killed her N o lord you need n o t

, .
, ,

try t o t alk t his o u t o f m y y head It has been thereynigh twenty .

years ; and I say it over t o myself every n i ght b e f O I e I slee p

lest I should forget th e o n e thing g whi c h I m ust do before I die .

Find him I will and find him I shall if there be j ustice in

, ,

heaven above .

S o Hereward asked B an ald for S hips and go t at once t w o ,

good vessels as payment for his dough t y deeds

, .

O n e he ch ristened the G arp ike from h e i n arI o w build and ,

long beak and the other t he Ot t er becau se he said wha t ever

, , , ,
S heggra pp led S h e would never let go till she heard the bones

crack T hey .
y were excellent n e w s n e k rs nearly eighty feet ”
,

lo n g ea c h ; w it h double bank s for t w elve c ars a side in the

wa i st w h ich was o p en save a figh t ing gangway along the sides
, , ,

with high poop and forecastle decks ; and with one large sail
84 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
apiece embroidered by S igt rygs princess and the other ladies
,

with a huge white bear which Hereward had chosen as hi s ,

ens i gn .

As for men there were fifty fellows a s desperate a s Here

,

ward himself t o tak e s ervice with him for tha t o r any other
,

quest S o t hey ballasted their ships with great pebble s s towed

.
,

under the thwar t s to be used as ammunition in case o f boarding ;

,

and over them the barrels o f ale and pork and meal well , , ,

covered with tarpaulins T hey stowed in t he cabins fore and

.

aft their weapons —swords spear s axe s bows chests o f arrow , , , ,

heads leather bags o f bowstrings m ail S hir t s and helmets and

, ,
-
,

fine clothes for holidays and fig h ting d ays T hey hung their .

S hields after the old fashion ou t board alon g th e gunnel and a

, , ,

right gay S ho w they made ; and so rowed out o f Waterford

harbour amid the tears of the ladies and the cheers o f the men .

But as it befell the voyage did not prosper Hereward found

, ,
.

his vessels u nder —manned and had to sail n orthward f o r fresh ,

hand s He got n one in D ublin for they were all gone to the
.
,

Welsh marches to hel p E arl Alfgar and K ing Griffin S o he .

went on t hrough the Hebrides in t ending o f course to p lunder , , ,

as he went : but there he go t but little booty and lost s everal ,

men S o he wen t on again to the O rkneys t o try f o r fresh

.

hand s from the N orse earls thereof : bu t there befell a fresh

mishap T hey were follo w ed by a whal e which t hey m ade su re
.
,

was a witch whale and boded m ore ill luck an d accordingly

-
,

they were s t ru c k by a storm in the P entland Frith and t he ,

poor Garp ike went on shore o n Ho y and was left there f o r ever
’

and a day her crew being hardly save d and very little o f her
, ,

H
car 0 .

owever the O t t er was now n o t only man ned but over

, ,

man ned and Hereward had to leave a dozen stout fell ows with
E arl Bru c e in K irkwall and sailed southward again S inging , ,

cheerily to hi s men
Li ghtly t h e l on -sn a e g k
L e aps a e r e m pe s s,ft t t
G aily t h e su n - le am g
G lo ws a e r rai n
ft .

I n l ab o r an d arin
u d g
Lie s luck f o r all m o r al s, t
Fo l wi n s an d o l wi
u d fu tch wive s
Fray wo m en al o n e
’
.

But their mishaps were n o t over yet T hey were h ardly o u t .

o f S t ro n say Firth when t hey saw the witch whale again follow -
,

ing t hem u p rolling and s p outing and breachi n g in m ost

, , , ,

un c anny wise S ome said t hat t hey saw a gray woman o n his
.

back ; and they knew p ossibly from the look o f the sky but
, ,

c e rt aI n ly from the w h ale s behaviour that there was more ’

,

heavy weather yet c oming from t he n orthward .

v1 HOW HE REWARD W AS WRE CK E D 85

From that day forward the whale never left them n or th e ,

wild weather either T hey were beaten out o f all reck oning
. .

O nce they thought they saw low land to t he eastward but what ,

o r wher e w h o could tell ? and as for making i t the wind which

, , ,

had blown hard from n orth eas t back ed agai n st th e sun and ,

bl ew from w est ; from which as well as r m the witch w hale , ,

they expected another gale from north and I o u n d t o n orth

east .

T h e m en grew sulky an d fearful S ome were for tryi n g to .

r un the witch down and break her back as did Frit h io f in like ,

case when hunted by a whale with two hags u p on his back — an

,

excellent recipe in such c ases but som ewhat difficul t in a heavy ,

sea O thers said that there was a doomed man o n board and
.
,

p I o p o se d to cast lots till they found h im o u t and ca s t him into ,

t he sea as a sacrifice t o n ii the wave god B ut Hereward

,
-
.

scouted that a s u nmanly andgcowardly and s ang ,

With b l o o d o f m y b o l d o n e s
With b ale o f m y c o mrad es ,

T h i n k s n ir b ri n e -th i rsty , ,

His th ro at h e c an S l ak e
T h o ugh sal t spray sh rill so u n d i n g ,
-
,

S we e p ro u n d in swan s fligh t s
’
-
,

T ru e h e arts t ro th pl ighte d
,
-
,

T o geth er we l l d ie
’ ’
.

At last after m any d ays their strength wa s all but worn

, ,

ou t . T hey had long s i n c e g iven o ver rowi n g and contented ,

themselves with running under a close reefed c anvas whitherso

e ver the storm S hould c hoose At night a sea broke ove i them .
,

and would have swamped the Ot t er had she n o t been the best ,

o f sea boats-
Bu t S h e only rolled t h e lee S hiel d s in t o the water
.

and o u t agai n sh ook herself and went on N evertheless there

, ,
.
,

w ere three men o n the poop when the sea came in who were ,

n o t there when it went ou t .

Wet and wild dawned t h at m orni n g S h owing n aught but ,

gray s ea and gray ai r T hen sang Hereward .

C e e rly, m y se a - o s,
h c ck
Cro w fo r t h e ( lay-d awn .

\Vee ry an d w e t are w e ,
t
“ a e r b e la e n
r
d .

I Ve t t c r o u r o m ra es, c d
W e lm e b y t h e wi c -w
h d t h h al e s .

Us J g
Egir ran e td
G udg g
r in , t o C o n l, du
d
D o o m e t o d ie d ry-s o , h d
D ari n t h e fo e
g ’
.

IVh e re at the h earts of th e m en w ere m u c h c heered .

All of a sudde n as is t he wont of gales at dawn t he clouds

, ,
86 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

rose tore u p into ribands and with a fierce black shower o r

, ,

two blew clean away disclosing a bright blue S k y a green

, , ,

rolling sea and a few m ile s o ff to leeward a p ale yellow line

, ,

seen only as they to p ped a w ave but seen only t o o well T o , .

keep t he ship o ff S hore was impossible ; and as they drifted

nearer and nearer the line o f sand hill s rose u glier and more
,
-
,

formidable through the gray S pray o f the surf

, .

We S hall die o n S hore but n o t dry —shod said Martin Do , ,

’
.

any of yo u knights o f the tar bru sh k now whe t her we are going
to be drowned in C hristian waters ? I sh ould like a mass o r two
for my soul and S hall die the happier within S ight o f a church
,

tower .
’

O n e dune is as like another as o n e pea ; we may be any

‘

where between the T exel and Cap Gris N e z but I think nearer ,
’
the latter than the former .

’
S o much the w orse f o r u s said another
‘
If we had gon e ,
.
‘

ashore am on g t hose Frie slan d e rs we sh ould h ave been only ,

knocked o n the h ead outright but if we fall amo n g the French

men we shall be clapt in p r1 so n strong and tortured till we find
, ,
’
ransom .

‘ ’ ’ ‘
I don t s ee that said Martin We can all be drowned if
, .

w e lik e I suppose ,
‘ ’
D row n ed we need n o t be if we be men said t he o ld sailing , ,

master to Hereward T h e tide is full high and that gives u s

.
,

o n e chance for o u r lives K eep her head straight and row like .
,

fiends when we are on ce in the su rf and then beach her up high ,

’
and dry and t ak e w hat befalls after .

And what was likely to befall wa s u gly enough T hen as .

,

centurie s af ter all wrecks an d wrecked m en were public p rey

,

shipwrecked mariners were liable to be sold as S laves and the

p etty counts o f th e French and Flemish S hores were but t o o
likely to extract ransom by prison and torture as Guy E arl o f , ,

P onthieu would have d one ( so at least William D uke o f N o r

, ,

m andy hinted ) by Harold G o d w in sso n had not William for

, , ,

h is o w n poli t ic ends begged the relea s e o f the S hipwrecked

,

earl
Already they had been seen from the beach T h e country .

folk wh o were p rowling about the shore af t er t he waifs o f the

,
storm deserted j etsom and lagend ; an d crowded to meet t h e
,

richer prize which w as coming in fl o t so m to become j etsom in ,

its turn .

Ax emen and bowmen put o n you r harness an d be ready ;

‘
, ,

but nei t her strike n o r S hoot till I give the word We m ust .

’
land peaceably if we can if n o t we w ill die fighting ,
.

S o said Hereward and took th e ru d der in t o his o w n hand

,
.

’ ‘
‘
N o w then as sh e rushed into the breakers,
pull together , ,

rowers all and with a will ’

,
.

T h e men yelled and s p rang from the thwar t s a s they tugged

,

at th e c a rs T h e sea boiled past them surged into the wai s t

.
,
VI HOW HE REWARD W AS WRE CK ED 87

blinded them with S pray T h e Ot t er grazed the sand once . ,

t w ice thrice leaping forward gallantly each time ; and t hen

, , ,

pressed by a huge wave drove high and dry upon the beach as , ,

the oars sn apt right and left and the m en tumbled over each ,

other in heaps .

T h e peasants s warmed down like flies to a carca s e but they

recoiled as there rose over the forecastle bulwark s n o t t h e ,

broad hat s o f p eaceful buscarles but peaked helmet s round red , ,

shields and glittering axes T hey drew back and o n e o r two

, .
,

arrows flew from the crowd into the ship But at Hereward s .
’

command n o arrows were shot in answer .

Bale her o u t quietly and let us S how these fellows that we

’
are n o t afraid o f them T ha t is the best chance o f p eace . .

At t his m oment a m ounted party came down between the

s and hills it might be som e twenty strong Before t hem rode
-
,
.

a boy o n a j ennet and by him a clerk a s he seemed upon a , , ,

m ule T hey stop ped to talk wi t h the peasants and then to

.
,

consult among them selves .

S uddenly the boy turned from his party and galloping

down the S hore while the clerk called after him in vain reined
, ,

up his horse fetlock deep in wa t er within ten yard s o f the ,

ship s bows
’
.

’
Yield yourselve s ! he sh outed in French as he brandished
‘
,

a hun t ing spear Yield yourselve s o r die .

,

Hereward looked at him smiling as he sat there keeping the , ,

head o f his frightened horse toward the S hip wi t h hand and

heel his long lock s streaming in the wind his face full o f
, ,

courage and command and o f hones t y and sweetness withal ,

and thought that he had never seen S O fair a lad .

And wh o art thou thou pretty bold boy ? asked Hereward

‘ ’
,
in French .

I said he haughtily enough as resenting Hereward s

‘
,
’
,
’
,
‘
familiar thou am Arnoul grandson and heir o f Bald w in
1
,
’ ‘
, ,

Marquis o f Flanders and lord o f t his land And to his grace I , .

’
call o n you t o surrender yourselves .

Hereward looked not only with interest but respect upon , , ,

the grandson o f one of t he most famou s and pros p erou s o f

northern p otenta t es the des c en d ant o f the mighty C harlemagne ,

himself He turned and told t he men who the b o y was

. .

’
‘
It would be a good trick quoth one to catch that you n g , ,
‘

’
w help and keep him as a hostage
,
.

1
T h e Fren ch lan gu ag e w as at th i s e po ch tak i n g t h e pl ac e o f t h e T e n
to n ic in S o uth e rn Flan d e rs an d t h e b o y wo u ld call h i m se l f Arn o u l ,
wh il e Old m e n wo u l d pe rsist in callin g h im Arn u l f, afte r t h e fash io n o f
th at Co u n t o f G u isn e s w h o , wh e n u po n h is d e ath -b e d , h e ard h is n e ph ew
,

s e ak t o h im i n Fre n ch , an d t o l d h im th at h e h ad n o m o re ti m e fo r t rifl es
p
an d j e sts— N u gi s e t j o c is se n o n po sse v ac are L am b Ard in Ke rv yn d e . . .

L e t t e n h ov en Hist d c Flan d re . .
88 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
Here is wh at will h ave him o n board before h e can turn ,
’

said another as he made a run n ing noose in a rope

,
-
.

‘
Quiet men Am I m aster in t hi s ship o r you ?
, ,
’

Hereward sal u t ed the lad cou rteously Verily the blood of .

‘

Baldwin o f t he Iron Arm has n o t degenerated I am hap p y to .

’
behold so noble a son of so noble a race , .

‘
And who are you who s p eak French so well and yet by , ,

your dress are nei t her French n or Flem ing ? ’

‘
I am Harold N a e m an sso n the Viking and the s e my men ,
.

I am here sailing peaceably for E ngland ; as for yielding

,

mine yield to n o living man but die as we are weapon in han d , ,

.

I have heard o f your grandfather that he is a j ust man and a ,

bountiful ; therefore tak e this m essage to him young sir If ,

.

he have wars toward I and my men will fight for him wi t h all ,

o u r m ight and earn h os p itality and ransom with o u r only

,

treasure whi c h is our sword But if he be at peace then le t

,
.
,

him bid u s go in peace for we are Vik ings and m ust fight o r , , ,
’
rot and die .

‘ ’
You are Vikings ? cried the boy pressi n g his horse into the ,

foam so eagerly t hat t he men mis t aking his intent had to be

, ,

re p re st again by Hereward You are Vikings ! T hen com e .

o n shore and welcome ,

Y o u S hall be my friend s Yo u shall . .

be m y bro t hers I will an swer to m y grandfather I have

. .

longed to see Vikings I long t o be a Viking m yself . .

’

‘ ’ ‘
By the hammer o f T hor cried the o ld ma s ter and thou , ,

woulds t make a bonny o n e my lad , .

’

Hereward h esita t ed delighted with the boy but by n o ,

means sure o f his power t o pro t ect them .

But the boy rode back to his companion s and talked and ,

gesti c ulated eagerly .

T hen the clerk rode down and talked with Hereward ,

.

‘
Are you C hris t ians ? shouted he before he would ad venture ’
,

himself near the S hip .

C rist ian s we are sir clerk and dare do no harm to a man

0f éhol
, ,

T h e c lerk rode nearer ; his han d some p alfrey furry cloak , ,

ri c h gloves and boo t s m oreover h is air o f command showed , ,

t ha t he was no comm on man

‘
.

I said he am the a b bot o f S t Bertin o f S it h iu and tutor

,
’
,
‘
.
,

of yon d er p rin c e I can bring down at a w ord against you

.
, , ,

the chatelain of S t O mer wi t h all his knigh t s beside knigh t s

.
,

and men a t arms o f m y o w n B u t I am a man of p eace and

- -
.

n ot of war and would have no blood S hed if I c an help it .

T hen mak e pea c e sai d Hereward

‘
Yo u r lord may kill u s,
’
.
‘

if he will o r have u s for his g u es t s if h e will If he d oes the

,
.

first we shall k ill ea c h o f us a few of his men before we die

, , ,

if t he la tt er we shall kill a few o f his foes If you be a man o f

, .

’
God you will cou n sel him a cc ordingly
, .

‘ ‘
Alas alas s aid the abbo t with a S hudder that ever S ince , ,
90 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

French speaking gentleman like yourselves It had been easy

-
.

for me had I not been a man of h onou r to have cast a ro p e as

, , ,
’
my sailors would have had m e do over that young boy s fair ,

head and haled him on board to an s wer for m y life with his
, ,

own B ut I lo v ed him at first sight and tru sted him a s I

.
, ,

would an angel o u t of heaven and I trust him still T o him .

,

and him only will I yield myself o n condition that I and my

, ,

men S hall keep all o u r arms and treasure and enter his service , ,

to figh t his foes and hi s grandfather s wheresoever they will ’

, ,

by land o r sea .
’

‘ ’ ‘
Fair S ir said the abbot pirate though yo u call your s elf , ,

you S p eak so cour t ly and clerkly that I t o o am inclined to , ,

trust you and if my young lord will have it so into S t Bertin ,

.

I will receive y ou till o u r lord the marqui s shall give order s

,
’
about you and yours .

S O promise s were given all round and Hereward explained

the m atte r to the men without who s e advice (for they were all ,

a s free as him self) he c ould n o t act .

’
N eed s m ust grunted they as they packed up each his little
, ,

valuables .

T hen Here w ard s heathed his s w ord and leaping from the ,

bow cam e up to the boy

, .

‘ ’
P u t your hands between his fair sir said the chatelain , ,
.

‘ ’
T hat is n ot the m anner o f Viking s .

’
And h e took the boy s right hand and gra s ped it in the plain ,

E nglish fashion .

T here is the hand o f an hone s t man C ome down m en if .

, ,

you be wise and take t hi s young lord s hand and serve him in ’

,
’
the wars a s I shall do .

O n e by o n e the men came down ; and each took Arn o u l s

’

hand and shook it till the lad s face grew red But none o f
,
’
.

them bowed o r made obeisance T hey looked the b o y full in

,
.

the face an d as they step p ed back stared round u p on the ring

, ,

o f armed men wi t h a smile and something o f a swagger .

’
T hese are they who bow to n o man and call n o man master , ,

whispered the abbot .

And so they were : and so are their de s cendant s o f S cotland

and N orthumbria unto this very day .

T h e boy sprang from his hors e and walked amo n g them and ,

round them in delight He admired and handled their double .

axes ; their S hort sea bow s o f horn and deer sinew their red - -

D anish coats ; their black sea cloaks fastened on the S houlder -

,

with rich brooches and the gold and S ilver bracelets o n their
wrists He wondered a t their long shaggy beards and still
.
,

m ore at the blue patterns with which the E nglish among them

H
,

especially were tattooed o n throat and arm and , , ,

1 nee
ereward .

Ye s you are Viking s — j u s t such a s my uncle Rober t tells

‘
,

me o f
VI HOW HE REWARD W AS W RE CK E D 91

Hereward knew well the exploit s o f Robert le Frison in

S pain and Greece I trust that your noble uncle he ask ed
‘ ’
.
, ,
‘
is well ? He wa s one o f u s poor sea cocks and sailed the -
,

swan s path gallantly till he became a mighty p rince Here

’
,
.

is a man here who wa s with your noble uncle in S pain .

’

An d he t hrust forward the o ld master .

He S hould tell him all

’
T h e boy s delight knew n o bounds .

abo u t that in S t Bertin . .

T hen h e rode back to the S hip and round and round her (fo r ,

the tide by that t ime had lef t her high and dry ) and wondered ,

at her lon g s n ake like lines and carven stem and stern
-
,
.

T ell m e about this S hip L e t me go o n board o f her I . .

have never seen a S hip inland at M ons t here ; and even here
there are only heavy ugly busses and li t tle fi sh in g boats N o ,
-
. .

Y o u must be all hungry and tired We will go to S t Be rtin at . .

once and you s h all be feasted royally Hearken villain s

,
.
,

sh outed he t o the peasants T his shi p belong s to the fair S ir .

‘

here— m y guest and friend and if any m an dares t o steal from

’ ’
her a stave or a nail I will have his thief s hand cut o ff .

T h e shi p fair lord said Hereward is yours no t mine Yo u

‘ ’ ‘
, , , , .

should build twen t y m ore after her pattern and man them with ,

such lads a s t h ese and then go down to

Miklagard an d S pan ialan d ,
T h at h e so far o n t h e l ee , O I
”

’
as did your noble uncle before you .

And S O they marched inland af t er the boy had dismo u nted ,

o n e o f his m e n and pu t Hereward on the horse

,
.

‘
You gen t lemen of t he sea c a n ride as well as sail said the ,
’

chatelai n as h e remark ed with some surprise Hereward"s per

,

f e c t seat and hand .

‘
We should soon learn to fly likewise laughed Hereward if ,
’
,
‘

there were any booty t o be picked up in the clouds there over

’
head ; and he rode o n by A rn o u l s S ide as the lad questioned ,

him about th e sea and no t hin g else ,

.

‘
Ah m y fair boy said Hereward at la s t look there and let
, ,
’
,
‘
,
’
those be Viki n gs who mus t .

And h e pointed to the rich pastu res broken by strips o f ,

c ornland and snu g farm s which stretched between the S e a and ,

the g reat forest o f Flanders .

’
What do you m ean ?
B ut Hereward wa s silent It wa s so like his o w n native .

fens For a momen t there came over him the l ongin g f o r a

. .

hom e T o settle do w n in such a fair fat land and call good

.
,

acres his own an d marr and bege t stalwart sons t o till the
, ,

O ld esta t e when h e coul t t ill n o m ore Might not that be a .

better life— at leas t a ha pp ier o n e — than restless h omeless aim , ,

less ad ven tu re ? And now — j ust as he h ad had a h ope o f pea c e

— a ho e o f seeing his own land his o w n folk perhap s o f making
p , ,
92 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

p eace with his m other and his king the very waves would n o t
let him rest but sped him forth a storm tossed waif to begin
, ,
-
,

ife a n e m fighting he cared not whom o r why in a strange

{an d
,

S o he wa s silent and sad withal .

‘
What does he mean ? asked t he boy o f the abbot ’
.

He seems a wise man let him answer for himself .

’

T h e boy asked once m ore .

L ad ! lad ! said Hereward waking as from a dream

‘ ’ ‘
If , .

you be heir to such a fair land as tha t t hank God there and ,

p ray to Him that you may rule it j ustly and keep it in p eace , ,

as they say you r grandfa t her and you r father do : and leave
’
glory and fame and the Vikings blood y trade to th ose who
, , ,

have neither father n or m other wife nor land but live lik e th e , ,
’
w olf o f the wood from o n e meal to the next , .

‘
I thank you for those words S ieu r Heraud s aid the good
’
, ,

abbot while the boy went o n abashed and Hereward himself

, ,

was startled at hi s o w n saying and rode silent till t hey crossed ,

the drawbridge o f S t Bertin and entered th at ancient fortress

.
, ,

so strong that it was the hiding place in war time for all the -

treasures o f the country and so sacred wi t hal that n o woman , ,

dead o r ali ve w as allowed to defile it by her presence so that

,

the wife of Baldwin the Bold ances t or o f A rnoul wishing to be , ,

b uried by the side o f her husband had to rem ove his corpse ,

from S t Bertin to the abbey o f Blan d ign y where the C ounts

.
,

o f Flanders lay in glory for many a generation .

T h e pirates entered n ot without gloomy distrust the gates , ,

o f that consecrated fortress ; while the m onk s in their turn

were (and with some reason ) considerably frightened when they
were asked to entertain as guest s for t y N orse rover s L oudly .

did the elder among them bewail (in L a t in lest t heir gues t s ,

should understand t o o m uch ) the present weakness o f their

m onastery w here S t Bertin and S t O mer were left to defend
,
. .

t hemselves and their m onks against t h e w ic ke d world outside ‘

.

Far di fferent had been t heir case some hundred and seventy
year s before T hen S t Valeri and S t Riquier o f P onthieu
. . .
,

trans p or t ed thither from their o w n res t ing p lace s in France for -

fear o f the invading N or t h men had j oined their suffrages an d ,

meri t s to those of S t Ber t in and his w h ilo m e servan t s with

.
,

such s u ccess that the abbey had n ever been d e file d by the foot
o f t he heathen B u t alas the sain t s (that is their bodies ) af t er
.
,

a w hile became h ome si c k and S t Valeri a p p earing in a d ream

-
.
,

t o Hu g h C a p et bade him bring them ba c k t o France in sp ite o f

,

Arnulf count of t hose p arts who wished m uch to re t ain S O

, ,

valuable an addi t ion t o his h ousehold gods .

B ut in vain Hugh C apet was a man wh o took few denials

. .

Wi t h knigh t s and men a t arm s he cam e an d C ount Arn u lf had

- -
,

to send home t h e holy corpses wi t h all h umili t y and leave S t , .

Bertin and S t O mer to themsel ves

. .
94 HE RE W ARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

en ough He o f course was lord and ma s ter in his o w n country

.
, , ,

and very probably a few miles ou t to sea likewise .

S o Hereward assured th e abbo t t hat he had no mind to eat

S t Bertin s bread o r a c cept his favours without p aying h ones t ly
’
.
, ,

for them ; and after mass he took from his S houlder s a hand
some silk cloak ( the only o n e he had ) with a great S co t ch ,

C airngorm brooch and bade them buckle it o n the shoulders

,

o f the great ima g e o f S t Bertin . .

At which S t Bertin was so pleased ( bein g like man y saints

.
, ,

male and female som ewhat p roud after their death o f the
,

finery which they des p ised during life) that he ap p eared that ,

night to a certain m onk and told him that if Hereward would ,

continu e duly to h onour him the blessed S t Bertin and his ,

.
,

m onk s o f that place he would in his turn ensure him victory

, , ,

in all his battles by land and sea .

After which Hereward stayed q uietly in the abbey certain

days ; and youn g Arnoul in s p ite o f all rem onstran c es from ,

the abbot would never leave his side till h e had heard from
,

h i m an d from hi s men as m uch o f their adventures a s they

thought it prudent t o relate .

C HA P T E R VII

HOW HE RE W A RD W EN T T O T HE W A R A T G U ISN E S

T HE dominion o f Baldwin o f L ille — Baldwin the D ebonair

Marquis o f Flanders and j ust then the greatest p otentate in
,

E uro p e after t he K aiser o f Germany and the K aiser o f Co n

st an t in o p le extended from the S omm e to t he S cheldt inclu d ing
, ,

t hus much territory which now belongs t o France His fore .

fathers had ruled there ever S ince the days o f the Foresters o f ‘

C harlemagne who held the vast fores t s again s t the heathens o f

,

the fens and o f tha t famou s Baldwin Bras — d e fer who when -
, ,

the foul fiend rose out o f th e S cheldt and tried to drag him ,

down tried cold steel upon him (being a practical man ) and
, ,

made hi s ghostly adversary feel so sorely the weight o f the

‘
iro n arm that h e retired into hi s native mud — o r even lower
,
’

still .

He like a daring k night as he was ran o ff with his ( so some

, ,

say ) early love Judith daugh t er of C harles the Bald of France a

, , ,

descendant of C harlemagne himself Married up t o E t h e lw u lf .

o f E ngland and thus stepmother o f Alfred the Great

,
after her
’
hus b and s dea t h behaving ala s for her n ot over wi s ely o r well
, ,

she had verified the saying ,

N o u s re ve n o n s to uj o u rs
A n o s pre mi e rs am o u rs
’

and ran away with Baldwin .

V II AT T HE W AR AT GU IS N ES 95

C harle s ,
very w roth that o n e of his earls a mere lieutenan t ,

and creature should dare t o marry a d aughter of C harlemagne s

,
’

house would have attacked him with horse and foot fire and
, ,

sword had not Baldwin been the only man who could defend
,

h i s northern frontier against the heathen N o rse m e n

T h e po p e as Ch aI les was his good friend fulminated again s t
, ,

Baldwin the excommu n i c ation destined for him who s t ole a

w idow f o r his wife and all h is accomplices , _
.

Baldwin and J udi t h went straight to Rom e and told their ,

story to th e p ope .

He hones t man wrote to Charles the Bald a letter which

, ,

st ill remains — alik e m erciful sen t imen t al and p oli t ic with its
, , , ,

usual ingrained elem ent o f what we now call (from the o ld

’ ’
monkish word cantare ) cant O f Baldwin s h orrible wicked
‘
.

ness there is no doubt O f his re p entan ce (in all mat t ers short .

o f amendmen t o f life by givi n g up the fair J udith ) still less

, . .

But the pope has ano t her m o t ive for so acting He fears lest .

Baldw in under the weight of C harles s wra t h and indignation

,
’

S hould mak e alliance wi t h the N ormans enem ies o f God and t he ,

holy C hurch ; and thu s an oc c as i on arise of peril and scandal

’
for the p eople o f God whom C h arles ought to rule etc etc , ,
. .

which if i t happened it would be W O I se for them and f o I ,

’
Charles s o w n soul .

T o whi c h very sensible and humane missive ( tim es and creeds

being considered ) C harles answered after pou t ing and sulking
, , ,

by making Baldwin b o n d fi d e king g o f all between S omm e and

g
S h eald t and leavi n g h im I n peace w it h Judith the wicked and
t e f ai r
,

T his all happened about A D 8 6 3 T w o hundred years after . . .

,

there ruled over t hat sam e land Baldwin the D ebonair as ,

Marqu i s o f the Flaman d s .

’

Baldwin had had his troubles He had fought the C ount o f .

Holland He had fought the E m p m m o f Germany d u ring

.
,

which war h e had burn t the cath edral of N im e gu e n ; and did

other u nrighteous and unwise things ; and had been bea t en
after all .

Baldwin had had his troubles and had deserved them But , .

he had h ad his g lories and had deserved them likewise He h ad , .

cut the Foss é N c af o r new dyke which p arted Artois from

, ,

Flanders He had so b e au t ifie d t he c a th edral o f L ille tha t he

.
,

was called Bald w I n o f L ille to his dying day He had married .

Adela the queen coun t ess daughter of t he K ing o f France He

, , .

had be c ome t u t or of Philip the young king and m ore o r less , ,

thereby regent of the n orth o f France and had fulfilled his ,

o fli c e wisely and well He had m arried his eldest son Baldwin

.
,

t he Good to t he terrible sorceres s Ric h ild a heiress o f Hain h au lt

, , ,

wherefore the bridegroom was n amed Baldwin o f M ons He .

had m arried one o f his d augh g t ers Matilda to William o f , ,

N ormandy after w ard s the C o n q u e ro r ; and another J udith to

, , ,
96 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T o s ti G o d w in sso n , the son of the great E arl Godwin o f E ngland .

S h e afterwards married Welf, D uke o f Bavaria : whereby , it

m ay be the blood of Baldwin o f Flander s run s in the veins o f
,

Q u een Victoria .

And thus there were f e w potentate s of the n orth more

feared and respected than Baldwin t he good natured E arl o f ,
-

Flanders .

But one sore thorn in th e side he had which other despot s ,

after him S hared with him and had even worse succes s in ,

extracting —; namely the valiant men o f S c ald m arila n d which

, ,

we n o w call Holland O f them hereafter At the moment o f . .

Hereward s arrival he was troubled with a lesser thorn the

’

C ount o f G u isn e s ( seemingly that Manasses whom Richar d o f

E ly confounds with the chatelain or other lawful commander , ,

of St O mer ) wh o would n o t pay him u p certain dues and

.
, ,

other w ise acknowledge his sovereignty .

T herefore when the chatelain o f S t O mer sent him word to .

Bruges that a strange Viking had landed with his crew calling ,

himself Harold N ae m an sso n and o ffering to take service wi t h ,

him he returned for answer that the said Harold might make
,

p roof o f his faith and p rowess upon the said count in which if , ,

he acquitted him self like a good knight Baldwin would have ,

fur t her dealings with him .

S o the chatelain o f S t O mer with all hi s knights and men .

,

a t arms an d Hereward with his sea cocks marched n orth west

-
,
-
,
-

u p to G u isn e s with lit t le Arn o u l cantering alongside in high

,

glee for it was the first war he had ever seen

, .

And they came to the castle of G u isn e s and summ oned t h e ,

cou nt by trumpet and herald t o pay o r fight

, , .

W hereon t he coun t preferring t he lat t er certain knights o f

, ,

his came forth and challenged the k n ight s of S t O mer to fight .

them man to man Whereon there was t he usual splintering o f

.

lan ces and sli pp ing u p of horses and hewing a t heads and ,

shoulders so well defended in mail that n o one was much hurt .

T h e archer s and arbalis t ers meanwhile amused themselves by , ,

shoo t ing at the castle walls out of which they chipped several ,

small p ieces of stone And when t h ey were all tired they d rew
.

o ff o n both S ides and went in t o dinner ,

.

A t which Here w ard s men w h o were accustomed to a more

’
,

seriou s fashion o f fighting stood by mightily amuse d and , , ,

vowing i t was a s p ret t y a play as ever they saw in their lives .

T h e next day the sam e c omedy was re p ea t ed .

L e t m e go in a g ains t those knights S i r ch atelain asked

‘ ’
, ,

Herewar d wh o felt t he lust o f ba t tle t ingling in him from head

,

to heel and try if I ca n not do somewha t towards deciding all

‘

this If we fight n o faster than we did yes t erd ay ou r beards

.

’
will be grown down to our knees before we take G u isn e s .

L e t m y Vikin g go cried Arnoul L e t me see him fight .

‘

as if he had been a pet game cock o r bull dog - -

.
98 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

Hereward was by no mean s a large o r a heavy man rep lied as ,

courteously tha t h e S houl d have great pleasure in trying to kill

,
Hereward O n whi c h they rode som e h undred yards o u t of the
.

p ress calling out that they were to be lef t alone by bot h S ides
, ,

for it was an honourable duel and tu rning t heir horses , ,

charged .

Af t er whi c h a c t they found them sel v es and their h o rses all

fou r in a row sitting on t heir hind quar t ers 0 11 t h e ground
,
-
,

amid the fragm ents o f their lan ces .

Well ridden sh outed they both at once as they leaped u p ,

laughing and dre w their s w ords

, .

After which they hammered away at each o t her merrily in

’
the devil s smi t hy T h e sparks flew ; the iron rang ; and all
.

men s t ood s t ill to see that gallant fight .

S o they wat c hed and cheere d t ill Here w ard struck his man ,

such a blo w under the ear t hat he drop p ed and lay like a log , , .

I thi n k I c an carry you q u oth Herewar d and p icking him ,

’
,

up he threw him o ver his shoulder and walked t owards his

, ,

men .

Bear and bullock sh outed they in delight laughing at the ,

likeness between Hereward s a tt itude and that o f a bear wad ’

d lin g o ff o n his hind legs with his p rey in hi s arms .

‘
He should have killed his bullo c k outright before he wen t
to carry him L ook there 1 .

And the knigh t awakening from his swoon struggled , ,

violently ( says the c hronicler ) t o escape .

B ut Hereward though the smaller was the stronger m an

, ,

and crushing him in his arms walked o n steadily ,

.

‘
K night s to the rescue ! Ho ib ric h t is t aken ! shouted they ’

of G u isn e s gallo p ing towards him

, .

A Wak e a Wake T o me Vikings all shouted Hereward .

And the D anes leap t up and ran t owards him axe in h and , , .

’
T h e chatelain s knights rode up likewise ; an d so it befell
that Hereward carried his prisoner safe into cam p .

‘
And who are you gallant knig h t asked he of his prisoner
,
.

Ho ib ric h t ne p hew of E ustace C ount of G u isn e s

, ,
.
’

S o I su pp ose you will be ransomed T ill then Armourer .

And the hap less Ho ib ric h t found him self c hained and fet t ered ,

and sent o ff to Hereward s tent under the cus t ody o f Mar t in ’

,

L ightfoo t .

’
‘
T h e next day says the chronicler the C ount o f G u isn e s
, ,
‘
,

s t u p e fi e d wi t h grief a t the loss of his ne p he w sent the d ue ,

’
h onour and servi c e t o his p rince besides gifts and hostages ,
.

And so ended the troubles of Baldwin and E us t ace o f

G u I sn e s .
 ’
VIII T HE ART T O W IN HE REWARD S L O V E 99

C HA P T E R VIII
Ho w A FA R L A D I Y E X E RC S E D T HE I M E C HAN CAL A RT I T O W IN
HE RE W A RD S L
’
O VE
’
IN an upper room o f her mother s house in S t O m er sat th e .

fair T o rf rid a alternately looking o u t of t he window and at a

,

book of m echa n ics In t he garden outside the wryneck (as i t

.
,

is his fashion in May ) was calling Pi p i p i am o n g the gooseberry - -

bushes t ill the cob walls rang again I II the book w a s a L atin
,
-
.

re c ipe for d rying the poor wryneck and using him as a p hiltre ,

which S hould compel the love of any person desired Me c hanics .

,

it m ust be u nderstood in those days were c onsidered as id e n t i

,

cal with mathema t ics and t hose again wi t h as t rology a n d ,

magic ; so that the old chronicler who says that T o rf rid a was ,
‘ ’
skilled in the mechanic art uses the word in the same sense ,

as does the author of the Hist org

,

/of Ram sey wh o tells us h o w a ,

certain holy bishop o f S t D u n st a n s p arty riding down t o C orfe .

’
,

through t h e fores t saw the wick ed queen mo t her E lfrida ( her

,
-

wh o had S t E dward stabbed at C orfe Ga t e) exercising her

.

me c hanic art under a great tree in plain E n glish perform ,

ing heathen incanta t ions and how when S h e saw t hat S h e was ,

discovered she tem p t ed him t o deadly sin but whe n sh e found

,

him proof against allurement she had him into her bower and ,

there the enchantress and her ladie s S le w him by t h rusting

red hot bodkins under his arms so that the blessed m an was
-
,

martyred wi t hout any S ign of wound O f all whi c h let every .

man believe as mu c h as h e list .

T o rfrid a had had peculiar opportunities of learning mechani c s .

T h e fairest and richest damsel in S t O mer sh e had been left early .

,

by her father an orp han to the c are of a superstitious m o t her , ,

and o f a learned uncle the Abbot o f S t Ber t in He r m o t her , . .

was a P roven cale o n e o f those Arle sie n n e s whose dark Greek

,

beauty still shi n e s like diamo n d s set in j et in the doorways o f

, ,

the quaint o ld ci t y Gay enough in her you t h S h e had like a

.
, ,

t rue southern woman tak en to superstition in her o ld age and

,

spent her day s in th e c hur c hes leavi n g her daugh t er to do an d ,

learn what S h e would T o rf rid a s nurse moreover was a L a pp

.
’

, ,

woman carried o ff in some pirating foray and skilled in a ll the

, ,

sorceries for which t he L a pps were famed throughout the N or t h .

He r uncle p artly from good —nature partly from a pious ho p e

, ,

that S h e m I gh t enter religio n and leave her weal t h to t he ,

C hurch had made her his pu p il and ta u ght her the mysteries
, ,

o f books ; and she had proved to be a strangely apt scholar .

Grammar rhetoric L atin p rose and poetry such as were taught

, , ,

in t hose days she mastered ere S h e was grown u p T hen S h e

,
.

fell u p on roman c e and Charlemagne and his Paladins the ,

heroes of T roy Alexander and his generals peopled her imagin

, ,
1 00 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P
ation S h e had heard too o f the great necromancer V irgiliu s
.
, ,

( for into such the middle age transformed th e poe t ) and her ’
, ,

fancy already excited by her L app nurse s occult science she ,

began eagerly t o court forbidden lore .

Forbidden i n deed was the magic by the C hurch ; but as a

, ,

reali t y not as an impos t ure T hose whose consciences were

,
.

tough and their faith weak had li t tle scruple in applying to a ,

w it c h and asking hel p from the powers below when the saints
, ,

above were slack to hear them C hu rchmen even were bold .

,
.
,

enough to learn the m ysteries o f nature algebra j udicial a s , ,

t ro lo gy and the occult powers o f herbs stones and animal s

, , , ,

from t he Mussulman doctors o f C ordova and S eville and like ,

P ope G e rb e rt mingle science an d magic in a fashion excusable

, ,

enough in days when true inductive science did not exist .

N ature had her miraculous powers— how far good how far ,

evil who could tell ? T h e belief that God was t he s ole maker
,

and ruler o f the u niverse was confu sed and darkened by the
cross belief that the material world had fallen under the
-

dominion o f S a t an and his de m ons ; that millions o f spirit s ,

good and evil in every degree exercised continually p ower s ,

over crops an d cattle mines and wells storm s and lightning

, , ,

health and disease Riches h onours and royal t ie s t o o were

.
, , , ,

under the command of the powers o f darkness Fo r that gener .

a t ion whi c h was but too apt to take its Bible in hand upside
,

down had someho w a firm faith in the w ord o f t he devil and

, ,

believed devou t ly his somewhat startling assertion that the ,

kingdom s o f the world were his and the glory o f them for to ,

him they were delivered and to whom soever h e wo u ld he gave ,

’
them : while it had a proportionally weak faith in o u r L ord s
answer that they were t o worship and serve the L ord God
,
alone Ho w far t hese p owers ex t ended h o w far they might be
.
,

coun t eracted how far lawf u ll y employed were question s which

, ,

exercised the minds o f m e n and produced a volum inous litera ,

ture for several centuries t ill t he search died out f o r very weari
, ,

ness o f failure a t the end o f the seven t eenth century

,
.

T h e Abbot o f S t Ber t in therefore did n o t hesitate to k ee p

.
, ,

in his p rivate library m ore than o n e volume which he would n ot

have willingly lent to th e S imple m onks under his charge n or
to T o rf rid a ei t her h ad S h e not acquired so com p lete a command
,

over the good old man tha t he could den y her nothing ,
.

S o she read of G e rb e rt P ope S ilvester II wh o had died only, ,

‘
a genera t ion back h ow ( to qu o t e Willi am o f Malmesbury) he
learn ed a t S eville till h e surpassed Pt olemy with the as t rolabe ,

Alc an d ru s in astronom y and Julius F irm ic u s in j udicial ,

as t rology h ow h e learned what the singing and fligh t o f birds

por t ended and a c quired the art o f calling u p spirits from hell
,

and in S hor t whatever— hu rtful o r h e alt h f u l h u m an c u riosi t y

, ,
w

had dis c overed besides the lawful s c iences o f arithme t ic and

,

astronomy music and geometry

,
how he acquired from the
1 02 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T he arrival o f Hereward and his men had o f cour s e s tirred , ,

the great current o f her life and indeed th at o f S t O mer , , , .

,

usually as s t agnant as t he dyke s round its wall Who the u n .

known champ ion was (for his name o f N ae m an s son showed -

that he was concealing something at least ) — whence he had

come and what had been his previou s ex p loit s busied all the
, ,

gossi p s o f the town Would he and his m en rise and plunder

.

t he abbey ? Was n ot the chatelain mad in leaving young

Arnoul with him all day ? Madder still in taking him o u t to ,

ba t tle agains t the C ount of G u isn e s ? He might be a spy the ,

avant cou rier of some great in vading force He wa s come to

-
.

spy out the nakedness o f the land and w ould S hortly vanish to , ,

return with Harold Hard raad e o f N orway o r S weyn o f D e n ,

mark and all their hosts N ay wa s he n o t Harold Ha rd raad e

,
.
,

himself in disguise ? And so forth All which T o rf rid a heard .

,

and thought within herself that be he who he might S h e should , ,

like to look o n him again .

T hen came the news how the very first day that he had ,

gone o u t against the C ount of G u isn e s he had gallantly rescued ,

a wounded man A day o r two after cam e fresh news of some

.

doughty deed and then another and an other And when .

Hereward retu rned after a week s victoriou s fighting all S t

,
’
, .

O mer was in t he stree t to stare at him

T hen T o rf rid a heard enough and had it been p ossible m ore , , ,

than enough o f Hereward and his p rowess

, .

And when they cam e ridin g in the great marquis at the head ,

o f them all with Robert le Frison o n o n e side o f him and o n

, ,

the other Hereward as fresh a s flowers in May T o rf rid a looked

, ,

down o n him o u t o f her little lattic e i n the gable and loved ,

him on c e and for all with all her heart and soul
, , .

And Hereward looked up at her and h er dark blue eyes and

dark raven lo c ks and thought her the fairest thing that he had
ever seen and ask ed who S h e might be and heard and as he
, ,

heard he forgot all abou t the S ultan s daughter an d the p rin c ess
,
’
,

of C onstantinople a n d the fairy of B ro c h e liau n d e and all t he

, ,

other p ret t y birds which were still in the bush abou t the wide
world and t hought for many a day o f n ought but the pre t ty
bird which he held (so con c ei t ed was h e of his o w n powers o f
winning her) there safe in hand in S t O mer . .

S o he cast about to see her and to win her love And she ,
.

cas t about to see him and to win his love But neither saw
, .
.

t he o t her for awhile and it might have been better for one o f
them had t hey never seen each other again .

If T o rf rid a could have foreseen and foreseen and fore

“

, ,

seen : why if she were tr u e woman S h e would ha ve done

, ,

exa c tly what she d id and taken the bit t er with the swee t the
, ,

unknown w ith the k nown as we all must d o in life unless we , ,

wish to live and die alone .

Ix AT T HE W AR IN S CAL DMARIL AND 1 03

C HA P T E R IX
HO W HE RE W A RD W ENT T O T HE W A R I N S CA LD M A RI L A N D

IT has been shown h ow t he C oun t o f G u isn e s had been a

t horn in the side o f Baldwin o f L ille and how that th orn w as ,

drawn o u t by Hereward B u t far S harper t horns in h is side .

,

which had troubled many a count before and were destined to ,

t rouble o t hers afterwards were th ose unruly Z eelanders o r , ,

Frisians who dwelt in S c ald m arilan d the land o f the meres

, ,
‘

’
o f the S cheldt Beyond the vast forests o f Flanders in
.
,

m orasses and alluvial islands whose names it is im p ossible

now to verify so m uch has the land changed bo t h by inunda
, ,

t ions and by embankm ents by th e brute forces o f nature and ,

the no ble triumphs o f art dwelt a folk p oor and savage ; , ,

living m ostly as i n Caesar s time in huts raised above t he

,
’

sea o n piles o r mounds of earth ; often with out cattle or seed

field ; half savage half h e at h e iI : but free Free wi t h the
,

, .
,

divine instinct o f freedom and all the self help and energy ,
which spring thereout .

T hey w ere a mongrel race ; and as m ost m o n gI e l races are ,

( when sprung f I om parents no t t oo far apart I n blood ) a stron g ,

I a c e ; t he remnant o f those o ld Frisians and Batavians wh o ,

had defied and all but successfully resis t ed the power of Rome ;
, ,

m ingled wi
,
t h fresh crosses o f T eutonic blood from
S ueve S axon and t h e o t her German tribes who after the fall
,
Frank
, ,
,

o f th e Roman E mpire had swep t across the land , .

T heir able modern his t orian has well likened their first
struggle — t hat be t ween C ivilis and the Romans to t heir last ,
—that between William the S ilent and the S aniard It was
p .
,

W i t hou t doub t t he foreshado w o f their whole history

,
T hey .

were d isti n guished above m os t E uropean I a c e s for s t urdy I n

, ,

dep ende n c e and for what generally a c companies it — st u i d y

,

common sense T hey could n ot unders tand why they S h ould

.

obey foreign Frank r ulers whether se t over t hem by D agober t ,

o r by C h a I le m a gn e T hey could n ot u nderstand wh y they

.

we re to p ay t i t hes t o f o i e I gn Frank p riests wh o had forced o n ,

’
t hem a t t he sword s p o i nt a religion which t hey only half
, ,

b elieved and only half understood Many a true h oly man .

p reached to them t o t he bes t o f his po w e rs z but the cross

o f St .Bonifa c e had too of t en t o followp the sword o f C harles
I a r e l a n d for every Frisian who was converted another was
Z h
l/
I ille jl
‘
Free F risians never t heless th ey remained at leas t in
,
’
, ,

name and in t heir s t a t u t e b ook as long as t he wind blows ou t ,

‘

’
of t he c louds and the world stands T h e feudal system never .
1 04 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

took root in their soil } If a Frank count wa s to govern them ,

he mu st govern according to their o w n law s Again and again .

they rebelled even again st that seemingly light rule Again

,
.

and again they brought down o n themselve s the wrath o f t heir

nominal sovereigns the coun t s of Flanders then o f the kaisers
,

o f Germany and in t he t hir t eenth century o f the In quisition

, ,
‘
it s elf T hen a crusade was preached against them as S tad
.

’
ings heretics wh o paid n o t i t hes ill u sed monk s and nun s and
, ,
-
,

worshipped ( or were said to worship ) a black cat and th e foul

fiend among the meres and fens C onrad o f Marp u rg th e .
,

brutal D irector o f S t E lizabe t h o f Hungary bu rnt them at his

.
,

wick ed will extirpa t ing it may be heresy b ut not the S pirit o f

, , , ,

the race T hat spirit crushed down and seemingly enslaved

.
,

during th e middle age under C ount D irk and his descendants , ,

still lived : destined at last to conquer T hey were a people .

wh o had determined to see f o r themselves and act for themselves

in the universe in which they found themselves and m oreover ,

( a necessary corollary o f such a resolution ) to fight to t he death ,

against any o n e wh o interfered w ith them in so doing .

Again and again therefore the indomitable S pirit rose , , ,

founding free to w n s with charters and guilds embanking the

streams draining the meres fighting each other and t he
neighbou ring princes till in their last great s truggle against ,

the p ope and S pain they rose once and for all , ,

He at e d with b u rn in g fe ars
hot ,

An d b ath e d in b ath s o f h i ssi n g te ars ,

An d b att e re d with t h e stro k e s o f d o o m

T o S h ape an d u se ,
’

a s the great P rotestant D utch Republic .

A noble errand it had been for such a man as Hereward to

help those m en toward freedom instead of helping Frank ,

count s to enslave them — men o f his own bl ood with law s ,

and custom s like those o f his o w n Anglo D a n es living in a -

,

land so exactly like his o w n that every m ere and fen and wood
reminded him o f the scenes o f his boyh ood T h e very names .

o f the two lands were alike Hollan d th e h ollo w land— the

’
,

o n e o f E ngland the other o f Flanders,

.

Bu t all this was h idden from Hereward T o d o as he would .

be done by was a lesson which h e had never been taught If .

men had invaded his land he would have cried like t he Frisians , ,

whom he was going to enslave I am free as long as th e wind ,

’
b lows o u t o f the cl ouds ! an d died where he stood But tha t .

was no t t h e least reason w h y he sh ould not invade any other

m an s land and t ry whether or not h e too would d ie where he
’
, , ,

stood T o him these Frie slan d e rs were S im p ly savages p robably

.
,

heathen s who would n o t obey their lawful lord a gentleman

. ,

1
M o tl ey Rise Of th e D u tch Rep u b li c
, .
1 06 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

a hundred to o n e Y o u will not fail where yo u are goi n g if

.
,

( as I hear ) they are but ten to o n e

’
.

Robert laughed vain and gratified , .

T hen you kn ow where I have been and where I am ,

going
b y not ? As yo u know well we Vikings are all brothers ,
’
and all know each other s counsel from S hip to ship and por t , ,
’
to p ort .

T hen the t w o y o ung m en look ed each other in the face and ,

each saw that the other was a m an who would suit him .

‘
S k all to the Viking cried Robert aping as was his fancy , ,

the N orse rover s slan g Will you come with m e to Holland ?

’
.
‘

You m ust ask m y young lord there and he pointed to ,

’

’
Arnoul I am hi s m an now by all laws o f h onour
.
‘
, .

A flush o f j ealousy passed over Robert s face He haplessly ’

.
,

for himself th ought that h e had a grievance

,
.

d roits d ain e sse —were n o t re

’ ’
T h e rights o f primogeniture
sp e c t e d in the family o f the Baldwin s a s they should have been ,

had prudence and common sense had their way .

N o sacred o r divine right was held to be conferred by th e

fact o f a man s being the fi rst born son As am ong the Jews o f
’
-
.

o ld the
‘
L ord s anointed was usually rather a younger son o f
’
,

talent and v irtue ; o n e born n o t accordi n g to the flesh bu t , ,

accordin g to the spirit lik e D avid and S olom on And so it was ,

.

in other realm s besides Flanders during the middle age T h e .

father handed o n the work — for ruling was hard work in those
d ays — to the son m ost able t o do it T herefore we can believe .

L ambert o f Asc h afi e n b o u rg when he says that in C ount Bald

’

win s family for many ages t he son wh o p leased his father m ost
’

’
t ook his father s nam e and was h ereditary prince o f all ,

Flanders while t h e other brothers led an inglorious life o f

vassalage to him .

Bu t we c an conceive likewise that s uch a m ethod would give , ,

rise to in t rigues envyings cal umnies murders fratricidal civil

, , , ,

wars and all the train o f miseries which for som e years af t er
,

this history made in famou s the house o f Baldwin ; as they did

many another royal h ouse till they W ere sto p p ed by t he ,

gradual adoption o f the rational rule o f p rimogeniture .

S o Robert who migh t have been a daring and useful friend

,

to his brother had h e been for c ed to tak e for granted from

,

bir t h t hat h e was nothing and his brother all in all — as do all ,

younger sons o f E nglish noblem en t o their infini t e b e n e fi t — held ,

him self to be an inj ured man for life because his father called ,

his fi rst born Baldwin and p romised him t he succession — which

-
,

indeed he had w or t hily deserved ac c ording to the laws o f ,

Mam m on an d t his w orld by bringing in t o the family su ch an ,

heiress as Ric h ild a and s u ch a d owry as Mons ,

.

But Rober t wh o though t himself as good as his brother

,

(though he was not such save in valour) nur s ed black envy , ,

Ix AT T HE W AR IN S CAL DMARIL AN D 1 07

in hi s heart Hard it wa s to him to hear hi s elder brother

.

called Baldwin o f Mons when he him self had n o t a foot o f land ,

o f his o w n Harder still t o hear him called Baldwin th e Good

.
,

when he felt in himself no ti t le whatsoever to that epithet .

Hardest of all t o see a beautiful boy grow up as heir both o f

Flanders and o f Hainault .

Had he foreseen whither that envy would have led him had
he foreseen the hideous and fratricidal day o f February 22 ,

10 7 1 and that fair boy s golden lock s rolli n g in dust and blood
’
,
— the wild Viking would have crushed the growing snake
within his bosom for h e was a knight and a gen t lem an But it .

was hidden from his eyes He had to dree his weird to c o m .

’

mit great S ins d o great deeds and die in his bed migh t y and
, , ,
’
honoured having children to his hear t s desire and leaving the
, ,

rest o f hi s subs t ance to his babe s Heaven help him and the .

lik e of him
He turned t o you n g Arnoul
Give m e you r man boy ,

Arnoul pouted He wanted to keep hi s Viking for him s elf

.
,
and said so .

He i s t o teach m e t o go led ing as the N orsemen call it like , ,

yo u .

Robert laughed A hint at his p ira t ical attem p ts p leased his

.

vani t y all the more because they had been signal failures
, .

L end him me then m y p retty n ep he w for a m onth o r two

‘

, , , ,

till he has conquered these Z eeland frogs fo r me ; and then if ,

yo u will go ledi n g with him

I hope you may never com e back thought Robert to him
‘
,
’

self bu t he did no t say it .

‘ ’
L e t t he knight go qu oth Baldwin ,

L e t m e go with hi m then ’
‘

,
.

’
N o by all sain t s ! qu o t h th e marquis
‘
, I cannot have yo u ,
‘

poked th rough with a Z eeland pike o r rotted with a Z eeland ,

ague f
Arnoul pouted still .

Abbo t wha t hast thou been at wi t h the boy ? He think s o f

‘
,

nought but blood and woun d s instead of books and prayers , .

He is gone mad af t er t his — t his knight .

’

T h e abbo t said Hereward knows by hearing o f his ears

‘ ’ ‘
, , ,

that I bid h im bide at home and t ry t o govern la n ds i n peace , ,

like lI is f at h e r and you lord marquis , .

’

EZ ll q7
abbot t old honestly what had passed between Hereward
T he
and the lad as they rode t o S t Bertin
,
. .

Baldwin was silent think ing and smiling j ollily as was the , , ,

won t of t he D ebonair .

;
You are a man of sense beausire C ome wi t h me said h e , .
,
’

at as t .

And Baldwin Hereward and Rober t wen t i nto an inner room

, .
1 08 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

S it
d own o n the settle by m e
‘ ’
.

’
It is too great an h onou r .

‘
N onsense man If I be wh o I am I k now enough o f men
, ,

to know that I need n o t be ashamed o f having yo u a s ben ch

fellow S it down . .
’

Hereward obeyed o f cou rse , .

’
T ell me who you are .

Hereward looked o u t of the corners o f hi s eyes s miling and ,

per p lexed .

T ell me and Robert who yo u are man and be d one with it , .

I believe I know already I have asked far and wide of chap .

m en and merchants and wandering k nights and pirate

, , ,
—
rascals like you rself ’
.

’
And yo u found t hat I was a pirate rascal ?
I found a pira t e rascal who met you in Ireland three years ,

since and will swear that if yo u have one gray eye and o n e
,

blue
‘
As he has quoth Robert
’
,
.

‘
T hat I am a wolf s head and a robber o f priest s and an
’
, ,

E s au o n the fa c e o f the earth ; every man s hand against m e

’

and min e — for I never take but what I give — against every
man .
’

T hat yo u are the son o f my old friend L eofric o f C hester ;

and the h ottest —hearted shrewdest headed hardest —handed ,
-
,
’
Berserker in the N orth S eas Y o u killed Gilbert o f Ghent s .

’ ’ ’
bear S iward D igre s cousin D on t deny it
,
. .

D on t hang me o r send m e to the We s tmin s ter miracle

‘ ’
,
’
worker to be hanged and I will confess ,
.

I ! E very man is welcom e wh o comes hither with a bold

‘ ‘

T h e Refuge of O utlaws they call

”
hand and a strong h eart .

Flanders ; I su p pose because I am too good natu red to turn -

rogues o u t S o do no harm to mine and mine shall do n o harm

.
,

t o you .
’

Baldwin s words were true 1

He found hou seroom for every
’
.

body hel p ed e v erybody agai n st everybody else (as will be seen )

, ,

and yet quarrelled with n obody— a t least in his o ld age— b y the

mere virtu e o f good natu re -
.

S o Hereward went o ff to extermina t e the wicked Hollander s ,

and revenge the w rongs of the C ountes s Gertrude .

1
E lt giv a E mm a, b e we en E elre s r i n an d h e r m arri a e wi
t th d u g th
’

Can e Swe yn G o d w in sso n w e n o l awe b y E war t h e Co n e sso r, an d

ut h ut d d d f
ft th
a er e m , as will b e se en , e v e ry o n e w h o , o we ve r alle n , se e m e s ro n h f d t g
ugh
en o t o rise a ain so m e d ay, o o re
g e o n e a e r an o e r wi B al wi n
t k fug ft th th d .

S e e , fo r t h e i s o ry o f h im an d is i m e s, M Kerv yn d e L e t t en h o v e n
h t h t . .
110 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
E aI ly the next mornin g he burst into T o rf rid a s room as she
was d ressing her hair
Ho w n o w ? AI e these manner s f o r
.

’
the heir o f Flanders ?
He has told all !
‘

He has 1 and she started and dropt her comb

.
’
.

Pick u p that c omb girl Y o u n eed n o t go away I ha v e no

secrets wi t h you n g ge rit le m e n
,
. .

’
.

’
I thought yo u would be glad to hear said Arnoul , .

I ? What can I want i n t he m a t t e I save t hat y our grand ,

father S hould be satisfied that you are entertain i ng a m an

’
worthy to be your gue s t ?
‘ ’
And he I S worthy he has told m y grandfather who he is . .

’
B ut n o t yo u ?
No T hey say I must n ot kno w ye t But this I know that
. .
,

they welcomed h im when he told t hem as if he had been an , ,

earl s so n ; and t hat h e i s going with my uncle Robert against

’

t he Z e e larid e rs .
’

'
‘
And if he be an earl s son h o w c o m e s h e here wandering ’
, ,

with rough seamen and hiding his honest name ? He must ,

have done something o f which he is ashamed ’

.

’
I shall t ell you nothing more .

What care I ? I can find o u t by art magic if I like .

’
I don t believe all that Can you find o u t fo r instance what .
, ,
’
he has o n his throa t ?
A beard .
’

B ut what is under that beard ?

’
A goitre .

’
Yo u are laughing at me .

‘
I shall laugh a t an y one wh o c halle n ge s me to find o u t any
’
thi n g S o S illy and so unfi t ,
.

’
‘
I S hall go .

’
Go then Fo r she kne w very well that he would come back
.

a gaI n .

said T o rf rid a to the old L app woman when they

N urse ,
’
,

were alone find out fo r me what is t he nam e o f this strange

,
‘

’
c hampion and w hat he has beneath his beard
,
.

Beneath his beard ? ’

‘
S ome scar I su p p ose o r secret mark ,
I must k now Yo u ,
. .

’
will find o u t for your T o rf rid a will you not nurse ? , ,

I will make a charm that will brin g h im to yo u were all the ,

i c ebergs of Q u e n lan d between yo u and him and then you c an

’
see for yourself .

N o n o n o ! n ot yet nurse " and T o rf I id a smiled

‘
O nly ‘
.
, , ,
.

’
find m e ou t that one t hing t hat I m u s t know .

And yet w h y S h e wan t e d to k no w S h e c ould n o t tell herself , .

T h e old woman came ba c k to her ere she wen t to bed .

I have found i t o u t all and more I know where to get ,

.

’
s c arle t toads t ool s ; and I p u t the j u i ce in his men s ale ; they
’
are laughing and roaring now merry mad every one o f them ,
-
.
 HOW HE REWARD W ON T HE MAG I C ARMOU R 111

’
B ut he ? n ot

N o no He I s w 1 t h th e marqu i s B ut in madness comes

,
. .

ruth and that lon g hook nosed body varlet of his ha s told
t
ou t -
-

us a l .
’

And S h e told T o rf rid a who Hereward was and the secret ,

mark .

‘
T here is a cross upon his throat beneath hi s chin p ricked , ,
’
in after t heir E nglish fashion .

T o rf rid a started .

T hen — then the spell will not work upon him ; the Holy
‘

C ross will turn it

‘
It m ust be a great cross and a holy o n e that will turn o ff
’
my charms said the o ld hag with a sneer whatever i t m ay
, , ,
‘

do against yours B ut o n t he back of his hand — that will be a

.

mark to know him b y— t here is pri c k ed a bear— a white bear

t ha t he S lew And she told t he s t ory o f the fairy beast which
.
’
,

T o rf rid a duly stored up in her heart .

‘ ’
S o he has t he cross o n his throat thought T o rf rid a to her ,

self . Well if it keep o ff my c harm it will keep o ff others

‘
, ,

that is o n e comfor t and one knows not what fairies o r witches , ,

r evil creatures h e may meet with in the forests and the

p
,
’
ens .

T h e discovery o f Hereward s rank did not doubtless lessen

’
, ,
’
T o rf rida s fancy for him S h e was ambitious en o u gh and proud .
,

enough o f her own lineage to be full glad t hat her heart h ad ,

strayed away —as it mu s t needs stray somewhere — t o the son o f

the t hird greates t man in E ngland As for his being an outlaw .
,

t hat mattered little He migh t be inlawed and rich an d power .

,

ful any day in those uncer t ai n to p sy t u rvy t imes and for t he

,
-

’
p resen t his being a wolf s head only made him the m ore inter
,

es t ing t o h e r Women like to p i t y their lovers S ometimes

. .

may all good beings reward them for it — t hey love merely
becau se they p i t y And T o rf rid a found i t pleasant t o p ity t he
.

insolen t young coxcomb wh o certainly never dreamed o f pi t ying ,

‘

himself .

W hen Hereward went home that nigh t he found t h e abbey ,

o f S t Bertin in horri b le c onfusion

. His men w ere grouped o u t .

side the ga t e c ha t tering like m onk eys ; the por t er and the
,

monk s from inside en t reating them vainly to com e in and go to

bed quietly .

Bu t they would not T hey vo w ed and swore tha t a great .

gulf had opened all down the road and tha t o n e step more would ,

t umble them in headlo n g T hey manifes t ed t he m ost affection .

ate solici t ude for t he m o n k s warning them o n their lives n ot , , ,

t o s t ep across the threshold or t hey w ould be swallowed (as ,

Martin who was the m ad d es t o f the lot p hrased it) wi t h K orah

, , ,

D a t han and Abiram In vain Hereward s t ormed assured them

, .

t hat the sup p osed abyss was nothing but t h e gut t er ; p roved
the fact by kicking Mar t in over i t T h e men de t ermined t o .
1 12 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

believe their o w n eye s and after awhile fell asleep i n heaps in

,

the roadside and lay there till morn ing when they woke de
, , ,

c larin g a s did the m onks that they had been all bewitched
, ,
.

T hey knew not — and happily th e lower order s both in E ngland

and on the C ontinent do not yet know — the po t ent virtues o f
that strange fungus with which L apps and S am o ie de s have it
, ,

is said practised wonders f o r centuries past

,
.

T h e worst of th e matter was that Martin L ightfoot wh o had , ,

d runk most o f the p oison and had always been dreamy and ,

u ncanny in S pite of his S hrewdness and humour had from that

, ,
day forward something very like a bee in hi s bon n et .

B ut before C ount Robert and Hereward could collec t sn ifi

cient tr0 0 p s f o r the invasion o f Holland another c h ance o f being ,

slain in fight arose too tempting to be o verlook ed namely the

, , ,

annual tournaments at P ons and P oitiers 1 where all the n oblest ,

knights o f France w ould assemble to win their honour and ,

’ ’
ladies love by hewing at each other s sinful bodie s T hither .
,

too over three hundred and fifty miles o f bad road the best
, ,

knights of Flanders mu st needs go and with them Hereward .

T hough n o knight he was allowed in Flanders as he had been

, ,

in S cotland to take his p la c e among that honourable company

, .

Fo r though he still refused the honour o f knighthood o n the ,

ground that he had as yet done no deed deservin g thereof he ,

was held to have deserved it again and agai n and all the more ,

from his modesty i n declining it .

S o away they all went to P oitiers a right gallant meinie ,

while T o rf rid a watched them go from the la tt i c e wind ow .

And when they had passed down the street tram p ing and ,

gingling and caracoling young Arnoul ran into th e house with ,

eyes f u ll o f tears because he was n o t allowed to go likewise ;

,

and with a message for T o rf rid a from n o other than Hereward .

I wa s to tell you this and n o more : tha t if he meets your

‘

favour in the field he that wears it will have hard work to keep
,
’
it
.

T o rf rid a turned pale as ashes ; first with wild delight and ,

then with wild fear .

Ha— doe s he k now who — S ir Ascelin

He k no w s well enough Why not ? E very o n e knows Are . .

you afraid that he i s n o t a m atch for t hat grea t ox ? ’

Afraid Wh o said I was afraid ? S ir Ascelin is no ox either

’
but a courteous and gallan t knight .

J
You are as p ale as death and S ir
‘
N ever mind wha t I am said she putting her hands over , ,
’
h e boy s eyes and kissing him again and again as a vent for
h er j oy .
, ,

T h e next few d ay s seemed years for leng t h ; but S h e could

‘
wait S h e was sure of him now S h e needed no charms Pe r
. . .

1
Apud Po n te s e t Pic t av iam .
’
—Po n s in X ain t o n ge .
114 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

‘
God forbid
T hen said t he knight m istaking her meaning all I have
‘ ’ ‘
, , ,

to tell Hereward is it seems that he has wasted hi s blo w He , , .

will return t herefore to the knight o f S t Valeri his horse an d

, , .
, ,

if the L ady T o rf rida choose s the favour which he has taken by ,

mistake from its rightful owner And he set his teeth and .
’

could not preven t stamping o n the ground in evident p assion , .

T here wa s a tone too o f deep disap p ointment in hi s voice, , ,

which made T o rf rid a look keenly at him Why S hould Here .

’
ward s nephew feel so deep ly about that favou r ? And as S h e
looked — could that man be t he youth S iward Young he was ,

but surely thirty years old at least His face could hardly be .

s een hidden by helm et and nose piece above and mailed up t o

,
-
,

the m outh below B u t his long moustache was that o f a grown

.

man ; his vast breadth of shoulder his hard hand his sturdy , ,

limbs — these surely belonged not to the slim youth whom she
had s een from her lattice riding at Hereward s side And a s S h e ’
.

looked S h e saw upon hi s hand the bear o f which her n ur s e had

,

told her .

‘
You are de ceiving m e and S h e tu rned first deadly pale and ,

Yo u — you are Hereward himself

‘
then crimson .

‘
I ? P ardon me my lady T e n m in u t e s ago I should have , .
‘

been glad enough to have been Hereward N o w I am thank ful .

enough that I am only S iward ; and not Hereward wh o wins ,

for him s elf contemp t by overthrowing a k night more fortunate

’
than he And he bowed and turned away to go
.
, .

Hereward Hereward and in her passion she s eized him

‘

by both his hands I kn ow you ! I k now that device upon

.
‘

your hand At last ! at last ! My hero my P aladin ! Ho w I

.
,

have longed fo r this moment Ho w I have toiled for it and n o t ,

in vain ! Alas alas — w hat am I saying ? And S h e tried in

,
’
,
her turn to escap e from Hereward s mailed arms
,
’
.

’
T hen yo u do not care for that man ?
‘

‘
Fo r him ? Here tak e m y favour wear i t before all the , ,

world and guard it as yo u only can ; and let all kno w that
,
’
T o rf rid a is your love .

And wi t h hand s trembling with pa ss ion S h e bound the ribbon

‘

round his helm .

Ye s ! I am Hereward he almost shouted ; the Berserker

‘ ‘
,
’
,

the brain hewer the land thief the sea thief the feeder o f wolf
-
,
-
,
-
,

and raven — Ao i E re my beard was grown I was a m a tch f o r ,

giants Ho w much more n o w that I am a man whom ladies

.

love ? Many a champion has quailed before m y very glance .

Ho w m uch more n o w t hat I wear T o rf rida s gift ? Ao i

’

T o rf rid a has of t en h eard tha t wild ba tt le cry of Ao i of -

which the early minstrels were so fond — with which the great
poet who wrote the S on g o f Roland ends every paragraph ;
which has n o w fallen ( dis p laced by ou r modern Hu rrah ) to be
merely a s ailor s call o r hunter s cry But she sh uddered a s S h e
’ ’
.
 HOW HEREWARD W ON T HE MAG I C ARMO U R 1 15

heard it clo s e to her ear s ; and saw from the flashin g eye and ,

dilated nostril the temper of t he m an o n whom she had thrown

,

herself so utterly S h e laid her hand upon his lips . .

Remember that yo u are in

’
‘
S ilence silence for p ity s sake .

’
a m aiden s h ouse and think of her good fame
‘ ’
.

Hereward collec t ed himself instantly and then holding her , ,

at arm s length gazed upon her

’
I was mad a moment But
,
.
‘
.

’
is it n o t enough to mak e me mad to look at yo u ?
’
‘
D o not look at me so I can not bear it said she hanging , , ,
’
down her head Y o u forg et that I am a poor weak girl
.
‘
.

‘
Ah ! we are rough wooers we sea rovers We cann ot pay ,
-
.

glozing Frenc h com pliments like you r knigh t s here wh o fawn ,

on a damsel with soft word s in t he hall and will k iss the dust ,
’ ’
o ff their queen s feet and die for a hair o f their god d e s s
,

eyebrow ; and t hen if they find her alone in the forest S h ow ,

t hemsel ves as very ru tfian s as if they were Paynim Moors We .

are rough lady we E nglish : but th ose who trust u s find us

, ,
’
t rue .

’
And I can trust you ? she ask ed still trembling , .

’ ’
O n God s cross there rou n d your n eck and he took her
‘
,

crucifix and kissed it You only I love yo u only I will love

.
‘
, ,

and you will I love in all honesty before the an gels o f heaven , ,

till w e be wedded man and wife W h o bu t a fool would soil t h e .

flower whi c h h e means to wear before all t h e world

‘
I kne w Hereward was noble ! I knew I had not tru sted
him in vain
‘
I ke p t faith and h onou r wi t h th e princess o f C ornwall ,

when I had her at m y will and S hall I n o t keep faith and ,

’
ho n ou r wit h you ?
T h e princess o f C ornwall ? asked T o rf rid a
’
.

‘
D o not be j ealous fair queen I brought her safe to her
,
.

betro thed ; and wed d ed she is lon g ago I will tell you that , .

story some day And n ow I must go — .

’
.

‘
N o t ye t n o t yet I have som e t hing to— to S ho w you .
’

S h e mo t ion ed him to go u p th e narro w s t airs or rather ,

lad d er w hich led to the upper floor and then led him in t o her
, ,
chamber .

A lady s chamber was then in day s when pri vacy w as little

’
,

cared for her usual rece p tion —room and t he b e d which stood
, ,

in an alcove served as a com m on seat for her and her gues t s

, .

But T o rf rid a did n ot ask him to S it down S h e led the way .

onward towards a door beyond .

Hereward followed glancing with awe at the book s parch

, ,

n e n t s and stra n ge instruments which lay on the table a n d the

fioor
,

T h e o ld L app nurse sat in t h e window sewing b u sily She , .

looked u p and smiled m eaningly But as she saw T o rf rid a

,
.

un lo c k the far t her d oor with one o f the keys which hu n g at her
g irdle she croaked o u t
,
116 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

T rust lightly and repent heavily

‘
T fast T o o fa s t
’
oo ,
.

‘
T rust at once or tru s t n ever said T o rf rid a a s S h e opened
, ,
’
,

the door .

Hereward saw within rich dresses hung o n perches round

the wall an d chests barred and padlocked
, .

’ ‘
‘
T hese are t reasure s said S h e which man y a knight and , ,

nobleman has coveted By cunning by flattery y by threats o f .

, ,

force even have t hey tried t o win w hat lie s here— an d T o rf rid a
,

herself too for they sake o f her wealth B ut thank s to the

, ,
.

abbot my uncle T O I frida I s still her own mistress and m istress

, , ,

of t he weal t h which her forefathers w on by sea and land far

away in the E ast All here I s mine— and if you be but t rue to
.

me all mine is yours L ift the lid for me it is t o o heavy for

,
.
,

my arms .
’

Hereward did so ; and s aw within golden cup s and bracelets ,

horns o f I v ory and S ilver bags o f coin and among them a mail , ,

shirt and helmet o n which he fixed at once s ilent and greedy

,

eye s
Sh e looked at his face askance and smiled Ye s these are ‘
, .
,

m ore to Hereward s taste than gold and j ewel s And he shall’

.

have them He S hall have them as a proof that if T o rf rid a has

.

se t her love upon a worthy knight she i s at least wor t hy o f ,

him ; and does n ot demand without being able to give I n return

A fi d she t ook o u t the arm ou r and h eld it u p
.

p to him .

‘
T his i s the work o f dwarf s o r e n c h an t e rs ! T hi s was n ot
forged by m ortal man ! It m u st have com e o u t o f some o ld
cavern o r drago n s h o ard
,
said Hereward in astonish ment at
’
,

the extreme delicacy and slightness o f the mail —rings and the ,

ri c hness of the gold and silver with which both hauberk and
helm were inlaid .

E nchanted it is they say y ; but its maker who can tell ?

‘
, ,

My an cestor won it and by the side o f Charles MaI tel L i s ten, ,

and I will tell you h o w .

Yo u have heard o f fair P rovence where I spent my youth ,

t he land o f the sunny south the land of the fig and the olive ,

the mulberry and t he rose the tulip and the anemone and all , ,

rich fruits and fair fl o w e rs — the land where every city is piled ,

with tem p les and theatres and towers as high as heaven which
, , ,

t he o ld Romans built with their enchantments and tormented ’

,

t he blessed mar t yrs therein .

‘
S u n in heaven Ho w beautiful yo u are cried Hereward ,

a s her voice S haped itself into a so n g and her eyes fla s hed at , ,

t he remembrance of her southern h ome .

T o rf rid a was n ot altoge t her angry at finding that he was

thinking of her and no t of her w ords ,
.

P eace and listen You know h o w the Paynim held that

‘
,
.

land — the S aracen s to whom Mahound t au gh t all the wisdom ,

of S olom on — as they t ea c h u s in turn S h e ad d ed in a lower ,

’

v oice .
118 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T rophimu s appeared to him and told him that it was a punish ,

ment for his blasphem y in the battle S o he repented and .

,

vowed t o serve the sain t all hi s life O n which he was healed .

instantly and fell to religion and went back to Mo n t m aj o u r

, ,

and there h e was a hermit in the c av e under the rock an ,

ten d ed the graves hewn in the living stone where his o ld ,

'

com rades the P aladi n s wh o were slain S leep side by s ide round
, ,

the C hu rch o f the Holy C ross But t he armou—r he left here ; .

and he laid a cu rse u pon it that w hosoever o f his descendants ,

should lose that arm ou r in fight S hould die childles s without a , ,

son to wield a sword And therefore it i s that none o f my

.

ancestors valiant as they hav e been have dared to put thi s

, ,
’
harness o n their backs .

And so ended a story which T o rf rida believed utterl y and

, ,

Hereward likewise .

‘
An d n o w Hereward mine dare yo u wear that magic
, ,

armou r and face o ld T o rf rid s curse ?

,
’ ’

’
What dare I not ?
‘
T hink If yo u lose it in yo u your race m u s t end ’
.
, .

‘
L e t i t end I accept the cur s e
. .
’

And he put the armour on .

Bu t h e trembled as he did it Atheism and superstition go .

too of t en hand in hand ; and godless as he was sceptical o f

- -
,

Providence itself an d much m ore o f the help o f saint o r angel

, ,

still the curse o f t he old warrior like the m alice o f a wi t ch o r a ,

demon was to h im a thing possible p robable and f ormidable

, , ,
.

T o rf rid a looked at him in pride and exultation .

It is yours — th e in vulnerable harnes s Wear it in the

forefront o f the bat tle And if weapon wound you through it ,

may I as punishme nt for my lie su ffer the same u pon m y

, ,

tender body — a wound for every w ound o f yours my knight 1 ,

And after that they s at side by side and talked o f love with ,

all honour and h ones t y never heeding the o ld hag w h o crooned

, ,

to herself in h er barbarian tongue

Q u ick th aw l o n g f ro,st Z
,

Q u ick j o y l o n g pain
, ,

S o o n fo u d s o o n l o st
n , ,

Y o u wil l tak e yo u r g i ft ag ain

’
.

1 ‘
Vo lo en im in m e o tal e q u id n un c perpe ti c orpore se m e l, q u ic q u i d
e as fe rre i v e l e m e tall o ex ce d e re t
’
.
xi HOW HE W AS T AK EN FO R A MAG I CIAN 11 9

C HA P T E R X I

HOW T HE HO L L AN D E RS T OO K HE RE W A RD FO R A M A G C A N I I
O F this weary Holland war which dragged itself o n cam p aign ,

after cam p aign for several years what need to tell ? T here
, ,

was doubtless the due amoun t o f mu rder plu n der bu rning

, , , , ,

and worse and the final event was certain from the beginning .

It w as a struggle between civilised and disciplined m en armed ,

to the tee t h and well furnished with ships and military engines
, ,

against poor S im p le folk in coats s t i ffened with tar and rosin ‘

,
’
o r in very short j ackets o f hide ( says t he c hronicler ) wh o fo u ght ,

by threes t wo with a h ooked lance and t hree d arts each and

, ,

between them a man with a sword o r an axe wh o held his ,

S hield before those t w o — a very great m ultitude but in com ,

position u t terly undisciplined who came down to the sea coast ,

’
-
,

with carts and waggons to carry o ff the spoils o f the Flemings

, ,

and bade them all surrender at discretion and go home again ,

after giving u C ount Robert an d Hereward with the tribune s ,

o f the briga es to be p ut to death — as valiant S outh S e a

,
’

islanders might h ave done and t hen fou n d themselves as

sheep to the slaughter before t h e cunning Hereward wh om ,

they esteemed a m agician o n account o f hi s craf t and his

invulnerable arm our .

S o at least says Richard o f E ly w h o tells long confused ,

stories o f battles and cam paigns some o f them with out due ,

regard to chron ology ; for i t is certain that th e brave Z eelanders

could n o t o n Robert s first landing have feared lest they should
’ ‘

be con q uered by foreigners as they had heard the E nglish w ere ,

’
by the French inasmu ch as t hat event had n o t then happened
, .

And thu s much o f the war among the m eres o f S ch eldt .

C HA P T E R X II
HO W HE RE W A RD T U RN E D B E RS E RKE R

’
T heart m isgave her that first night as to the effect s o f
O RFRID A S
her exceeding frankness He r p ride in t he firs t p lace was some
.

what w ounded ; S h e had dreamed o f a knight who would w orshi p

her as his queen hang o n h e r smile d ie at her frown and S h e
, ,

had m ean t t o bring Here w ard to h e r feet as such a slave in ,

boundless gra t i t ude ; bu t had h e not rather held his o w n and ,

brough t her to his fee t by assuming h er devotion as hi s right ?

,

And if he assumed t hat h o w far could sh e trust him n ot to

,

abuse h is c laim ? Was h e quite a s perfec t seen close as seen

"
, ,

afar o fl ? And now that the in t oxication of t hat m eeting had

1 20 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

passed o ff she began to remember more than o n e little fault

,

whi c h she w ould have gladly seen mende d — Certain rou gh

nesses of manner which co n trasted unfavourably with t he p olish
(merely external though it was ) o f the Flemish and N orman
knigh t s a boa stful self —su ffi c ie n c y too which bordered o n the , ,

l udicrous at whiles even in her partial eyes which would be a

matter of open laughter to the knight s o f th e court Besides .
,

if they laughed at him they w ould laugh at her for choosing

,

him And t hen w ounded vanity came in t o help w ounded pride ;

.

and S h e sat over the cold ember s till almost dawn o f day her ,

head between her hands m using sadly and half wishing that , ,

the irrevocable yesterday had never come .

B ut when af t er a fe w m onths Hereward returned from his

, ,

first campaign in Holland covered wi t h glory and renown all , ,

smiles and beauty and health and good humour and gratitude
, ,
-
,

for the magic arm our which had p reserved him unhurt then ,

T o rf rid a forgot all her fears and t hought herself the happiest ,

maid alive for fou r and twenty h ours at least- -

.

And then came back and after t hat again and again the o ld
, ,

fears Gradually she found o u t that the sn eer s which S h e had

.

heard at E nglish barbarians were not altogether without groun d .

N o t only had her lover s life been passed among half brutal
’
-

and w ild adventurers but lik e the rest o f his nation he had , ,

never felt t he influence o f tha t classic civilisation w ithout which

good manners seem even to thi s day almost beyond the reach
, ,

o f the Western races T h ose among whom S h e had been

.

brought up whether soldiers o r clerk s were p ro bably n o n obler

, ,

o r pu rer at heart — she would gladly have believed t hem far less
so — than Hereward but the m erest varnish o f Roman culture
had given a charm to their manners a widenes s o f range to ,

their thoughts which Hereward had not

, .

E spe c ially when he had taken t oo much to d rink whi c h he

did after the D a n ish fashion far oftener than the rest o f
, ,

Robert s m en — h e grew rude boastful u arre lso m e

’
He w ould , , .

c hant his o w n doughty deeds ; and ga (as the N orman word

w as) in painful earnest while they gabbed only in S p ort and
, ,

outvied each other in i mpossible fan f arro n a d e s sim p ly to laugh ,

d o w n a fashion which was held in c onsis t ent wi t h the modes t y

o f a true knigh t Bitter it was to her to hear him ann ounce to
.

t he com p any n ot fo r the first o r se c ond time h ow he had slain

, ,

t he C ornish giant whose height increased by a foot at least

,

every time he was men t ioned and then to hear him answered
by som e smart smooth shaven youth w h o with as much
,
-
, ,

mimi c ry of his m anner a s he dared t o assume boasted of h aving ,

slain in Araby a giant with two h eads a n d t aken o u t o f his two ,

m o n t h s t he two hal v es o f the princess whom h e was devouring ,

which being j oined t o ge t her af t erwards by t he p rayers of a holy

h ermit were d elivered back safe and sound to her fa t her the
,

K ing o f Antioch And more bitter still was it to hear Here w ard
.
122 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

lish beard with locks o f gold w hich like his long gol d en hair
, , ,

e re c om b ed and cu rled daily af t er the fashion o f the Anglo

fiane s
,

After a while Hereward s beard began to wag somewhat t o o

,
’

’
fa s t as h e sat by T o rf rid a s S ide F or some knight near began
, .

t o tell o f a w onderful mare called S wallow which was to be ,

found in o n e of the islan d s o f the S cheldt and w as famou s ,

throu gh all th e country round and insinuated m oreover t hat , ,

Hereward might as w ell have brought that mare hom e with him
as a tro p h y .

T o which Hereward answered in his boasting vein that h e , ,

w ould bring hom e that mare o r aught else t hat he had a ,

liking to .

You will find it n o t so easy He r owner they say is a .

, ,

mighty strong churl o f a horse breeder D irk Ham m e rh an d by -

,

name an d as for cutting his throat that yo u m ust n ot d o ; f o r ,

he has been loyal to C ounte s s Gertrude and sent her hor s es ,

’
whenever she neede d .

’
O n e may p ick a fair q uarrel with him nevertheles s .

T hen you m ust bide such a b u fl e t as you never abode before .

’
T hey say his arm has seven m en s strength ; and wh osoever
v isi t s him h e cha llenges to give and tak e a blow : but n o m an
,
’
that has taken a blow as yet has ever needed another , .

Hereward w ill h ave need o f his magic head piece if he tries -

,

that adventure quoth ano t her ,

’
.

‘
Ay retorted the first speaker but the helmet may s tand ‘
’
,

the rap well enough and yet the brains in side be the w orse
,
.
’

N o t a d oubt I knew a man once w h o was so strong that

.
,

he would shak e a n ut till the kernel went to powder and ye t ,

’
never break the shell .

T hat is a lie ! quoth Hereward And so it was and told

‘ ’
.
,

pur p osely to make him expose himself .

Whereon high w ords followed which T o rf rid a tried in vain ,

to stop Hereward was flushed wi t h ire and scorn

. .

Magic arm our forsooth cried he at last

,
What care I f o r .

’
armou r o r for magic ? I will wager to yo u my arm our he ‘
,

was o n the p oint o f saying but he checked himself in time ,

any horse in my stable tha t I go in m y shirt to S c aldm arilan d

, ,
and bring back t hat m are single handed — ’
.

Hark to t he E nglishman He has turned Berserker at last ,

lik e his forefathers Y o u W ill surely start in a pair o f h ose as

.

’
well o r the ladies will be shamed ?
,

And so forth till T o rf rid a wa s pu r le with sham e an d wished

, ,

herself fathom s deep and Adela o f ran c e called sternly from

the head of t he t able to ask wha t the w rangling meant .

’
It is only the E nglish Berserk er the L ady T o rf rid a s cham ,
’
pion said S ome o n e in his m ost cour t eous t one wh o is n o t yet
, ,
‘

as well acquainted w i t h t he customs o f k nighthood as tha t fair

lady hopes t o make h im hereafter .
’
X II HOW HE REWARD T U RN E D B ERS ERK E R 123

‘ ’ ’
T o rf rid a s cham pion ? asked Adela in a tone ,
of s urprise if ,

not scorn .

If a n y knight quarrels w ith my Here w ard he quarrels with ,

Robert him self thundered C oun t Robert S ilence .

An d so the matter w as hushed up .

T h e banquet ended and they walked o u t into the garden to

cool their heads and play at ga m es and da n ce , , .

T o rf rid a avoided Here w ard but he with the foolish per ,

t in ac it y o f a m an who k nows h e has had too m uch wine and ,

ye t p re t ends to h imself that h e ha s n o t w ould follow her an d , ,

speak to her .

S h e turned away m ore than once At last s he wa s forced to .

speak to him .

‘
So You have made m e a lau ghing stock to these knight s -
.

Yo u have scorned at my gifts Yo u h ave said — and before .

these men too — that you n eed neither helm nor hauberk Give
,
.

m e them back then Berserk er a s you are and go s leep o ff your

, , ,
’
wm e .

T hat will I , laughed Hereward boisterou sly

’
.

’ ’
Y o u are tipsy, said she , and do n ot k now what you s ay
‘ ‘
.

‘
Y o u are angry , and d o n ot know what you s ay Hearken , .

proud lass I wil l take care o f o n e thing , and that is, that yo u
.

’
shall speak the tru th .

’
Did I not say that yo u were tipsy ?
‘
Pish ! Yo u said that I was a Berserk er And truth you .

shall speak for baresark I go to morrow t o the war and bare -

,
’
s ark I win that mare o r die .

T hat will be very fit for you

’
.

And the two turned haughtily from each other .

E re T o rf rid a went to bed that nigh t there wa s a violen t ,

k nocking Angry as S h e was she was yet anxious enough to

.
,

hu rry o u t o f her chamber and open the door herself , .

Martin L ightfoot stood there with a large leather mail which ,

h e flu n g at her feet so m ewhat un cerem oniously .

‘ ’
T here is som e gear o f yours s aid he as it clanged and , ,

rattled o n the floor .

‘ ’
What do you mean man ? ,
‘
O nly that my m aster b id m e say that h e care s a s little for
his o w n life as yo u d o And he tu rned away .
’
.

S h e caught him by th e arm

What is th e meaning of this ? What i s in this m ail ? ’

Yo u sh ould kn ow best
‘
If young folk s c an n ot be content .

w hen they are well o ff they will go farther and fare worse
’
, ,

says Martin L ightfoot An d he sli p t from her grasp and fled .

in t o th e night .

S h e took t h e mail to her room and opened it It contained .

th e magic armou r .

All h e r anger was m elted away S h e cried S h e blamed her .

self He would be k illed ; his blood would be o n h e r head

. .
12 4 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C H AP .

She would have carried it ba c k to him with her o w n hand s ;

she would have entreated him o n her knees to take it back .

But how fa c e the cou rtiers and how find him ? Very p robably ,

t o o he was by tha t time hopelessly drunk

, And at that though t .

she dre w herself into herself tried to h arden her heart again , ,

and went to bed but n o t to S leep Bitterly S h e cried as S h e

, .

’
thought over the o ld hag s croon
Q u ick j o y l o n g pai n , ,

Y ou wi ll tak e yo u r gi ft agai n .
’

’
It might h ave been five o clock the next m orning when the
clarion rang do w n the street S h e sprang up and dres t herself .

quickly ; but never m ore carefully o r gaily S h e heard the .

tramp o f horse —hoof s He was m oving a fi e ld early indeed

.
-
,
.

S hould S h e go to the window t o bid him farewell ? S hould she

hide herself in j ust anger ?
S h e looked o u t stealthily through the blind o f the little
window in the gable T here rode down the street Robert le
.

Frison in full armour and behind him knight after knight a

, , ,

wall o f S hining steel But by hi s S ide rode o n e bare headed his

.
-
,

long yellow cu rls floa t ing over his shoulders His boo ts had .

golden spurs a gilt belt held up his s word but hi s only dress
,

was a silk shirt and silk hose He laughed and sang and m ade .
,

his horse caracol and tossed his lance in the air and caught it
, ,

b y t i e point like T aillefer at Hastings a s he passed under the

W 1 11 ow é .
, ,

S h e threw open the blind careless o f all appearance s Sh e , .

would have called to him but the word s choked her and
what should she say
He looked u p boldly and smiled , .

‘
Farewell fair lady m ine D runk I was last night but not
, .
,
’
so drunk a s to forge t a promise .

And he rode o n while T o rf rida rushed away and broke into

,

wild weeping .

C HA P T E R X III
HOW HE RE W A RD W ON M A RE S W A LL O W

ON a ben ch at the door o f his h igh ro o fe d wooden hou s e sat D irk

Ham m e rh an d the richest man in Walcheren From within the
,
.

h ouse sounded the pleasant n oise o f slave -women grinding and ,

cha tt in g at the h an d q u e rn from without the pleasan t noise o f ,

geese and fowls wi t hout number And as h e sat an d drank his .

ale and wa tc hed the herd o f h orses in the fen he th ought him
, ,

self a hap p y man and thanked his O din and T h or th at owing

, ,

to h is princely sup p lies of horses to C ou ntess Gertrude Robert ,

the Frison and his C hristian Franks had not ye t harried him to
the bare walls as they would probably do ere all was over
,
.
126 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

Frisians for s o you doubtles s are I was made a beast o f

,
.

a horse of by an enchanter of a certain lan d and my sister a

, ,
’
mare .

‘
T h ou do s t not say so q uoth D irk who considered such an ,

event quite possible .

‘
I was a p rince o f the county of Alb o ro n ia which lies between ,

C athay and t he Mou ntains o f t he Moon as fair once as I am ,

foul now and only less fair than my los t sister ; and by the
e n c h a n t n ie n t s of a cr u el magician we became what we ar e
,
’
.

Bu t thou art not a horse at all even t s ? ,

’

‘
Am I not ? T hou knowest then m ore o f m e than I do o f , ,
‘
myself and it ate m ore grass
,
But hear the I est o f my story . .

My ha p less si s ter was sold away with me to a m erchant : b u t I ,

breaking loose from him fl e d until I bathed I n a mag i c fountai n , .

At once I re c overed my man s S hape and was rej oi cing therein ’

, ,

when o u t o f th e fo u ntai n l o se a fairy m ore beau tiful than an

elf and sm iled upon m e with love .

S h e asked me my story and I told it And when it was ,

.

told Wretch she cried and coward who hast deserted , ,

thy S ister in h e r need I w ould have loved thee and m ade thee
.
,

immortal as myself but now thou shalt wander u g ly and eating

grass clothed in t he h orse hide which has j ust dro p p ed from
,
-

thy limbs till thou shal t find th y S ister and bring her to bathe
, , ,

like thee in this magic well, .

‘ ’
All good spirit s help u s And yo u are really a prince ?
‘
As surely cried the thi n g with a voice o f sudden rapture
,
’
,
‘
as that m are i s my S ister and he rushed at mare S wallo w .

’
I see I see my mother s eyes my father s nose
, , ,
’

He mu st have been a chuckle headed king that then ,

’

’
grinned D irk to him s elf T h e mare S n ose i s as big as a buck
‘
.

basket But how can she be a p rincess man —pr i nce I mean ?
.
,
’
S h e has a foal runn in g by her here .

‘
‘
A foal said the thing solemnly L e t m e behold it Alas . .
,

alas my sister ! T h y t yrant s threat h as co m e true that thou ’

,

sh OIild st be his brideywhether thou wouldst o r not

,

I see I see .
,

in the feature s o f thy son his hated lineaments .

’

‘
Why he m ust be as like a horse then as your father But , ,
.

this will not do Master Hor s e man ; I know that foal s pedigree
,
’

’
better than I do my o w n .

Man man simple though honest — Hast thou never heard

, ,

o f the skill o f the enchanters of the E ast ? Ho w they transform

their victims at night back aga i n into human shape and by ,

day into the shape of beasts agaI n .

‘
Yes — well — I k n o w that
‘
And do you n ot see how yo u are d eluded ? E very night ,

doubt n o t that mare and foal take their human sha p e again ;
,

and ever y night p erhap s that foul enchanter v isits I n your f e n

, , ,

perhap s I n you r very stable his wretched bride restored ( alas , ,

’
only fo r an hour into her h u man S hap e .
X III HOW HE REWARD W ON MARE S WAL L OW 1 27

An en c hanter in my stable ? T hat is a n ugly guest But

‘
.

’
no I ve been into the s t ables fifty times to s ee if t hat mare
.
,

w a s safe Mare was mare and colt w as colt Mr Prince if I

.
, ,
.
,

have eyes to see .

’

‘
And what are eyes against en chantments ? T h e mom ent
yo u opened the door t he spell was cast over them again You , .

ough t to thank your s t ars t hat no worse has happened ye t ;

t hat the enchanter in fleeing has not wrung you r neck as he , ,

went o u t o r cast a spell on you which w ill fire your barns

, , ,

lame you r geese gi v e your fowls t he p ip your horses the , ,

’
glander s you r cat t le the m u rrain your children S t Vitus
, , .

dance your wife the creepin g palsy and yourself the chalk
, ,
’
stones in all your fingers .

All saints have m e rc y on me

‘
If the h alf o f this be true I ,

will turn C hristian I will send for a p riest and be baptized .

,

to m orro w
-

‘
O m y sister m y sister ! D ost thou not know m e ? D o s t
,

thou answer my caresses with ki c k s ? O r is t hy heart as well ,

as thy body so enchained by tha t cruel necromancer that t hou

, ,

p re f e rre st to b e his and scorne s t thine own s alvation leaving ,

’
,

me to eat grass till I die ?

I s ay prince— I s ay— what would you have a m an to do ? I
,
’
bought the mare honestly and I have kept her well S h e can t ,
.

say aught against me on that score And whether S h e be .

’
p rinces s o r n o t I m loth to part with h er ’
,
.

K eep her t hen and k eep wi t h her th e curse o f all the saints
,
’
and angels L ook do w n ye holy saints (and the thin g poured
.
,
’ ‘
out a lon g strin g of saints names ) and avenge this ca t holic ,

rincess kept in vile durance by an unbaptized heathen May

p
,

IS
’ ’ ’
D on
t don t roared D irk An d don t look at m e like that
’

, .

( for he feared t he evil eye ) o r I ll brain yo u with my sta ff !

’ ‘ ’

,
‘ ’
Fool ! If I h ave lost a horse s figure I have not los t his ,

swif t ness E re thou couldst strike I should hav e run a mile

.
,
’
and back to cu rse thee af resh, And the thing ran ro u nd him .
,

and fell o n all fou rs again and a t e grass ,

.

‘
Mercy mercy And that is m ore t han I ever ask ed yet o f
,

man Bu t it is hard growled he that a m an should lose his

.
,
’
,
‘

’
money because a rogue sells him a princess in disguise
, .

T hen sell her again sell her as thou valuest thy life to th e , ,

fi rst Christian man thou mee t es t And yet no What m atters ? . .

E re a month b e over the seven years en c hantmen t will hav e ’

,

p assed and she will return to her o w n S ha p e with her son and , ,

vanish from thy farm leaving thee to vain repentance whereby ,

t hou wilt bo t h lose thy m oney and get her curse Farewell and .
,

m y ma lison abide wi t h thee

And the thing wi t hout an other word ran right away , , ,

n ei g hin g as it went leaving D irk in a s t a t e o f a b j e c t terro r

, .

He went home He cu rsed the mare he cursed t he man who .

,
1 28 HE REWARD T HE WAK E

sold her he cur s ed the day he saw her h e cu r s ed the day he was
, ,

born He t old his story with exa ggerations and confusions I n

.

plenty to all I n the house ; and t error fell o n them likewise N o .

one t h at e vening dared go down in t o the fen to drive the

, ,

horses up ; while D irk got very y drunk wen t to bed and , ,

trembled there all night (as did t h e rest o f the hous ehold )
’

expecting the enchanter to en t er o n a flaming fi re drak e at ,

every howl of t he wind .

T h e next m orning as D irk was goi n g ab out his business with

,

a doleful face casti ng stealthy glances at the fen to see if the

, O ,

mysteriou s mare was st ill t here and a chance o f his money s till ,

lef t a man rode u p to the door

, .

He was p oorly clothed with a long rusty sword by hi s S ide , .

A broad felt hat long boots and a haversack behind his saddle
, , ,

showed him to be a traveller seemingly a horse dealer ; f o r ,

there followed him tied head and tail a brace o f sorry , ,

nags .

‘
Heaven save all here qu oth h e making the S ign o f the
’
, ,

C an any good C hristian give m e a drink o f milk ?

‘
cross .
’

’
‘
Ale if th ou wilt said D irk
,
But w hat art thou and ,
.
‘
,

whence
O n any other day he would have tried to coax hi s guest into
tryin g a buffet wi t h him for his horse an d clo t hes : but this
morn i ng his heart was heavy with the thought o f the enchanted
mare and he welcomed the chance of S elling her to the s t ranger
, .

‘
We are n ot very fond o f strangers about here S in c e these ,

Flemings have been harrying o u r borders If thou art a spy it .

,

will be worse for thee .

‘
I a m nei t her spy nor Flemin g but a poor servant o f the ,
’
L ord Bishop o f Utrecht S buyi n g a garron or t w o for his lord ,

AS for these Flemin g s m ay S t J ohn Bap t ist

’
S hi p s priests .
, .

save from them both me and you D o you kn ow o f any man .

who has h orses to sell hereabouts

’
T here are horses I n the fen yonder quoth D irk who k ne w
‘
, ,

that churchmen were likely to give a liberal price and pay in ,

good S ilver .

‘
I saw them as I rode up And a fine lot they are : but o f .

’
too good a stam p for my S hort purse o r for m y holy master s ,

riding a fat p riest lik es a quiet nag my m as t er

,
-
,
.

‘
Hum p h Well if quietness is what yo u need there is a
.
, ,

mare down there that a child m ight rid e with a thread o f wool
, .

B ut as for pri c e And she has a colt too running by her , , .

’

’
‘
Ah ? quoth the horseman Well your Walcheren folk .
‘
,
’
mak e g good milk that s certain A colt by her ? T hat s awk
,
’
.

ward My lord does not lik e young horses ; and it would be

.

’
troublesome to o to take the thing along wi t h me
, ,
.

T h e less anxious the dealer seemed to buy t he m ore anxiou s ,

gre w D irk t o sell ; but he con c ealed his anxiety and let the ,

stra n ger tu rn away t hanking him for his d rink ,

.
130 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T hou art a s trange fellow quoth the ,

’
h or s e —dealer .
‘
But so
’
be it .

D irk chu ckled He does not know thou ght he that he

.
‘
,
’
,
‘

has t o d o wi t h D irk Ham m e rh an d and he clenched his fist in ,

’

anticipation of his rough j oke .

T here q uoth the stranger counting o u t th e m oney care

‘ ’
, ,

fully is thy coin And there — is thy box o n the ear

,
‘
. .
’

And with a blow which rattled over the fen he felled D irk ,

Ham m e rh an d to the ground .

He lay sen seless for a m oment and then looked wildly round ,
.

Villain groaned he It was I who was to give the bu ff et .

‘
,

n o t thou
‘
Art mad ? ask ed the s tranger a s he coolly picked up the
’
,
’
coins which D irk had scattered in his fall
,
It i s the seller s .
‘

’ ’
business to tak e and the buyer s to give ,
.

And while D irk roared in vain for help he leapt o n S wallow, ,

and rode o ff S houting ,
‘
Aha D irk Ham m e rh an d S o yo u thought t o knock a hole
in my S k ull as yo u have done to many a better man than your
,

self ? He m ust be a luckier man than yo u who catches T h e

Wake asleep I S hall give your love to the enchanted prince
.
,
’
my fai t hfu l serving man whom they call Martin L ightfoot ,
.

D ick cursed the day he was born Instead o f the mare and .

colt he had go t the two wret c hed garron s which the s tranger
,

had left and a face which made him so tender o f his o w n teeth
, ,

that he never again o ffered to try a buffet with a s tranger .

C HA P T E R X IV
HO W HE RE W A RD RO DE INT O BR U I
GE S L K E A BE GGA RMA N

T HE pring and summer had pa s sed and the autumn was

S ,

almost over when great news came to the court o f Bruges

, ,

where T o rfrida was n o w a bower maiden -

.

T h e Z eelanders h ad be e n beaten till they s ubmitted at least

for the present T here was peace at least for the present
.
, ,

t hrough all the isles o f S cheldt and more than all t he lovely ,

C ountess Gertrude had resolved to reward her champion by

giving him her hand and the guardian s hip o f her lands and her ,

infant son .

And Hereward
From him o r o f him there wa s n o word T hat he wa s alive
, ,
.

and fighting was all the m essenger could say .

T hen Rober t came back to Bruges wi t h a gallant retinue , ,

leadi n g h om e his bride And there met him his fath er and .

mother and his brother o f Mons and Ric h ild a t he beautiful and
, ,

terribl e sorceress — wh o had n o t yet stained her S oul w i th those

c rI m e s w hich S h e expiated by fearful penances in after years ,
X IV HOW HEREWARD RODE IN T O B RU G ES 13 1

when yo u ng Arnoul the s on for wh om S h e had sold her soul

, ,

lay dead upon the battlefield which was t o have made him a
migh t y prince And T o rf rid a went o u t wi t h th e nobles to meet
.

C ount Robert and looked for Hereward till her eyes were ready
, ,

to fall o u t o f her head But Hereward was not wi t h them . .

He m ust be lef t behind commanding the army thought she ’

, ,
.

Bu t h e might have sent o n e word

T here was a great fea s t that day o f course and T o rfrida s at ,

thereat but S h e could n ot eat N ever t heless she was t o o proud .

to let the knights know what was in her heart s o she chatted
and laughed a s gaily as the rest wa t ching always f o r any word ,

o f Hereward B u t none mention ed his name

. .

T h e feast wa s long the ladie s did not rise till nigh bedtime
and then the men drank o n .

T hey went up to the q ueen - countess chamber where a

’
,

solemn undressing o f that royal lady usually took place .

T h e etiquette was this T h e queen —countes s sa t in her chair

.

o f state in the midst till her S hoe s were taken o ff and her hair
, ,

d ressed for the night Right an d left o f her according to their

.
,

degrees sat the other great ladies ; and behind each o f them
, ,

where they could find places the maiden s ,

.

’
It wa s T o rf rida s tu rn t o take o ff the royal sh oes ; and S h e
a d vanced into the middle o f the semicircle slipper s in hand , .

S top there said the countess queen -

.

Whereat T o rf rid a s topped very m uch frightened , .

’
Countesses and ladies said the mistress there are in Pro , , ,

vence and the S outh what I wish there were here in Flanders
,
— courts o f love at which all o ffenders against the sacred law s
,

o f Venu s and C upid are tried by an assem b ly o f their peers and ,

’
p unished accordin g to their de s ert s .

T o rf rid a turned scarlet .

I know not why we countesses and ladies S hould have les s , ,

k nowledge o f the laws o f love than those gayer dames o f the
S outh whose blood runs — to j udge by her dark hair— in the
,

veins o f yo u fair maid .

’

T here was a S ilence T o rfrid a was the m ost beautiful woman

.

in the room ; m ore beautiful than even Ric h ild a t he terrible

and therefore there were few but were glad t o see her— as it
seemed — in trouble .

T o rf rid a s m o t her began whimpering and praying to six o r

’
,

seven sain t s at once B ut nobody mark ed her— possibly not .

even t he saints being p reo c cupied with T o rf rid a .

‘
I hear fair maid — for that you are that I w ill do yo u the
,

j ustice to confess — that you are o ld enough to be m arried thi s

’
fou r years since .

T o rf rid a stood like a stone frightened o u t o f her wits ple n t i , ,

ful as they were .

’
Why are you not married ?
T here was o f course n o an s wer
, , .
1 32 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

I hear that k nights have fought f o r yo u ; lost their live s f o r

I did bid them gasped T o rfrida longing that the floor

n ot
’

would open and swallow up the q ueen —

,

c o u n t e S S and all her kin

and follower s as it did for t he enem i es o f the blessed S aint D u n
,

stan while he was arguing with them I n an u pp er room at Calne

,
.

‘
And that the k night o f S t Valeri t o whom yo u gave your .
,
’
favou r n o w lie s languishing of wounds go t I n you r cause
,
.

‘
— ’
I I did n o t bid him fight gasped T o rfrid a now wishing , ,

that the floor wou ld o p en and swallow up herself .

‘
And that he w h o poverthrew the knight o f S t Valeri — to .

whom you gave that favour and m ore ,

I gave him nothing a maiden might not give cried T o rfrida ,

’
,

so fiercely that the queen —countes s recoiled somewhat .

‘
I never said tha t you did girl Your love you gave him , . .

’
C an you deny that ?
T o rf rid a laughed bitterly her S outhern blood was rising .

I p u t m y love o u t to nu rse instead o f weaning it a s man , ,

a maiden ha s done before m e and thought n o harm When m y ,

.

love cried fo r hunge and cold I took it back again to my o w n ,

’
bosom ; and whether it has lived o r died there I s n o o n e S matter ,

but m y o w n .
’

Hunger and cold ? I hear that him to whom yo u gave you r

l ove you drove o u t to the cold bidding him go fight in his bare
, ,
’
S hirt if he wished to w i n your lo ve
,
.

‘
I did not He angered m e — He . and T o rfrida found
herself I n the act o f accusing He re w aI d .

S h e stopped instantly .

What m ore your highnes s ? If this be true what m ore may

, ,

n o t be true o f such an o n e a s I ? I submit myself to your royal

’
grace .

S h e ha s confessed What p unishment ladies doe s she

.
, ,

de s erve ? O r rather what p unishment w o d ld her cousin s o f

, ,

P rovence inflict did we send her southward to be j udged by

, ,
’
their court s of love ?
O n e lady s aid o n e thing o n e another S ome spoke cruelly , .
,

som e worse than c ruelly for they were coarse ages the ages o f , ,

faith ; and ladie s said t hings then in open company which

gentlemen would be ashamed to say in p r i va t e n o w .

y her to a fool said Ric hild a at last bi t terly

’
Marry , , ,
.

‘
T h at is too common a misfortune answered the lady o f ,

Fran c e If w e did n o more to her S h e might grow as proud as

.
‘
,

her be t ters .
’

Adela knew that h er dau ghter I n —law considered her husband

a fool ; and was som ewhat o f the same opi nion th ough S h e ,

hated Ric h ild a .

‘
N o said S h e ; w e will do more We will marry her to the
’ ‘
.
,

first man who enters t he c as t le .

T O I frida looked at her mis t ress to s ee if she were mad But .

13 4 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

It wa s Hereward him self Filthy ragged but Hereward .

, .

His shirt wa s brown with gore and torn w ith wounds and ,

through its rents sh owed m ore than o n e hardly healed s car His .

hair and beard was all in elf lock s and one heavy cut acros s -

the head had shorn not only hair but brain pan very close ,
-
.

But Her eward it wa s and regardle ss o f all beholder s she ,

lay upon hi s n eck and never s tirred n o r S p oke

, .

’
I call you to witnes s ladies cried the queen counte ss that I
, ,
-
,

am guiltles s S h e has given herself to thi s beggarman o f her own

.

’ ’
free will What say yo u ? And she turned to T o rf rid a s mother
. .

T o rfrid a s m other only prayed and whimpered

’
.

’
C ountesse s and ladie s said the queen counte ss there will
‘
,
-
,

be two wedding s to morrow T h e fir s t will b e that o f m y son

-
.

Robert and m y pretty L ady Gertrude here T h e secon d will be .

that o f my pretty T o rf rid a and Here w ard ’

.

‘ ’
And the second bride s aid the C ounte ss Gertrude rising , ,

and taking T o rf rid a in her arms will be ten times prettier

"
,

than the first T here sir I have done all yo u asked o f me

.
, .

N o w go and wa s h your s elf .

‘
Hereward said T o rfrida a week after and did yo u never
,
’
, ,
‘

change your shirt all that time ? ’

‘ ’
N ever I kept m y promi s e
. .

’
B ut it m ust have been very na s ty .

’
Well I bathed n ow and then
, .

’
‘
B ut it m ust have been very cold .

’
I am warm enough n o w .

But did yo u never comb your hair either ,

‘
Well I won t s ay that T raveller s find strange bedfello w s
,
’
. .

B ut I had half a m ind never t o do it at all j ust to s pite yo u , .

’

‘
And what matter would it have been to me ?
O h none It i s only a D anish fashion we have o f keeping
.

’
clean .

Cle an ? Y o u were dirty enough when you came home .

Ho w silly yo u were If yo u had sent me but o n e word 1 ’

‘
You would have fan c ied m e beaten an d scolded m e all over
“

again I know you r ways now T o rfrida

.
, .
’

C HA P T E R XV
HOW E ARL T OS T I G OD W I N S S O N CA M E T O S T . O ME R
T HE w inter pa ss ed in sweet madne s s ; and f o r the first time in her
life T o rf rid a regretted the lengtheni n g of the days and the fl o w e r ,

ing o f the p rimroses and the return o f the n ow n eedless wryneck

,

for they warned her that Hereward mu s t forth to t he wars in

S c ald m arilan d whi c h had broken o u t again as was to be expected
, ,

as soon as C ount Robert and his bride ha d turned their backs .

X V HOW EARL T OST I G ODW IN S S O N CAME T O ST . O MER 13 5

And Hereward likewise for the first time in his life wa s lo t h

, ,

to go to war He wa s doubtless rich enough in thi s world s

.
, ,
’

goods T o rf rid a herself was rich and seem s to have had the
.
,

disposal of her o w n property f o r her m other is n o t m entioned

in co n nection therewith Hereward seems t o have d w elt in .

her house at S t O mer as long as he remained in Flanders He

. .

had p robably amassed some treasure o f hi s o w n by the simple ,

but then most aristocratic method o f plunder He had t o o , .

, ,

pro b ably grants o f land in Holland from the Fri s on the rents
, ,

whereof were n o t paid a s regularly as might be Moreover as .

,
‘
M agist er M ili t a m Ma st er o f the K nights h e had it is likely
’ ’
,
‘
, , ,

pay as well a s honour An d he approved himself worthy o f his .

good fortune He kept forty gallant h o u se c arle s in his h all

.

all the win t er and T o rf rid a and her la s ses made and mended
,

their clothes He gave large gifts to the Abbey o f S t Bertin

. .

and had mas s es sung fo r the souls o f all whom he had S lain ,

according to a rough list which he furnished bidding the

monks n o t to be chary of two o r three masses extra at times ,

as his mem ory wa s S hort and he might have sent m ore souls to ,

purgatory than he had recollected He gave great alms at his .

door to all the poor He befriended especially all S hipwrecked .

, ,

and needy mariners feeding and clothing them an d beggi n g , ,

their freedom as a gift from Baldwin He feasted the k nigh t s .

o f the n eighbou rhood who since his Baresark campaign had all , ,

v owed him the m ost gallant o f warriors and since his accession ,

o f w ealth the m ost cou r t eous o f gentlemen and all went

,

merrily as it i s written As long as thou dost well u nto thyself

, , ,
’
men will s peak well o f th ee .

S o he would have fain s tayed at hom e at S t O mer ; but he .

was Robert s man and his good friend likewise and to t he wars
’
,

he m u st go forth once more and f o r eight o r nine weary m onth s

T o rfrid a was alone but very happy for a certain reason o f her , ,

ow n .

At last the short N ovember day s came round and a j oyful ,

woman was fair T o rfrid a when Martin L ightfoot ran into t he ,

h all and throwing him self d ow n o n th e rushes lik e a dog

, ,

announced that Hereward and his m en woul d be home before

noon and then fell fast asleep
,
.

T here w as bus t ling t o and fro o f her and her maids decking ,

o f the hall in the best hangings strewing of fresh rushes to the , ,

dislo d gment o f Martin setting o u t o f boards and trestles an d , ,

stoops and mugs thereon ; cooking of victuals broaching of casks ; ,

and above all for Hereward s self h eating o f m uch water and
, ,
’
, ,

set t ing out in the inner chamber o f the grea t ba t h tub and ba t h
, ,
-

shee t which was the spe c ial delight o f a hero fresh from war
, .

And by mid —day the streets o f S t O m er rang with c lank and .

,

tram p and trumpet blare and in m arched Hereward a n d all h is

,
-
,

men and swung ro u nd t hrough the gateway into the c ou rt

, ,

where T o rf rid a stood to welcome them a s fair as day a silver , ,

136 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

stirru p cup in her hand And while th e men were taking o ff

-
.

their harness and dressing their horses S h e and Hereward went ,

’
in toge t her and ei t her took such j oy o f th e other that a year s
, ,
’
parting wa s forgot in a minute s meeting .

N o w I cried she in a tone half o f triumph half o f tender , ,

ness look there

‘

’
‘
A cradle ? And a baby ?
’
You r baby .

‘
Is it a boy ? a s ked Hereward w h o s aw in hi s mind s eye a
’
,
’

thing which w ould grow and broaden at his knee year by year ,

and learn from him t o ride to shoot to fight Happy for him , ,
.
‘

if h e does n ot learn worse from m e thought Hereward w ith a ,

’
,

sudden m ovement o f humili t y and contrition which wa s surel y ,

marked in heaven for T o rf rid a marked it o n earth .

But she m istook its meaning .

D o n ot be vexed It is a girl ’
. .

’
N ever mind
‘
A s if it w as a calamity over which h e wa s
.

bound to comfort t he m other If she is half as beautiful as .

you look at this mom ent what s p lin t ering o f lances there will ,

be about her Ho w j olly t o see the lads hewing at each other , ,

while o u r daughter S its in the pavilion as Queen o f L ove

‘
T o rf rid a laughed Y o u think o f n othing but fighting bear
.
,
’
o f the N orth S eas .

’
E very one to his trade Well yes I am glad tha t it i s a girl .
, ,
.

’
I tho u ght you seemed vexed Why did you cross you rself ?
‘
.

Because I th ou ght to myself h ow unfit I was to bring u p a ,

boy t o be s u ch a knight as — a s you would have him — h o w

lik e ly I was ere all was o ver to make h im as great a ru ffian as
, ,

m yse if
Hereward Hereward
‘
and she thre w her arm s round his
neck for the tenth t ime Blessed be yo u for those w ords .

T hose are the fears which never come true for they bring down ,

from heaven the grace o f God t o guard th e humble and contrite ,

’
heart from that which it fears .

Ah T o rf rid a I wish I were as good as yo u

‘
, ,

N o w — m y j oy and my life m y hero and my scald — I have

‘
,

great n ews for you as well as a little baby N ews from , .

’
E ngland .

Yo u and a baby over and above are worth all E ngland

‘
, ,

to me .
’

’
B ut listen E dward the k ing is dead . .

T hen there is o n e fool les s o n earth and o n e saint m ore I

‘
,
’
suppose in heaven ,
.

And Harold G o d w in sso n is king in his s t ead And h e has

‘
.

married your niece Ald yt h a and sworn friendship wi t h her ,

bro t hers .
’

’
I expected no less Well every dog has his day .
,
.

‘
And his will be a short o n e Willia m of N ormandy ha s .

s worn to drive him o u t .

’
13 8 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CH A P .

‘
My nephew E arl of N orthumbria ! A s I might have been ,

if I had been a w iser man .

’

‘ ’
If yo u had you would never have found me , .

‘
T rue my queen , T hey say heaven tempers the wind to the
sh orn lamb ; but it tempers it too sometime s to the hobbled , ,
ass and so it has done by m e And so the rogue s have fallen .

ou t ,
and honest men may com e by their own Fo r as the .

northern men have done by o n e brother so will the eastern men ,

d o by th e other L e t Harold see how many o f those fat L incoln

.

shire m anors wh i c h he ha s s eiz ed into his o w n hands he h old s

, ,

by this day twelve m on th s But what is all this to m e m y .

,

queen while you and I can kiss and laugh the world to ,

s corn ,
‘
T hi s to yo u beloved that great as yo u are T o rf rid a m ust
, , , ,

have yo u greater still ; and o u t of all thi s coil and confusion

’
you may win something if you be wise , .

’
S weet lip s b e s till and let u s play instead o f plotting
, .

‘
An d thi s too — you shall n o t stop my m ou th — that Harold
,
’
G o d w in sso n ha s sent a letter to yo u .

Iaro ld G o dw in sso n i s my very good lord s neered Here

’

I
‘

war d
.

‘
And thi s it said with s uch prai s e s and courtesies concerning ,

yo u as made m y wife s heart beat high with pride If Here ’

ward L e o fric sso n will com e h om e to E ngland he shall have his ,

rights in law again and hi s man or s in L incolnshire and a , ,

thaneship in E ast Anglia an d man o rs for his men at arms and ,

- -

if that be not enough he shall have an earldom a s soon a s there , ,

”
is o n e to give .

‘
And what says to that T o rf rid a Hereward s queen ? ,
’ ’

You will n ot be angry if I answered the letter f o r you

If you answer it in o n e way — no If another — yes . .
’

T o rf rid a trembled T hen she looked Hereward full in the face .

with her keen clear eyes .

N o w S hall I see whether I have given myself to Hereward

in vain body and soul o r whether I have trained him to be m y
, ,

true and perfect knight .

’

‘
You answered then said Hereward thu s , ,
’
,
‘ 7

’
S ay o n said she turning her face away again
, ,
.

‘
Hereward L e o f ric sso n tells Harold G o d w in sso n that he is
his equal an d not hi s man ; and that he will never p u t hi s
,

han ds between the h ands o f a son of God w in An E theling .

born a kin g o f the house of C erdic outlawed him from his

, ,

right and none but an E theling born s hall give h im his right
,
’
a gaI n .

I said it I said it T hose were m y very word s

,
and .

T o rf rid a burst into tears while Hereward kissed her almost , ,

fawned upon her calli n g her hi s queen his saga wife his , ,
-
,
guardian angel .

’
I was sorely tempted sobbed S h e S orely T o see you ri c h ,
. .
XV HOW EARL T OST I GODW IN S S ON CAME T O S T O MER . 13 9

and proud upon your o w n land s an earl may b e — may be I , , ,

thought at while s a king But it could not be It did n ot , . .

—
stand with honour my hero n o t with h onour ’
, .

‘
N o t with honour Get me gay garments o u t o f the chest .
,

and let u s go royally and royally feast my j olly riders , .

S tay awhile said she kissing his head as she combed and
‘ ’
, ,

curled his long golden lock s and her o w n raven ones hardly , ,

more beautiful fell over them and mi n gled with them , S tay .
‘

awhile my pride T here I s an other spell I n the wind stir i ed up

,
.
,
’
byy devil o r witch wife and i t comes from T osti G o d w in sso n ,
.

‘ —
T o st i the cold meat butcher What has he to say to m e ? ’
,
‘
T hIs If Hereward will come with m e to William o f
N ormandy and help u s against Harold the perj ure d then will ,

William d o f o r h im all that Harold would have done and m ore ,

”
beside .

‘
And what an s wered T o rfrid a
‘
It wa s not so said to me that I could an s wer I had it by .

’1
a s ide wind through the C ountes s J udith .

‘
And sh e had i t from her sister Matilda .

’
‘
And she o f cou rse from D uk e William himself
, , .

An d what would yo u have answered if yo u had an s wered

‘
, ,
’
p retty o n e ?
N ay I know n o t ,
I cannot be alway s q ueen Y o u m ust be . .

’
king sometimes .

T o rf rid a did n ot s ay that this latter offer had been a much

sorer temptation than the former .

An d ha s not the base born Frenchman enough k night s o f

‘
-

’
hi s o w n that h e needs the help o f an outlaw lik e m e ?
,
‘
He ask s for help from all the ends of the earth He has .

sent that L anfranc to the p ope and there I S talk o f a sacred ,

’
banner and a crusade against E ngland
,
.

T h e monk s are wi t h him then said Hereward T hat is , .

o n e m ore count in their score B ut I am no m onk I have . .

shorn m any a crown but I have kept m y o w n hair as yet , ,

’
you see .

‘
I do see s aid she playing with his lock s
,
’
But— but he , .
‘

wants yo u He has sen t for An gevins P oitevins Bretons

.
, , ,

Flemings — promising lands rank m oney what not T osti i s , , , .

recruiting for h i m here I n Flanders now He will soon be o fi to

’

’
the O rkneys I suspect o r to S weyn I n D enmark after Viking s
, , , .

‘
Here ? Has Baldwin promised him men
‘
What could the good o ld man d o ? He could not refuse his
own son in law T his at least I kno w tha t a m essenger ha s
-
.
, , ,

gon e o ff to S cotland to Gilbert o f Ghent to bring o r send any , ,

bold F le m I n gs who may prefer fat E n gland to lean S cotland .

’

L ands rank m oney eh ? S o h e intends that the war S hould

‘
, , ,

1
T i fe
o st i s
’
w , E arl B al dwin s d au ghter sister o f Matil d a William
’

, , th e
C o n q u e ro r s wi fe
’
.
1 40 HE REWARD T HE WAK E I
C HA P .

p ay it s elf— o u t o f E nglish p urses What answer wo u ld you .

have me mak e to that wife m I n e , .

‘
T h e D uke is a terrible man What if he conquers ? An d .

’
conquer he will .

Is t hat written I n your star s ? ’

’
It is I fear And if w e have the p ope s blessing an d the
,
.
,

po p e s banner D are we resist the Holy Father ?

’ ’

Holy stepfather you mean ; for a st e p father he s eem s to

‘
,

prove to merry E ngland But do yo u really believe that an o ld

man down I n Italy can make a bit of rag conqu er by sa y ing a
few prayers at i t ? If I am to believe I n a magic flag gI v e me ,

Harold Hard raad e s L an d c yd a at least with Harold and his

’
, ,

N orsemen behind it
’
.

‘
William s French are a s good as those N orsemen man for
’
,

man and h orsed withal Hereward ,

.
’

‘ ’
T hat may be said he half testily with a curse on the , , ,
’
t anner S grandson and his French p O pi n j ays and o u r E n glish ,
‘

men are as good as any t w o N orsemen as the N orse them selves ,

say He could not divine and T o rf rid a hardly liked to explain

.
’
,

to him the glamou r which the D uke o f N ormandy hadp c ast

,

over her as the representative o f chivalry learning civil

, , ,

isat io n a new and nobler life for m en than the world had yet
,

seen o n e which seem ed to connect the young races o f E urope

,

with the wisdom o f the ancient s and the magic glories o f o ld

Imperial
p Rome .

’
Y o u are not fair to that man said S h e after a while Here , , .
‘

ward Here w ard have I not told yo u how th ough body be

, , ,

strong m ind i s stronger ? T hat I S what that man knows ; and

,

therefore he has pros p ered T herefore his realm s are full o f .

wise scholars and thriving sch ools and fair minsters and his
, , ,

m en are sober and w i se and learned like clerks , ,

And false like clerk s as he is hi m self S choolcraft and

‘
,

hones t y never went yet together T o rfrid a ,

N o t in m e ?
’

Y o u are n ot a c lerk : you are a woman and m ore than

‘
,

woman ; you are an elf a goddess ; there I s none like yo u But , .

hearken to me T his man i s false All the world knows it

. . .
’

He p romises they say to govern E ngland j ustly as K ing

‘
, ,

c c o rd in g to the o ld law s and liberties o f the

’
d v a rd s heir ,
’
realm .

’
‘
O f course If he doe s not come a s the o ld monk s heir how
.
,

does he come at all ? If he does no t p rom i se o u r— t heir I m ean , ,

for I am n o E n glish m an laws and liberties who will j oin him ? -

,

But his riders and hirelings will not fi g ht for nothing T hey .

must be paid with E nglish land and E nglish land they will ,

have for t hey will be his m en whoever else are n o t T hey will
, ,
.

be his darlings his h o u se c arle s his hawks to sit on his fist and
, ,

fly at his game ; and E nglish bones will be p ick ed c lean to feed

them And yo u would have m e h elp to d o that T o rf rid a ? I s
.
,
1 42 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
Why is there aught about hides in that ?
,

I want — I want an answer which may not cut o ff all hope in

case o f the worst .
’

T hen let us say bol d ly O n the day that William i s king o f

,

all E ngland Hereward will come and put his hands between
,

his and be his

,

T hat message wa s sent to William at Rouen He laughed .

‘
It is a fair challenge from a valiant man T h e day s hall .

’
com e when I will claim it .

T osti and Hereward passed that winter in S t O mer living in .

,

the sam e street passing each other day by day and never s poke
, ,

a word o n e to the other .

ert the Frison heard o f it and tried t o persuade Here

warp ,

L e t him pu rge him s elf o f th e mur d er of Ulf the b o y son o f

‘
,

m y friend D o lfin ; and after that o f Gamel son o f O rm ; and ,

’
after that again o f G o spat ric my father s friend whom his sister , ,

slew for his sake and then an honest man m ay talk w ith him .

—
Were he not m y good lord s brother in law as he is m ore s the ’ ’
-
, ,
’
pity I would challenge h im to fight d l o u t m n c e with any
, ,
’
wea p ons he might choose .

Heaven protect him in that ca s e q uoth Robert the Frison

’
,
.

‘
As it is I will kee p the peace And I will see t hat m y men
, .

keep the peace th ough there are S carborough and B am b o ro u gh

,

lads am ong them wh o long to cut hi s throat upon the s treet s

,
.

’
But more I will n ot do .

S o T osti sulked through the winter at S t O mer S uddenly . .

he t urned traitor ( n o man knows why ) to his good brother in -

law and n ew ally William o f N ormandy and went o ff to get

,

hel p from S weyn o f D enmark and failing that from Harold , , ,

Hard raad e o f N orway But how he s p ed there must be read

.

in the words o f a cunninger saga ~man than thi s chronicler ,

even in those o f the Icelandic Homer S n o rro S t u rle so n ,
.

C HA P T E R X VI
HO W HE RE W A RD W A S A S KE D T O S L A Y AN O L D C O MRAD E
IN those days Hereward went into Bruges to Marquis Baldwin , ,

about his business An d as he walked in Bruge s street he met

.
,

an old friend Gilbert o f Ghent , .

He had grown somewhat stouter and som ewhat grayer in , ,

the last ten year s but he wa s a s hearty as e ver and a s hone s t , ,

according to his own notions of honesty .

He S hook Hereward by both hands clapt him o n the back , ,

swore with many oath s t hat he had heard of his fam e in all
lands that h e al w ays said that h e would tu rn o u t a champion
,

and a gallant knight and had s aid it long before he killed the
,
X VI HOW HE W AS AS K E D T O S L AY AN OL D COMRADE 1 43

bear As for killing it it was n o m ore than he expected and

.
, ,

nothing to what Hereward had done s in c e and would d o ,

yet .

Wherefrom Hereward opined that Gilbert had need of him .

T hey chat t ed o n : Hereward asking af t er o ld friends and ,

som etimes af t er o ld foes w hom he had long since forgiven f o r ,

though h e always avenged an inj ury he never bore malice for ,

’
o n e : a distinction less comm on n o w than th en when a man s ,

h onour as well as his safety depended o n his striking again

, ,

when he was struck .

And how i s little Alft ru da — ’

Big she must be n o w ? asked he
;
at ast .

T h e fiend fly away with her— o r rather would that he had ,

flown away with her before ever I saw the troublesome j ade ,
.

Big ? S h e is grown into the most beau t iful lass that ever was
seen — which is w hat a young fellow like you cares for ; and
, , ,

more trouble to m e than all m y m oney which is what an o ld ,

fellow like me cares for It i s partly about her that I am over

, , .

here n o w Fool that I was ever t o let a princess into my

.
,

h ouse and Gilbert swore a great deal .

Ho w was she a princess ? I forget said Hereward who cared ,

’
,

n othing about the m atter An d how came she into you r .

‘

house ? I never could understand th at any m ore than h ow the ,

’
bear came there .

‘
Ah ? As to the bear I have my secret s which I tell no o n e , , .

He is dead and buried thank s to you ’

,
.

’
An d I sleep o n his skin every night .

Y o u do my li tt le champion ? Well — warm is the bed that is

,

well earned But a s for her — see here and I ll tell yo u

. She ,
’
.

wa s G o sp at ric s ward and kinswoman — how I do not rightl y

’
,

k now But this I kno w that s he comes from U c h t re d the earl

.
, ,

whom Canute slew and that she is heir to great estates in ,

N orthumberland .
’

G o spat ric that fought at D u n sinane

‘
,

Yes not t he old thane hi s u ncle whom T osti ha s m urdered :

, , ,

but G o spa t ric K ing Malcolm s cousin D o lfi n s father Well

,
’
,
’
.
,

she was hi s ward He gave m e her to k eep for he wan t ed h e r

.
,

o u t o f harm s way — the lass having a bonny dower lands and

’
,

money — till h e could marry her u p t o o n e o f his sons I took .

her but o f cou rse I was not goin g to d o other m en s work for ’

n ought so I would have married her up to m y p oor boy if h e ,

had but lived But h e would not live as you know T hen I
.
,
.

w ould have married her to you and m ade you m y heir I tell , ,

you hones t ly if you had not flown o ff like a hot headed youn g
, ,
-

S pringald as
yo u were then
’
.

‘
You were very kind But h ow is sh e a princess ? .
’

‘
P rincess ? T wice over He r father was o f high blood .

among t he S axon s and if n o t are n o t all the G o sp at ric s E t hel ,

ings ? T heir grandmother U c h t re d s wife wa s E thelred E vil ,

’
,
1 44 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

C ounsel s daughter ; and I have heard that this girl s grandfather

’ ’

was his son — but d I e d young — o r wa s killed Who care s ? .

’

N o t I quoth Hereward
’
, .

Well — G o sp at ric want s t o marry her to D o lfin hi s eldest

‘
,
’

Why D o lfin had a wife when I was at D unsinane

, .
’

But she is d ead since and yo u ng Ulf her so n wa s murdered , , ,

’
by T osti last winter .

’
I know .

‘
Whereupon G o sp at ric send s to me for the girl and her
dowry What was I to do ? Give her up ? L ittle it i s lad that
.
, ,

I ever gave up after I had it once in my gri p o r I S hould be a

, ,

poorer man than I am n o w Have and hold is my rule What .

,
.

should I do ? What I did I w a s coming hi t her o n bu siness o f .

my own s o I put her o n board ship and half her dower —where
, ,

the other half is I k now ; and m an m ust draw m e with wild

,

horses before he finds o u t — and cam e here to m y kinsman ,

Baldwin to see if he had any proper young fellow to whom we

,

might marry t he lass and so go shares in her m oney and the ,

’
family connection C ould a man do more wisely ? .

‘
Impossible quoth Hereward ,
’
.

But see h ow a wise man is lost by fortune When I come .

here whom should I find but D o lfin himself ? T h e rogue had

,

scent o f my plan all the way from D o lfin st o n there by P eebles

, ,
.

He h unts me out the hun gry S cotch wolf rides for L eith tak e s
, ,

ship and is here to meet me having accused me before Baldwin

, ,

as a rob b er and a ravisher and offered to prove his right to the ,

j ade o n m y body in single combat .

’

T h e villain ! quoth Hereward

‘ ’ ‘
T here is n o mode s ty left .

o n earth nor prudence either

,
T o com e here where he might .
,

have stumbled o n T osti wh o mu rdered his son and wh o would , ,

surely d o the lik e by him himself L ucky for him that T osti i s .

o ff t o N or w ay o n his o w n errand
’
.

‘
Modesty and prudence ! N one nowadays young sire ; nor ,

j ustice either I think for when Baldwin hear s us both — and I

,

told m y story a s cannily as I could — h e tells me tha t he is very

sorry for an o ld vassal and kinsman and S 0 forth — but I m u s t , ,

either disgorge o r fight .

’

T hen fight quo t h Hereward

’
, .

P e r se aut p e r c am p io n e m — that s the o ld law you know

‘ ’ ’
.
, ,
’
N o t a doubt o f it .

L ook you Hereward

‘
I am n o coward nor a clum s y m an
, .
,
’
o f m y hands .

He is either fool o r liar wh o says so .

’

But see I find it hard work t o h old my o w n in S cotland

‘
.

’ ’
now Folks don t like me or trus t me I can t say why
.
,
’

Ho w unreasonable quoth Hereward .

A n d if I kill thi s youth and so have a blood feud w ith

‘
,
-

’
G o spat-I I c I have a hornet s nest about m y ears
I

, N o t only he .
1 46 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
I believe you are right said Gilbert, laughing ; but it i s ‘

hard to begin so late in life .

‘
And after one has had so little practice .

Aha T hou art the same merry dog of a Hereward Come

‘
. .

’
along But co u ld we not po i son this D o lfin after all ?
.

T o which proposal Hereward gave no encouragem ent .

‘
A n d now m y tr es beau s i re may I ask yo u I n return what
, , , ,
business bring s you to Flander s
Have I n ot told you
N o but I have guessed
,
Gilbert o f Ghent i s o n hi s way to .

’
William o f N ormandy .

’
Well Why not ? .

‘
Why not — certainly And has brought o u t o f S cotland a .

f e w gallant gentlemen and stout h o u se c arle s o f m y acquaint .

’
ance .

Gi lbert laughed .

‘
You may well say that T o tell you the truth w e have .
,

fl it t e d bag and baggage I don t believe that we have left a ’

.
,

dog behind .
’

S o yo u intend to colonise in E ngland a s th e learned

‘
,

clerk s would call it ? T o settle ; to o w n land and enter lik e , ,

the Jews o f old into goodly houses which yo u builded n o t

, ,

farm s which you tilled n ot wells which you digged n o t and , ,

orchards which you planted n o t ? ’

Why w hat a learned clerk you are yourself T hat s ounds

‘
,
’
like S cripture .

’
‘
And so it is I heard it in a French priest s sermon w hich
.

he preached here in S t O mer a S unday o r two back exhorting .

,

all good C a th olics in t he p ope s name to enter upon the bar , ,

barous land of E ngland tain t ed with the si n of S imon Magus , ,

and ex p el then c e the heretical priests and so forth ; prom i sing ,

them that they should have free leave to cut lo n g thongs o u t o f

other m en s hides .
’

Gilbert ch uckled .

You lau gh T h e priest did not ; for after s ermon I went up

.

to him and t o ld how I was an E nglishman and an ou t law and

, , ,

a despera t e man wh o feared neither saint nor devil and if I

, ,
heard such talk as that again in S t O mer I would so shave the .
,
’
p e ker s crown that he should never need raz or to his dying
Sa a
‘
And what is that to m e ? said Gilber t in an uneasy half ’
, ,

d e fi an t tone for Hereward s tone had been m ore than half

,
’

defiant .

T his T hat there are certain broad lands I n E n gland which

.
,
’ ’
were my father s and are n o w my nep hews and m y mother s,
’

and som e whi c h should of right be mine And I advise you as .

,

a friend no t t o make entrygo n t hose lands lest Hereward in

, ,

t urn make en t ry on you And who i s he that will deliver yo u .

o u t of my hand
XVI HOW HE W AS AS K E D T O S L AY AN O L D COMRADE 1 47

God and His s aints alone thou fiend o u t o f the pit quoth , ,
’

Gilbert laughing B ut he was gro w ing warm and began to

, .
,

tutoyer Hereward .

’
I am in earnest Gilbert o f Ghent m y good friend o f o ld tim e
, ,
.

‘
I k now thee well enough man Why in the nam e o f all ,
.
,

glory and plunder art tho u n o t coming wi t h us ? T h ey say ,

’
Willi am ha s offered thee the earldom o f N orth umberland .

‘
He has not And if he had it is not his to give And if it
.
, .

were it is by right neither mine nor my nep he w s bu t Wal

, ,
’
,

t h e o f S iw ard sso n s N o w heark en unto me and se tt le it in your

’
.

minds thou and William both that your quarrel is against none
, ,

but Harold and t he G o d w in sso n s and t heir men of Wessex : ,

but that if you go to cross t he Watling S t reet and m eddle with ,

the free D anes wh o are none o f Harold s men

,
’

S tay Harold has large manors in L in colnshire and so ha s

.
,

E di t h his sister and what o f them S ieur Hereward

, ,
‘
T hat the m an who touches them even though th e men o n ,

t hem may fight o n Harold s side had better have p ut his head
’
’

into a h orne t s nest Unj ustly were they seized from their tru e .

owners by Harold and his fa t hers ; and the holders o f them

will owe no service to him a day longer than they can hel p : '

but will if h e fall demand an earl o f their o w n race o r fight

, , ,

to the death .
’

Best m ake young W alt h e o f earl then ’

,
.

‘
Best keep thy foot o u t o f them and th e foot o f any man ,

for whom thou carest N o w good bye Friends we are and .

-
.
,
’
friends let us be .

‘
Ah that thou wert coming to E ngland
,

I bide m y time C om e I may when I see fit B ut whether .

,
.

I com e as friend o r f o e depends o n that o f which I have given

’
thee fair warning .

S o they parted for the time .

It will be seen hereafter how Gilbert took his o w n ad vice ,

about youn g W alt h e o f but did not take Hereward s advice ’

about t he L in c o ln m a n o rs
‘

In Baldwin s hall t hat d ay Hereward met D o lfi n and when

’
,

th e m agnificent youn g S co t s p rang to him embraced him , ,

bewailed his murdered boy talked over o ld passages compli , ,

m e n t e d him o n his fame lamented t hat he himself had w o n n o ,

such honour s in the field Hereward felt much more inclined to ,

fight for him than a g ainst him .

P resently the ladies entered from t h e bower adj oining t h e

hall A bu zz o f expecta t ion rose from all the k nights and
.
,
’
Alft ru d a s n ame was whis p ered round .

S h e c ame in ; and Hereward saw at the first glance that

Gilbert had for on c e in h is life s oken tru t h S o b eau t iful a .

damsel h e had never beheld ; an as she swep t down toward

him h e for o n e m oment forgot T o rf rid a and s t ood spell bound
, ,
-

like the rest .

1 48 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

He r eye caught hi s If hi s face sh owed recognition hers .

,

sh owed none T h e remembrance of their early friendship o f

.
,

her deliverance from the m ons t er had plainly passed away , .

‘
Fickle ungrateful things these women t hought Hereward
, , ,
’
.

S h e passed him close As she did so she turned her head .

, ,

and looked him full in the face o n e m oment haughty and cold , .

S o you could n ot wait f o r me said she in a quiet whisper

‘
, ,

and went o n straight to D o lfi n who stood trembling with ex ,

p e c t at io n and delight .

S h e put her hand into his .

Here stand s m y champion s aid she ,

’
.

’
‘
S ay here kneels your slave cried the S cot drop p ing to the
, , ,

pavement a true Highland knee Whereon forth twanged a .

’
harp and D o lfin s minstrel sang in mo s t melodiou s Gaelic
, ,

S ro n g as a o rse s o , s a gy as a s a s b ris e ,
t h h ck h g tg kt
’ ’

n e e o f t h e yo n r n -l e a e r, t h e
Is t h e k g o re p u t prid e o f t h e o u se o f t h
Cri n an .

I t b e n n o t t o Ma b e h t h e a c rse , i b en s n o t eve n t o Mal o lm

t c t c u d t d c
t h e An o i n e , td
Bu t i b e n s li e a areb ell—w h o sh all b l am e i —b e o re t h e b re a
t d k h t f th
o f b e au y t
’
.

Which magnificent effu s ion being I nterp reted by Hereward for

the instruction o f the ladie s procured for the red headed bard ,
-

m ore than o n e handsome gift .

A sturdy voi c e arose o u t o f the crowd .

T h e lady my lord marquis and knight s all will need no

‘
, , ,

champion as far a s I am concerned When o n e sees so fair a .

pair together what can a knight say in the name o f all knight
, ,

hood but that the heavens have made them for each other and
, ,

that it were S in and shame to sunder them ? ’

T h e voice wa s that o f Gilbert o f Ghent who makin g a , ,

virtue o f necessity walked up to the pair his weather beate n
, ,
-

cou t e n an c e wreathed into what were meant for paternal

sm I pes .

Why did you n o t say as m uch in S cotland and save me all

‘
,
’
thi s trouble ? pertinently asked t he p lain spoken S cot -
.

My lord p rince you o w e me a debt for m y cau t ion With

,
.

o u t it the fair lady had never known the whole fervency o f

,

your love ; nor these noble knights and yourself the whole
’ ’
evennes s o f C ount Baldwin s j us t i c e .

Alf t ru d a turned her head away half contemptu ously and

’
as she did so she let her hand dro p lis t lessly from D o lfin s
,

gras p and drew back to the other ladies

,
.

A suspi c ion c rossed Hereward s mind D id she really l ove ’

.

the prin c e ? Did those strange words o f hers mean that she
had not yet forgotten Hereward himself
However he said to himself that i t was n o concern of hi s a s
, ,

it certainly was not : went home to T o rf rid a told her every I

,
15 0 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T h en came news h ow h e had got into the Humber h o w

M orcar and E dwin wi t h the N o rt h u m b rian s had driven him
o u t ; and how he had gone o ff to S cotland to m eet Harold o f
N orway and how he had put hi s hand s between Harold s and ’

become his m an .

And all the while the N orman camp at S t Pierre sur D ive .
- -

g e w and grew ; and all wa s ready if the wind would but

0fi
,

ange .

And s o Hereward look ed o n helpless and saw these t w o , ,

great storm - cloud s growing — o n e from north and o n e from

south — to burst upon his na t ive land
,

T w o invasion s at the same m oment o f time ; and these n o

mere Viki n g raid s f o r p lunder but deliberate attem p t s at c o n ,

qu e s t and colonisation by the two m ost famou s captain s o f the

,

age What if both su cceeded ? What if the two storm cloud s

.
-

swept across E ngland each o n its o w n path and met in the

, ,

midst to hurl their lightnings i n to each other ? A fight b e

,

t w een William o f N ormandy and Harold o f N or w ay o n some ,

moorland in Mercia — that would be a battle o f giants a sight

at which O din and the gods o f Valhalla would rise from their
seats and throw away t he mead horn to stare d o w n o n the
,
-
,

deeds o f heroes scarcely less mighty than them selve s Woul d .

that neither might win ! Would that they would destroy and
devour till there was none left o f Frenchm en o r o f N orwegian s
, .

S o sung Hereward after his heathen fashion and his hou s e

,

carle s applauded the song B ut T o rf rid a sh u d d ered . .

‘
An d what will become o f the poor E ngli s h in the mean
l
tim e l .
’

‘
T hey have brou ht it o n themselves
’
said Hereward ,

bitterly Instead 0 giving the crown to the man who sh ould

.

have had it — to S weyn o f D enmark — t hey let Godwin put it o n

the head o f a drivelling m onk an d as they sowed so will they ,

reap .
’

B ut Here w ard s o w n soul was black within him T o see

’
.

these mighty events passing as it were wi t hin reach o f his , ,

h and — and he unable to take his share in them — Fo r what

share could h e tak e ? T hat o f T osti G o d w in sso n against his
own n ephe w s ? T hat o f Harold G o d w in sso n the usurper ? ,

T hat o f t he tanner s grandson against any man ? Ah that he

’
,

had been in E ngland Ah t hat he had been where h e might ,

have been where he ought to have been b u t for his o w n folly

, ,
— high in power in his native land perhaps a great earl er
hap s commander o f all the armies o f t he D anelagh nd .

bi t terly h e cu rsed his youthful S ins a s he rode to and fro ,

almost daily to the port askin g f o r news and getting often , ,

only too much .

Fo r n o w came new s that the N orsemen had landed in

Humber ; that E dwin and Morcar were beaten at York ; that
Hard raad e and T osti were masters o f the N orth .
X VII N EWS FROM S T AN FORD B RIGG AN D HAS T IN G S 15 1

And wi t h that new s that by the virtue o f the relic s o f S t

,
.

Valeri which had been brought o u t o f their shrine to frighten

,

the d emon s o f the storm and by the intercession o f the blessed ,

S t Michael p atron o f N orman d y the wi n ds had chan ged and

.
, , ,

William s whole armament had crossed the C hannel landed

’
,

upon an u ndefended S hore and fortified themselves at P evensey ,

and Hastings .

An d th e n follo w ed a fortnight o f S ilence and torturing

s usp en s e .

Hereward could hardly eat drink sleep o r s p eak He , , ,

.

’
answered T o rf rid a s consolations curtly and a n grily till S h e ,

betook herself to silent caresses as t o a sick animal But she ,

.

loved him all the be t ter for his sullen ness for i t showed t ha t
his E nglish heart was wakening again sound and s t rong ,
.

At last news cam e He was down as usual at t he port A . .

ship had j ust come u p the es t uary A man j ust landed s t ood on .

t he beach gesti c ulating and calling in an unk nown tongu e to

, ,

the bystanders who laughed at him and seemed inclined to

, ,

misu s e him .

Hereward galloped down the beach .

O u t o f the way villains Why man you are a N orseman ! ’

, , ,
‘
N orseman am I j arl T h o rd G u n lau gsso n is my name ;
,

and news I bring for the C ountess Ju d ith ( as the French c all
her) that shall turn her golden h air to sno w — yea and all fair ,
’ ’
lasses hair from L in d e sn e ss to L o fio cle n .

’
I s the earl dead ?
And Harold S igu rd sso n ’
.

Hereward sat silent appalled Fo r T osti he cared n o t B ut , . .

Harold S igu rd sso n Harold Ha rd ra ad e Harold t he Vikin g, , ,

Harold the Varanger Harold the L io n slaye r Harold of C o n , ,

st an t in o p le the bravest am ong champions th e wisest among

, ,

kings th e cunningest am ong minstrels t he darlin g o f t he

, ,

Vikings o f t h e nor t h th e o n e man whom Hereward had tak en

for hi s p attern and his ideal the o n e man u n der wh ose banner ,

he would have been proud to fi gh t — the earth seemed empty if ,

Harold Hard raad e w ere gone .

’
T h o rd G u n la u gsso n cried he at last
‘ ‘
or whatever be thy , ,

nam e if thou hast lied to m e I w ill dra w thee with wild

, ,
’
horses .

‘
Would God that I did lie ! I saw him fall with an arrow
through his t h roat T hen Jarl T os t i took the L and ravager and
.
-

held i t up till he died T hen E yst e in O rre took it coming u p .

,

h o t from the shi p s And then he died likewise T hen they all
. .

d ied We would tak e n o qu ar t er We t hrew o ff o u r mail and

. .
,
1
fou g h t baresark till all were dead together , .
’

Ho w camest thou then hi t her ?

‘
, ,
’

1
Fo r t h e e ail s o f is b a le ,
dt th tt se e S n o rro S t u rle so n or th e a d m irab le
d sc ri p i o n in B lwe r s Ha ro ld
t u
’
e .
15 2 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HAP .

‘
S t yrkar the marshal escaped in the night and I with him , ,

and a fe w more And S t yrk a r bade m e bring th e new s to

.

Flanders t o the countess while he took i t to O laf Haro ld sso n

, , ,
’
who lay o ff in the S hi p s .

And thou shalt take it Martin get thi s man a horse A . .

horse ye villains and a good o n e o n your lives

, , ,
‘
And T osti i s dead ? ’

D ead like a hero Harold offered him quarter o ff ered him

.
-

his earldom they say even in the m idst o f battle but h e

,

would not take it He said h e was the S igu rd sso n s man now
.
’
,
’
and true man he would b e .
1

I ro ld o ff ered him — W hat art babbling at ? Who fought

yo u a
Harold G o dw in sso n the kin g ,
.
’

‘
Where
‘ ’
At S tanford Brigg by York town ,
.

‘
Harold G o d w in sso n slew Harold S igu rd sso n After this
w olves m ay eat lions
T h e G o d w in sso n is a galla n t fighter and a wise general o r I ,

had n ot been here now .

’

‘
Get o n thy horse m an said he scor n fully and impatiently
, , ,

and gallo p if thou canst , .

’

‘
I have ridden many a mile in Ireland earl and have n o t , ,
’
forgotten my seat .

’ ‘
T hou h ast ha s t thou ? said Martin thou art T h o rd Gun
‘
,
’
lau gsso n o f Waterford .

T hat am I Ho w knowest th ou m e man ?

.
,
’

‘
I am of Waterford T hou hads t a slave las s once I think .
, ,

M ew : they called her Mew her skin it was so white , .

’

’
What s that to th ee ? asked T h o rd turning o n him ’
,

savagely .

‘
I meant no harm I saw her at Waterford when I wa s a .

’
boy and t hought her a fai r lass enough that is all
, ,
.

And Martin dro pp ed into the rear .

As they rode side by side Hereward got more detail s o f the ,

fi g ht .

‘
I knew it would fall o u t so I foretold it said T h o rd I . .
‘

had a dream I sa w us com e t o E nglish land and figh t and I

.
,

saw t he banners floating And before t he E n glish army wa s a .

great wi tc hwife and rode u p on a wolf and h e had a corpse in

, ,

his bloody j aws And when he had eaten o n e u p sh e t hrew

.
,

him ano ther till he had swallowed all

,
.
’

D id she t hrow him thine ? asked Martin wh o ran holding

‘ ’
,

by t he s t irrup .

’
T hat did sh e and eaten I saw myself Yet here I am alive
‘
. .
,

T hen t hy dream s were naught

’
.

’
I d o n o t know t ha t T h e wolf may have m e yet
‘
. .

’
I fear thou art fey 1
.

P ro ph e syi n g h is o w n d e ath l ite rall y fat e d

’
1 ‘
.
15 4 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P
.

I have n ews news

‘
,
’
S o have I
‘
.

Harold Hard raad e is slain and T osti t o o

‘
,
’
Where how ?
Harold G o d w in sso n slew them by 5 York
’
7 .

Brother has S lain brother ? O G o d t hat died o n cross !

murmured T o rf rid a when will men look to T hee and have ,
‘
,

mercy o n their o w n souls B ut Hereward— I have new s — n ews

more terrible by far It came an hour ago I have been dread . . ,

’
ing you r comin g back .

S ay o n
‘
If Harold Hard raad e is dead no wor s e can
.
,

ha p
PB u t Harold G o d w in sso n I s dead I ’ .

D ead ! Who next ? William o f N ormandy ? T h e world

‘

S eems coming to an end as the m onk s say i t will soon

1 ’
, .

A great battle ha s been fought at a place they call Heath

‘

fi6 ld
C lose by Hastings ? C lose to the lan d ing place ? Harold
must have flown thither ba c k from York What a captain t he .

man i s after all ! ,

‘
Was He i s dead and all the G o d w in sso n s ; and E ngland
.
,

1ost .

If T o rf rid a had feared the effect o f her n ew s her heart was ,

lightened
g at once as Hereward answered haughtily
‘
E n gland lost ? S ussex is not E n gland n or Wessex either ,

any m ore than Harold was king thereof E n gland lost ? L e t .

the tanner try to cross the Watlin g S treet andg he will find o u t ,

that h e ha s anoth er stam p o f E nglish m an to deal with .

’

Hereward Hereward do n o t be un j ust to the dead Men

‘
, , .

say — the N orman s say— that they fo u ght like heroes ’

I never doubted that : but i t makes me mad — as it does all

‘

eastern and northern men — to hear these Wessex c hurls and

’
G o d w in sso n s calling themselves all E ngland .

T o rf rid a shook her head T o her as to m ost foreigners .

, ,

Wessex and the south east countie s were E n gland th e mos t ,

civilised ; the m ost French ; the seat o f ro ya lt y having all the

prestige o f law and order and wealth A n d she w asgshrewd
, , .

enough to see that as i t was the part o f E n gland whi c h had

,

m ost sympathy with French civilisation it was the very part ,

where t he Fren c hman c ould m ost easily gain and k eep his hold .

T h e event proved that T o rf rid a was righ t : bu t all she said was ,
’
I t I s dangerously near to France at least ,
.

‘
It I s that I would S ooner see
. French north o f the
Humber than 1 0 000 in K ent and S ussex where he can hurry
, , ,

over su p plies and m en every week It is t he starting point for .

him if h e m eans to conquer E ngl and piecemeal

,
.

’
And he does .

1
T h e re w as a g en e ral ru m o u r ab ro ad th at t h e e n d o f t h e wo rl d w as at
h an d fo r t h e o n e th o u san d ye ars o f pro ph e cy h ad e x pire d
‘ ’
.
X VII N EWS FROM ST AN FORD B RI G G A N D HAS T IN G S 15 5

‘
An d he shall n ot and Hereward started up and walk ed t o ,

and fro If all the G o d w in sso n s be dead there are L e o f ric sso n s
.
,

left I trust and S iward s kin and t he G o sp at ric s in N or t hum

, ,
’
,

bria Ah Where were my nephe w s in the battle ? N o t k illed

.

’
too I trust ?
,

T hey were n o t in th e battle ’

‘
.

N o t with t heir new brother in law ? M uch he has gained by - -

throwing away the S wan neck like a base t rai t or as he was and -
, ,

marryi n g my pret t y niece But where were they ? .

’

N 0 m an knows clearly T hey followed him down as far as .

L ondon and then lingered about the ci t y meaning n o m an can

, ,

tell what but we s hall hear — and I fear hear t o o m uch — before , ,

a week is over .
’

‘
Heavens ! th is is madness indeed T his is th e way to b e ,
.

eaten up o n e by o n e N ei t her to do the thing n o r leave it .

,

alone If I had been there I If I had been there

.

‘
Yo u would have saved E ngland m y hero and T o rf rida ,

believed her o w n words .

‘ ’
I don t say that Besides I say that E ngland is n o t lost .
,
.

But there were but two thing s to do either to h ave sent to

William at once and o ff ered him the crown if he would but , ,

guarantee the D a n ish la w s and liberties to all north o f the

Watling S treet and if h e wo u l d fall o n the G o d w in sso n s them ,
’
sel ves by fair means o r foul and send their heads to William
, ,
.

‘
O r what
O r have marched down after him wi t h every m an they could ,

m uster and thrown themselves o n t he Frenchman s flank in t he

,
’

ba t tle— o r bet w een him and the sea cut t in g him o ff from F rance ,
— o r— O h that I had but been there what things could I have
, ,

done — And n ow these two w re t ched boys have fooled away

their only chance
’
S ome say that they h o p ed for the crown themselves .

Which ? N o t bo t h Vain babies and Hereward laugh ed

‘
bitterly I sup p ose one will m urder the other n ex t in order to
.
,

m ake himself the stronger by being t he sol e rival t o the tanner .

T h e midden cock sol e ri val t o the eagle 1 B oy W alt h e o f will s et

u p his claim nex t I p resume as S iward s son
; and t hen Gos
’

, ,
’
p a t ri c as E thelred E vil C ounsel s grea t gra n dson and so forth
- -
, ,
’
a n d so forth till t hey all eat each o t her u p a n d th e tanner s
, ,

grandson eats the last What care I ? T ell me about the battle .
,

m y lady if yo u know aught T hat is m ore to m y way than

,
.

’
their sta t ecraft .

And T o rf rid a told him all she knew o f th e great fight o n

He at h fie ld D own which m en call S enlac and the ba t tle o f, ,

Hastings And as she told it in her wild eloquent fashion

.
, ,
Hereward s fa c e reddened and his eyes k indled And when sh e
’
, .

told the last struggle rou nd th e D ragon standard o f Harold s

o f 1 ’

1
I h av e d are d t o d iffe r fro m t h e e xc e lle n t auth o ri ti e s w h o say th at t h e
st an d ard w as th at o f a Fi ghti n g M an b e c au se t h e B aye u x T ape stry re pre ,
15 6 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

mighty figure in th e front o f all hewing with his great double ,

headed axe and then rolling in gore and agony an arro w in hi s

, ,

eyeball o f the last rally o f the men o f K ent o f Gurth the last ,

defender o f the standard fall ing by William s sword o f th e ,

’

standard hu rled to the ground and the pop ish Gonfanon planted ,

in i t s p lace— T hen Hereward s eyes for the first and last time ’

for many a year were flushed with n oble tear s and s p ringing
,

u p he cried Honour to the G o d w in sso n s

, ,
‘
Honour to the
so u thern men Honou r to all true E nglish hearts Why wa s
’
I not there to go with them to Valhalla ?
,

T o rfrid a caught him round the neck Because you are here .
,

m y hero to free your country from her tyrants and win yourself
, ,
’
immortal fam e .

Fool that I am I verily believe I am erying , .

’

‘ ’
T hose tears said she as she kissed them away are m ore
, , ,
‘

preciou s t o T o rf rid a than the spoils of a hundred fights f o rthey ,

t ell me that Hereward still lo v e s hi s country still honours

’
vir t ue even in a f o e
, .

And thu s T o rfrid a— whether from a woman s sen t iment o f ’

’
pity o r from a w oman s instinc t ive abhorrence o f villany and
,

wrong had becom e there and then an E nglishwoman o f the

,

E nglish a s she proved by strange deed s and su fferings for many

,
a year .

Where is that N orseman Martin ? ask ed Hereward that night ,

’

ere he went to b e d I want to hear m ore o f p oor Hard ra ad e

.
’
.

‘ ’
Yo u can t speak to him now mas t er He is sound asleep , .

’
this t w o hour s and warm enough I will warrant
, ,
.

Where
In the great green bed with blue curtains j ust above the
‘
,

kit c hen .
’

’
What n onsense is this ?
‘
T h e bed where you and I shall lie some day and the
kitchen to whi c h we shall be sent down to turn o u r own s pits ,
’
unless we m end o u r manners mightily .

Hereward looked at the man Madnes s glared unmistakably .

in his eyes .

Y o u have killed him

’
And bu ried him cheating the priests
‘
,
.

T raitor cried Hereward seizing him ,

.

T ak e your hand s o ff my throat master

‘
He wa s only m y ,
.

fath er .
’

Hereward stood S hocked and puzzled Af ter all th e m an .

,

se nts t h e l ast struggl e as in fro n t o f a Drago stan dard wh ich m u st b e n ,

as is t o b e e x e ct e d — t h e l d st an d ard o f We sse x t h e st a d ard o f E n glish n

p o ,

ro yal ty T h at Ha l d h ad also a Fighti n g Man stan d ard a d th at i t

.
,
n

w as sen t b y W illiam t o t h e po pe th ere is n o re aso n t o d o u b t Bu t if t h e

,
.

B aye ux T ape stry b e c o rre ct t h e fu ry o f t h e fight f o r t h e stan d ard wo u l d

,

b e e x plai n e d I t wo u l d b e a fight f o r t h e v e ry sym b o l o f Ki n g E dwar d s

’
.

d yn asty .
15 8 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T here was G o spa t ric , claiming th rough hi s grandfather

U c h t re d and strong in the p rotection o f hi s cousin Mal c olm
,

K ing o f S cotland there was young W alt h e o f, the forest thief,

—o r rather, perhaps , ‘ the thief o f slaughter , ’ who had been
born to S iw a rd Bio rn in his old age, j ust after the bat t le o f
'

D unsinane a fine and gallant young m an , de s tined to a s wift

and sad end .

Willia m sent to the N orthumbrians o n e C O p S i a thane o f ,

mark and w or t h as his procurator to expel O s w u lf O sw u lf

, , .

a n d the land folk answered by killing C o p si and doing every

‘

man that w hich was right in hi s o w n eyes .

William determined to propitiate the young earls Perhaps .

he intended to go vern the centre and nor t h o f E ngland t hrough

them as feudal vassals and hoped meanwhile to p ay his N o r
,

man conquerors su ffic ie n t ly o u t o f the forfeited lands o f Harold ,

and those w ho had fought by his side at Has t ings It was n o t .

his p olicy to mak e himself mu ch less t o call himself the conqueror , ,

o f E ngland He claimed to b e i t s legitimate sovereign deriv

.
,

ing from his cousin E dward t he C onfessor ; and whosoever would

acknowledge him as such had nei t her right n o r cause to fear , .

T herefore he sent for the young earls He courted W alt h e o f .

,

and more really loved him He promised E dwin hi s daughter

,
.

in marriage S om e say it was C onstance af t erward s married

.
,

t o Alan Fe rga n t o f Brittany : but it may also have been the

,

beautiful Adelaide who none kn e w why early ga v e up the , , ,

world and died in a convent Be that as i t may the t w o young

,
.
,

p eople saw each and loved each other at Rouen w hither , ,

William took W alt h e o f E dwin and his brother ; as honoured , ,

guests in name in reality as hostages likewise .

With the same rational and p rudent p olicy William respected ,

the fallen royal families both o f Harold and o f E dward ; at ,

least he warred no t against women and the weal t h and in fl u

,

ence o f the great E nglish ladies was enormous E dith sister .

,

o f Harold and wido w o f the C onfessor lived in weal t h and

, ,

honour at Winchester Gyda Harold s m other retained E xeter .

,
’
,

and h er land Ald yt h o r E lf giv a widow o f Harold lived rich

1
a .
, , ,

an d safe in C hester G odiva the countess owned s o anti

.
,

q u a rian s s ay manor s from Cheshire to L incolnshire which

, ,

would be n ow yearly worth t he income o f a great duke .

Aga t ha the Hungarian widow o f E dm und the outlaw dwelt at , ,

Romsey in Hampshire under William s care He r son E dgar

’
.
,

E theling the rightful heir o f E ngland was treated by William

, ,

not only wi t h courtesy but with a ffection ; and allowed to ,

rebel when he did rebel wi t h im p unity For t he descendant

, , .

of Rollo the heathen Viking had become a civilised chivalrous

, ,

C hristian knight His mighty forefather would have s p lit the

.

’
E t h e lin g s sk ull with hi s o w n axe A Frank king would have .

1
S e e h e r h i sto ry, t ld
o ,
as n o n e o th er c an tell i t , in B u lwer s Haro ld ’
.
 ’
X VIII HOW EARL G ODWIN S WIDOW CAME T O ST . O ME R 15 9

shaved the young man s head and immured him I n a m onastery ’

, .

An eastern sultan w ould have thru st out his eyes o r strangled ,

him at once But William h owever cruel however u n sc ru p u

.
, ,

lou s had a knightly heart an d som ewhat o f a C hristian c o n

, ,

sc i ence and his conduct to his only lawful rival i s a noble trait
,

amid many sin s .

S o far all wen t well till William went back to France t o be , ,

likened not as his ancestors t o the gods o f Valhalla o r the

, , ,

barbarous and destroyin g Vikings o f mythic ages but t o ,

C aesar P om pey Vespasian and civilised and civilising heroes

, , ,

o f class i c Rome .

But while he sat at the E aster Feast at F e c am p displayin g ,

to Frank s Flemings and Bretons as well as to his ow n N o r

, , ,
’
mans the treasu res o f E dward s palace a t Westminster and
, ,

m ore E nglish weal t h than could be found I n the whole estate

’
o f Gaul gw hile he sat there I n his glory wi t h his young dupes , ,

E d w in Morcar and W alt h e o f by his side having sen t Harold s

’
, , , ,

banner i n triumph to the pope as a t oken that h e had con ,

quered the C hurch as well as th e nation o f E n gland an d ,

having founded abbeys as thank o fferings to Him w h o had

seemed to prosper him in his great c rI m e : at t hat very hou r
the hand writing was on the wall u nseen by m an and he
-
, ,

and his policy and his race were w eighed in the balan ce an d
, , ,

found wanting .

Fo r n o w brok e o u t in E ngland that wrong doin g which

endured as long as she was a m ere appanage and foreign farm
o f N orman kings whose hearts and homes were across t he seas
,

i n France Fitz O sb e rn and O d o the warrior prelate William s

.
,
-
,
’

half —b ro t her had been left as his regents in E n gland L ittle d o

, .

they seem t o have cared for William s prom i se to the E nglish ’

p eople that they were to be ruled still by the laws o f E dward

the C onfessor and that where a grant o f land was made to a
,

N orman he was t o hold it as t he E nglishman had done before

him with n o heavier burden s on himself but with no heavier
,

burdens on the poor folk wh o tilled t he laiI d fo r him O pp re s

,

sion began lawlessness and V iolence ; men were ill t rea t ed o n

, ,

t he highways ; and women — w hat was worse — i n their o w n

’
homes and the regents abetted the ill doer s
,
It seem s says .
‘
,
‘
a most impartial historian as if the N ormans released from
1
, ,

all authority al l res t raint all fear of retaliation determined

, ,

0 reduce the E nglish nation to servi t ude and d ii v e them to

,

3
I

,
’
e sp air .

In the latter attempt they succeeded but too soon ; in the

former th e y succeeded at last : but they paid dearly for their
,

success .

Ho t young E nglishmen began to emigra t e S om e went to .

the court o f C onstantinople to j oin the Varanger guard and , ,

1
T he l ate S ir F Pal . grave .
16 0 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

have their chance o f a Po lo t asw arf like Harold Hard raad e .

S om e went to S cotland to Malcolm C anm ore and brooded over ,

return and revenge But Harold s sons w ent to their father s .

’ ’

cous i n U lfsso n o f D enmark and called on him to com e and re

, ,

conquer E nglan d in the name o f his uncle C anute the Great ,

and many an E nglishman went with them .

T hese things G o sp at ric watched as earl ( s o far a s he could ,

make any o n e obey him in the utter subversion o f all order) of

the land s between Forth and T yne And h e determined to .

flee ere evil befell him to his cousin Malcolm C anmore taking
, , ,

with him Marle sw e yn o f L incolnshire who had fought it i s , ,

said by Harold s side at Hastings and you n g W alt h e o f o f

,
’

York But moreover having a head and being indeed as his

.
, , , ,

final succes s showed a man o f ability and cou rage he deter , ,

mined o n a strok e of poli c y which hadyincalculable after effect s ,

-

o n the history of S cotland He persuaded Agatha the Hu n .

garian Margaret and C h ristin a her daughters and E dgar the

, ,

E theling himself to flee with him to S cotland Ho w he con

, .

t ri v e d to send them m essage s to Romsey far s outh in Hamp ,

shire ; h ow t hey contrived to escape to the Humb e r and ,

thence u p to the Forth this is a romance in itself o f which the ,

chroniclers ha v e left hardly a hint But the thing was done ; .

and at S t Margaret s Hope as tradi t ion tells the S cottish

.
’
, ,

king met and claimed as hi s unwilling bride that fair and h oly
, ,

maiden who was destin ed to soften his fierce passions to civilise ,

and purify his people and to become— if all had their j ust due s ,
— the true pa t ron sa i nt o f S cotland .

Malcolm C anm ore p romised a mighty army ; S weyn a m igh t y

fleet And meanwhile E us t ace o f Boulogne the C onfessor s
.
, ,
’

b rother I n law him self a N orman rebelled at the head o f the

- -
, ,

d o w n trodden men o f K ent

-
and the Welshm en were harry ,

ing Herefordshire with fire an d swor d in revenge for N orman ,

ravage s .

But a s yet th e storm did n ot burst William returned and .

,

with him some t hing like order He conquered E xeter ; he de .

stroyed chur c hes and towns to m ak e his N e w Forest He .

brought ov er his Q ueen Matilda with p omp and great glory ;

and with her the Bayeux T a p estry which she had wrought with
,

her o w n hands ; and meanwhile S weyn U lfsso n was too busy

threatening O laf Haro ld sso n the n ew K ing o f N orway to sail , ,

for E ngland ; and t he son s o f K ing Harold o f E ngland had

t o seek hel p from the Irish D anes and ravaging the country ,

round Bristol be beaten o ff by the valiant burgher s with

,

heavy loss .

S o the storm d id n ot bu rst ; and need n ot have burst it m ay ,

be at all had William k ep t his plighted word Bu t he would

, , .

not give his fair daughter to E dwin His N orman nobles .

,

doub t less look ed u p on such an allian ce as debasing t o a civil

,

i s ed lady In their eyes the E nglishman wa s a barbarian ;

.
,
162 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

had taken before— with the secret proviso ( which during the ,

middle ages seems to have been thoroughly unders t ood in

,
,

such cases by bo t h parties ) that he sh ould be William s man ,

’

j ust as long as William could compel him to be so and no longer ,

.

T hen came cruel and unj ust c o n fi sc at io n s Ed n o t h the

'

standard bearer had fallen at B ristol fighting fo r William

-
,

against the Haro ld sso n s : yet all his lands were given away to
N orman s E dwin and Mo rc ar s lands were parted likewise ;
’
.

and — to s pecify cases which bear especially o n the history o f

Hereward — O ger the B riton got m any o f Mo rc ar s manors ’

round Bourne and Gilbert o f Ghent many belonging to Marle

,

sweyn about L incoln city And so did that valiant and crafty .

’
k night find hi s leg s once m ore o n other men s ground and re ,

ap p ears in monkish story a s the most devout and piou s earl ,

’
Gilbert o f Ghent .

What followed Hereward must have heard not from flying ,

rII m rs but from o n e wh o had s een and known , and j udged

e u ,

f
o a l
For o n e day about this time Hereward wa s riding o u t o f the
, ,

gate o f S t O mer when the p orter appealed to him Begging

.
,
.

for admittance were s ome twenty women and a clerk o r t w o ,

and they m ust needs see the chatelain T h e chatelain was .

a w ay What sh ould h e do ?
.

Hereward looked a t the party and saw to hi s s urprise that , , ,

they were E nglish women ; and that two of them were w omen
o f rank to j udge from the rich materials o f their travel stained
,
-

and tattered garments T h e ladies rode on sorry country gar .

rons plainly hir e d from the peasants who drove them T h e

,
.

rest o f the women had walked and weary and foot s ore enough
they were .

You are s urely E nglishwomen a s ked he o f the foremo s t a s

he lif t ed his cap .

T h e lady bowed assent beneath a heavy veil , .

‘
T hen yo u are my guests L e t them pass in
’
And Here . .

’ ’

ward thre w himself o fi his horse and took the lady s bridle ,
.

’
S tay s he s aid with an accent half Wessex half D anish
, ,
I ,
.

seek the C ountess J udith if it will please yo u to tell m e where ,

she lives .
’

T h e C ou ntess J udith lady is no longer in S t O mer S ince , ,

. .

’ ’
her husband s death s he lives with her mother at Bruges ,
.

T h e lady made a gesture of disappointment .

It were best for you therefore to accept my ho s pitality till , , ,

such time as I can send you and your ladies o n to Bruges .

’

’
I must first kn ow who it is who offe rs me hospitality .

T his was said s o proudly that Hereward answered p roudly ,

enough in re t urn
I am Hereward L e o f ric sso n whom hi s foe s call Hereward
‘
,

1 Fo r G yd a s
’
c o m in g t o S t Om er . th at year , se e Ord ericu s Vi ta h s
’

.
 ’
X VIII HOW EARL G ODWIN S W IDOW CAME T O S T . OME R 1 63

the outlaw and his friends Hereward the master o f ,

k nights .
’

S h e started and threw her veil ba c k looking in t ently at him

, , .

He for his p art gave bu t o n e glance and t hen cried

, ,

Mother o f heaven Y o u are the great countess

‘
Yes I was that woman on c e if all be n o t a dream I am
, ,
.

n ow I kn ow n ot what seekin g h ospitality — if I can believe my ,

eyes and ears— o f Godiva s son ’

.
’

’
And from Godiva s son you shall have it as though you were ,
’
Godiva s self G o d so deal with my mother madam as I w ill
.
, ,
’
deal with you .

‘
His fa t her s wit and his m other s beauty ! said the great
’
,
’ ’

countess looking upon him T o o too like m y o w n los t Harold

,
.
,

N o t so my lady I am a dwarf com p ared to him And

‘ ’
, . .

Herewar d led t he garron o n by the bridle keepin g his cap in hand , ,

while all wondered who the dame could be before whom Here ,

ward t he champion would so abase himself .

’
L eofric s son does m e too much h onour He has forgotten .
,
’ ’
in his chivalry that I am Godwin s widow , .

’
I have not forgot t en t hat yo u are S pra kale gs daughter and ,
1
niece o f C anute king o f kings N either have I forgo tt en that
,
.

you are an E nglish lady in t imes in which all E nglish folk are ,

o n e and all o ld E nglish feuds are wiped away

’
,
.

‘
In E nglish blood Ah ! if these last words of yours were .

true a s yo u perhaps might mak e them true E ngland might be

, , , ,
’
saved even yet .

’
S aved ?
‘

l f there were o n e man in it who cared for aught but h im

self ,

Hereward was silent and th oughtful .

He had sent Mar t in back t o hi s house to tell T o rf rida to ,

p re p are bath and food ; for the C oun t ess Gyda wi t h all her ,

train was coming to be her guest And when they entered the
,
.

cour t T o rf rid a s t ood ready

,
.

Is this your lady ? asked Gyda a s Hereward lifted her from ’

,

her h orse .

’
I am his lady and your servant said T o rf rid a bowing , , .

‘
C hild ! child ! B o w n o t t o me T alk n o t o f servan t s to a .

wre t ched slave who only longs to c rawl into som e hole and die
, ,
’
forgett in g all she was and all she had ,
.

And the great countess reeled with weariness and woe and ,

fell upon T o rf rid a s neck ’

.

A tall veiled lad y next her hel p ed to su p p ort her and

be t ween t hem they almost c arried her through t he hall and into ,
’
T o rf rid a s best guest chamber -
.

And there they gave her wine and comforted her, and let her ,

wee p awhile in p eace .

T h e second lady had unveiled herself displaying a beauty ,

1
S e e n o te at e n d o f th i s Ch apte r .
164 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P
which was still brilliant in spite of sorrow hunger the s tain s , , ,

o f t ravel and m ore than forty years o f life

,
.

’
S h e m ust be G u n h ild a guessed T o rf rid a to her s elf and n o t
‘ , ,

am i ss .

S h e o ffered Gyda a ba t h which she accepted eagerly like a , ,

true D ane .

I have not washed for weeks N o t since we sat starving o n .

th e Flat Holm there in the S evern sea I have become as foul ,

.

as m y own fortunes and why not ? It is all of a piece Why .

should not be g gars go unwashed ? ’

But when T o rf rid a o ff ered G u n h ild a the bath sh e declined , .

‘
I have done lady with such carnal vanities What use in
, , .

cleaning the b ody which i s itself unclean and whitening t he ,

outside of this sepulchre ? If I can but cleanse my soul fit for

my heavenly Bridegroom the body may become — as it mu s t at ,

last— food for worms .

’

’ ‘
S h e will needs enter religion p oor child said Gyda ; and
‘
, ,

what wonder ? ’

I have ch o s en the better part and it s hall not be taken from ,

T
aken T ak en Hark to her S h e mean s to mock me .
,

the p roud nun with that s ame ,

God forbid m other ,

‘
T hen why say taken to me from w h om all i s taken — Hu s ,

band sons wealth land ren o w n powe n— power which I loved

, , , , , ,

wretch that I was as well as husband and as son s Ah God ! ,

.

the girl is right Better to rot in the conven t than writhe in

.

’
t he world Better n ever to have had than to have had an d lost
.
,
.

‘ “
Amen said G u n h ild a Blessed are the barren and they .
,
’
that n ever gave suck saith th e L ord , .

No N o t so cried T o rf rid a Better countes s to have

‘ ‘
.
, ,

had and lost than never to have had at all T h e glutton wa s

,
.

right swine a s he was when he said that not even heaven could
, ,

take from him the dinners he had eaten Ho w m u ch m ore we .

,

if we say n o t even heaven can take from u s the love wherewith

,

w e have loved ? Will not ou r souls be richer thereby t hrough

all eternity ? ’

’
In purgatory ? ask ed G u n h ild a .

‘
In p u rgatory o r where else you will I love my love and
,
.

though my love p rove false he has been t r u e though he ,

trample me under foot he has held me in his bosom th ough h e ,

kill m e h e has lived for me Bet t er t o have been his but f o r

,
.

o n e day than never to have been his a t all

, What I h ave had .

will s t ill be mine when t hat which I have shall fail me

,
.
’

’
‘
And yo u would buy short j oy with lasting w o e ?
T hat would I lik e a brave man s child ,
I say — T h e p rese n t ’
.

i s mine and I will enj oy it as greedily as a child L e t the m or

,
.

row take though t for the things o f i t sel f — C ountess your bath ,
’
i s ready .
1 66 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

And at best— Can He give me back m y sons ? And I hardened

m y heart again like a stone and shed no tear till I saw your fair ,
’
fa c e this day .

‘
And n ow she sai d turning sharply o n Hereward what do
,
’
,

yo u do here ? D o you n ot know t hat your nephews lands are

p art e d groom s from Angers and scullions from N o r
m an cly ?between
’
nu c h the worse f o r both them and the groom s

S
‘
o
I
ir z .
.

‘ ’
Y o u forget lady that I am an outlaw , ,
.

‘
But do yo u n ot kn ow that your m other s land s are seized ’

’
lik ewise ?
S h e will tak e refuge with her grandson s wh o are as I h ear , , ,

again on good term s with t heir new master showing thereby a ,

’
m ost laudable and Christian spirit of forgiveness .

O n good term s ? D o you n ot know then that they are , ,

’
fighting again outlaws and desperate at the Frenchman s
, ,

treachery ? Do yo u n ot know that they have been driven o u t

o f York af t er defending the city street by street house by
, ,

h ouse ? D o you n ot know that there i s not an o ld man nor { a

child in arm s left in York and tha t your ne p hews and the few ,

fighting men who were left went down the Humber in boats , ,

and north to S cotland to G o sp at ric and W alt h e o f ? D o you n o t

,

kn ow that you r m other is left alon e— at Bou rne o r God knows ,

where— to endure at the hands of N orman ruffians what thou

’
sands m ore endure ?
Hereward made n o answer but p layed with his dagger , .

‘
And do yo u k now that E ngland is ready to bu rst into a
blaze if there be o n e man wise enough to put the live coal into
,

the right place ? T hat S weyn U l ffso n my nephew o r Asb io rn ,

his bro t her will surely land there wi t hin the year with a
,

m ighty h ost ? And that if there be o n e m an in E ngland o f wit

enough an d knowledge enou gh o f war to lead the armies o f
, ,

E ngland the Frenchman may be driven into the s ea — i s there

,
’
any here wh o understand s E nglish ?
N one but ourselves
’
.

’
And Can u t e s n ephew sit o n Can u t e s throne ?
‘ ’ ’

Hereward still played with his dagger .

iN Ot the s ons of H arold then asked he after a ,

w h I le .

N ever I promise you that — I C ountess Gyda their grand , ,

m other .
’

Why promise me o f all men O great lady ?

‘
, ,
’

Be c ause— I w ill tell you after But t his I say my curse o n

‘
.
,

t h e g randson o f mine w h o shall try to seize that fa t al crown ,

which cost the life o f m y fairest my noblest my wisest m y , , ,

bravest
Hereward bowed his head as if consenting to the praise o f ,

Harold But he k new who spoke and he was thinking wi t hin

.
 ’
X VIII HOW EARL G ODWIN S WIDOW CAME T O ST . O ME R 167

h imself He r curse may be o n him wh o s hall s eize and yet n o t

‘
,
’
o n him to whom it is given .

All that they young and un s kilful lads have a right to ask
‘
, ,

is their fa t her s earldom s and their father s lands E dwin and

,
’ ’
.

Morcar would keep their earldoms a s o f right It is a pi t y that .

there i s n o lady o f the house o f Godwin wh om we could honou r ,

by o ffering her to o n e o f you r nep hews in return for their ,

nobleness in giving Ald yt h a to m y Harol d B ut this foolish .

girl here refuses to wed

‘
And is past forty thought Hereward to himself ,
’
.

‘
However some plan to j oin the familie s more clo s ely to
,

gether might be thought o n O n e o f the young earls m ight

marry Judith here W alt h e o f w ould have N orthumbria in .
,

right o f his father and ought to be well content f o r althou gh

,
-

she is som ewhat older than he s h e i s peerle s sly beautiful— to ,

’
marry your niece Ald yt h a .

And G o spat ric

G o spat ric s he s aid with a half —
’ ‘
,
sneer will be as s ure a s he , , ,

is able t o get something worth havin g f o r him s elf o u t o f any

,

medley L e t him have S cotch N orthumbria if h e claim it He

.
,
.

i s more E ngli sh than D ane he will keep those northern E nglish

’
more true to us .

’
‘
But what o f S weyn s gallant h older s and h o u se c arle s w h o ,
’
are to help to do this migh t y deed ?
S enlac left gap s enough am ong the noblemen o f th e S outh ,

which t hey can fill up in the place o f the French scum wh o n ow ,

riot over Wessex And if that should s uffice what higher .

,

honou r f o r m e o r for m y daughter t he queen t han t o devote

, ,

o u r lands to the heroes who have won them back for us ?

’

Hereward hoped inwardly that Gyda would be as good a s

her word f o r her greedy grasp had gathered to itself before ,

the bat tle o f Hastings n o less than six an d thirty thousand ,

- -

acres o f good E ng lish soi l .

I have alway s heard said he bowing that if the L ady Gyda ,

’
, ,
‘

had been born a man E n gland would have had ano t her all ,

s eeing and all d aring sta t esman and E arl Godwin a rival , ,
’
instead o f a helpmate N o w I believe what I have heard . .

But T o rf rida looked sadly at the countess T here was some .

thing pi t iable in the sight of a woman ruined bereaved seem , ,

i n gly hopeless por t ioning o u t the very land from which she was
,

a f u git iv e unable to restrain th e passion for intrigue which

I

had be en t he toil and th e bane of her sad and splendid life .

And n o w sh e went o n surely som e kind saint brought me

,
’
, ,
’
even o n my first landing to yo u of all living m en , .

D o u btless the blessed S t Bertin beneath whose shadow we .

,

repose here in peace said Hereward som ewha t drily ,

’
.

‘
I will go barefoot to his altar t o morro w and offer my last -
,
j ewel said G u n h ild a
,
’
.

’
‘
Yo u s aid Gyda without noticing her daughter are above
, , ,
‘
1 68 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

all m en the m an who i s needed And s he began praising Here .

’

’
ward s valou r his fame his eloquence his skill as a general and
, , ,

engineer and when he suggested smiling that he was an exile , ,

and an outlaw she insi s ted that he wa s all the fitter from that
,

very fact He had n o enemie s am ong the n oble s He had been

. .

mixed up in none o f the civil wars and blood feuds o f the last
fifteen years He was known only as that which he was the
.
,

able s t E ngli s h captain o f his day— the only man w h o could cope
with William the only man whom all parties in E ngland would
,
alike obey .

And so with fl attery a s well a s with truth sh e per s uaded if

, , ,

n ot Here w ard at least T o rf rid a that h e was th e man destined

, ,

to free E ngland once more and that an earldom — o r an ything

which he chose to ask — would be the s ure reward o f hi s a s sist
ance .

T o rf rid a said Hereward that night

’
,
kiss m e well for yo u ,
’
will not k iss me again f o r a while .

‘
What
‘ ’
I am going to E ngland to morrow -
.

Alone
‘
Alone I and Martin to s py o u t the land ; and a do z en o r
.

so o f h o u se c arle s to tak e care o f the S hip in harbour .

’

’
But you have p romised to fight the Viscou n t o f Pinkney .

I will be back again in time for him N o t a w ord — I must

‘
.

’
go to E ngland o r go mad , .

But C ountess Gyda ? W h o will squire her to Bruges

‘

Y o u and the rest o f my men

‘
Y o u mu st tell her all Sh e . .

has a woman s hear t and will understand And tell Baldwin I

’
,
.

shall be back within the mon t h if I am alive on land o r water ,

.
’

Hereward Hereward t he French will kill you

‘
, ,
‘
N o t while I ha v e yo u r armou r o n P eace little fool ! Are .
,

you actually afraid for Hereward at last

O h heavens when am I n o t afraid for yo u ? and she cried
’
,

herself to sleep upon his bosom But she k new that it was the .

right and knightly and C hris t ian thing to d o

, , .

T w o day s after a longship ran o u t o f the Aa and s ailed

, ,

away n orth .

N OT E — I give uch o f t h e pe d igree o f t h e Co u n te ss G yd a as m ay

so m
se rve to e x pl ai n h e r c o n n e cti o n wi th t h e Ro yal Hou se o f D en m ark .
1 70 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

full o f hedgerow timber from the m ore m odern corn land s o u t ,

side which were in Hereward s time mostly common pasture

,
’

land o r rough fen .

‘
T his should be Az e rd u n said he and there inside as I live ’
, , ,

t an ls Azer getting in hi s crop s But wh o has he with

ime
.

I
With the o ld man were some half dozen m en o f his o w n rank -

some hel p ing t he serfs with m i ght and main ; o n e o r two s tand
ing on the top o f the bank s a s if o n the look o u t ; but all ,

armed cap a p i e -
.

His friends are helping him to get them I n quoth Martin

‘ ’
, ,
‘
for fear o f the rascally Frenchmen A pleasant and peaceable .

country we have come back to .

’

And a very s trong fortress are they holding s aid Hereward

‘
,
’
,
‘
against either French h orsemen o r French arrow s Ho w to .

dislodge those s ix fellows with out s ix time s their number I d o ,

’
not see It is well to recollect that
. .

And s o he did ; and turned to u se again and again in after ,

the s trategic capabilitie s o f an o ld fashioned E nglish

,

fyarm
ears
Hereward spurred hi s hor s e up t o the nearest gate and was ,

in s tantly confronted by a little fair haired man as broad as h e ,

was tall who heaved u p a long t w yb ill o r double axe and bade
, , ,

him across the gate go to a certa i n place

, , .

L ittle Winter little Winter m y chu ck my darling my mad

, , , ,

fellow my brother I n arms m y brother I n robbery and mu rder

, , ,

are yo u grown so h onest I n you r o ld age that you w ill n o t k now

little Hereward the wolf s head ? ’ ’

Hereward ! shrieked the doughty little man

‘ ’
I took you .
‘

f o r an accursed N orman in those outlandish clothes and lift

ing up no little voice he sh outed ,

Hereward is back and Martin Lightfoot at his heel s

‘
,

T h e gate wa s thrown open and Hereward all but pulled o ff ,

hi s horse He was clapped o n the back tu rned round and

.
,

round admired from head to foot shouted at by o ld com p anions

, ,

o f his boyhood naughty young h o u se c arle s o f his o ld troop

, ,

n ow s ettled down i nto honest thriving yeomen hard working ,

and hard fighting w h o had heard agai n and again with pride, , ,

his doughty doings o ver sea T here was Winter and G w e n o c h .

, ,

and Gery Hereward s cou sin — ancestor it may be of the ancient

,
’
, ,

and h onourable h ouse of that name and o f those p art s and I

D uti and O u t i the tw o valiant twins ; and U lf ard the White

,

, ,

and others some o f whose names and those o f their son s still
, , ,

stand I n D omesday book -

.

And w hat asked Hereward after th e fi rst congratulations

‘
,
’
,
‘
were over o f my m other ? What o f the folk a t Bourne
,

All looked each at the o t her and were silent , .

Yo u are t o o late young lord said Azer

’
, , .

T o o late ?
’
X IX HOW HE CLEARE D BO U RN E O F FRE N CHME N 171

T h e Frenchman has given it to a man o f Gilbert of Ghent s ’

his bu tler, groom , cook , f o r aught I know

T o Gilbert s m aiI ? And m y mother ?
.

’ ’

‘
God h elp your m other and your young brother too S h e ,
.

fled to Bourne a while ago o u t o f S hropshire All her land s i n .

those parts are given away to Frenchmen E ven C oventry .

minster wa s not safe f o r her ; so hither she cam e : but even here
the French villains have found her o u t T h ree days ago some .

’
fi v e and twen t y French marched into the place .

’
‘
And yo u did n o t s top them ?
‘
Young sir who are we to stop an arm y ? We have e n ou gh
,

to keep o u r o w n Gilbert let alone the villain Iv o o f S palding

.
, ,

s nd a hundred m en down o n u s in fou r and twenty -

elan
ours .
e’

T hen I said Hereward in a voice o f thunder will find the

‘ ’ ‘
, ,

way to s end two hundred down o n him and tur n ing his
h orse from the gate he rode away furiously toward s Bourne
, .

He turned back as suddenly and galloped into the field ,

.

‘
L ads ! o ld comrades ! will yo u stand by m e if I need yo u ?
Will yo u follow T h e Wake as h undred s have followed yhim ,
’
already if h e will only go before ?
,
‘ ’
We will we will , .

I shall be back ere m ornin g What you have t o d o I will .

,

tell ou then .

top and eat— but for a quarter o f an h our .

’

T hen Hereward swore a great oath by o ak and ash and ,

thorn that he would n either eat bread n o r drink water w hile

,

there was a N orman left in B ourne .

’
A li t tle ale then if n o water said Az er
, , , .

Hereward laughed and rode away ,

.

‘
Y o u will n ot go single handed against all those ru fli an s ? ’-

shouted th e o ld man after him S addle lads and go with him ‘

.
, , ,

som e o f you for very shame s sak e

,
’
.

But when they gallo p ed after Hereward h e sent t hem back ,

.

He did not know yet h e said what he would do Be tt er t hat

, ,
.

they sh ould g ather their forces and see what m en they could ,

a fford him in case o f open battle And he rode swif t ly o n

,
. .

When he cam e within the lands o f Bourne it was dark .

S o m uch the better thought Hereward

’
I h ave n o wish to
,
.

’
s ee the o ld place till I have somewhat cleaned it out .

He rode slowly into t he long street between th e overhanging

gables past the crossways and along t he Water gang and the
, ,
-

high earth bank s o f hi s ancient h ome Above them he could see .

th e great hall i t s narro w windows all ablaze with light With

,
.

a bi tt er growl he turned back trying to recollect a house where ,

he could safely lodge Mar tin p ointed o n e ou t . .

‘
O ld Viking S ur t u rbrand the h o u se c arle did live there and , ,
’
maybe lives th e re still .

We will try and Martin knocked at the door .

1 72 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P
wick et wa s opened but not the door ; and through the
T he ,

wicke t window a surly voi c e asked who was there .

’
Who lives h ere ?
P ery son o f S urtu rbrand
,
Who art thou wh o askest .

’
An h onest gentleman and his servant looking for a night s
‘
,

lodging .
’

T his i s no place f o r honest folk .

’
As f o r that we don t wish t o be m ore honest than yo u would
‘
,

hav e u s but lodging we will pay f o r freely and well ,

.
’

’
We want none o f thy money ; and the wicket was shut .

Martin pulled out his axe and drove the panel I n , .

What art doi n g ? We shall rouse the town said Hereward

‘ ’
, .

L e t be ; these are n o French bu t h onest E ngli s h w h o like

‘
, ,

o n e all the better for a little horse p lay -

.

’
What didst do t hat for ? asked theysurly voice again Were .

it not for those rascal Frenchmen up abo ve I would come o u t ,

’
an d s plit thy sk ull for thee .

’
p thereybe Frenchm en u p above said Martin in a voice o f , ,

feigned terror tak e us in for the love o f the Virgin and all
,
‘

sain t s o r murdered we shall be ere m orning light

,
’

T hou hast no call to stay i n the town man unles s thou

‘

'
, ,

l1 k e ’
.

Hereward rode cl ose to the wicket and said in a l ow voice , ,

‘
I am a nobleman o f Flanders good sir and a sworn foe to all , ,

F rench My horse is weary and can not mak e a step forward

.
,

and if thou be a C hristian man thou wilt take m e in and let me ,

’
go o ff safe ere m orn i ng ligh t .

From Flanders ” And t he man tu rned and seemed to c o n

‘
.

sul t those within At length the d oor was slowly opened and
.
,

P ery appeared his doublegaxe over his shoulder

, .

’
If thou be from Flanders come in i n God s name ; but be
‘
,

quick ere those Fren chm en get wind o f thee

,
.

He i e v ard went I n Five or si x men were standing round the

I '
.

long table upon which they had j ust laid down t heir double
,

axes and j avelins More t han o n e countenance Hereward

.

recognised a t once O ver th e peat fi re sat a very o ld man his

.
,

hands upon his k nees as he warmed his bare feet at the embers , .

He started u p at the no i se and Hereward saw at once tha t it ,

was old S urturbrand and that he was blind , .

Who is i t ? Is Hereward come ? asked he with the dull

‘ ’
,

d i e a m y voice o f age .

N o t Hereward father said som e on e but a k night from

‘ ’ ‘
, , ,
’
Flanders .

T h e old man drop p ed his head upon his breast again with a
querulous whine while He re w a I d heart beat high at hearin g
,
’

his o w n nam e At all events h e was am ong friends ; and

.

ap p roaching the ta b le he unbuckled his sword an d laid it down

am ong t h e o t her wea p ons At least said h e I shall have n o .
‘
,
’
,
‘

’
need of thee as long as I am here among h onest men .
1 74 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

earl s godson o u r last hope the last o f o u r house— draw s s word

’
, ,

o n them ; and he a boy of S ix t een summer s kills them both

, ,

o u t of hand T h e rest set o n him o u t his head o ff and there it

.
, ,
stick s on the gable s p ike o f the hall to this hour And do yo u .

a s k af t er that why free E nglishmen are dull company ?

, ,
’

’
‘
And ou r turn will come next growled some o n e T h e turn ,
.

’
will go all round no man s life o r land wife o r daughters will , ,

be safe soon for these accursed Frenchmen u nle s s as the o ld , ,

man says Hereward come s back

, .
’

O nce again the old man wailed out o f the chimney corner : -

‘
Why did they ever S end Hereward away ? I warned the good
earl I warned my good lady many a tim e to let him sow his
, , ,

wild oats and be done with them or they might need him some ,

day when they could not find him He was a lad He was a .

lad and again he whined and sank into s ilence ,

.

Hereward heard all thi s dry -eyed hardening his heart into a ,

great resolve .

’
T his is a dark s tory said he calmly and it w ould behove
,
‘

m e as a gentleman t o succou r this distressed lady did I but ,

’
know how T ell me what I can do now and I will do it
.
, .

‘
Your heal t h cried o n e Yo u speak like a true knight . .
’

‘ ’ ’
And he looks the man to keep his word I ll warrant him , ,
spoke ano t her .

He does said P ery S haking his head

,
’
nevertheless if any
, ,

thing could h ave been done S ir be sure we would have done i t , ,

but all o u r armed men are scattered up and down th e country ,

each taking care as is natu ral o f hi s own cattle and his o w n

, ,

women T here are n o t ten men at arm s in Bourne this night

.
- -

and what is worse S ir as you may guess wh o seem to have , , ,

’
k n own w ar as well as I t here is n o man to lead them , .

Here Hereward was o n the point o f saying And what if I ,

‘

led you ? — o n the point too o f discovering himself : but he

’
, ,

stop p ed short .

Was i t fair to involve this little knot o f gallant fellows in

what might be a hopeless struggle and to have all Bourn e ,

burned over their head s ere m orning by the ru ffian Frenchmen ?

No his m o t her s quarrel wa s his o w n p rivate quarrel He
’
.

would go alone and see the strength o f the enemy ; and after
that may be he would raise the country o n t hem : o r— and
, ,

half a dozen p lans su ggested themselves to his craf t y brain as

he sat brooding and s cheming then as al w ay s utterly self , ,

confident .

He was startled by a burst o f noise outside — music lau ghter , ,

and S houts .

’
T here said P ery bitterl y are th ose Frenchmen dancing
‘ ‘
, , ,

and singing in the hall wi t h my L ord Godwin s head above ,

’

’
them ! An d curses bitter and dee p went round the room .

T hey sat s ullen and silent it may be for an hour o r more on ly

m oving when , at s om e fresh outbreak o f revelry the o ld man ,
x xx HOW HE CLE ARED B OU RN E OF FREN CHMEN 1 75

started from hi s doz e and asked if that wa s Hereward

comin g .

‘
And wh o i s this Hereward o f whom you S peak ? said Here
’

ward at last .

‘
We thought you might know him sir knight if yo u come , ,

from Flanders as you say you do said three o r four voices in a

, ,
’

surprised and surly tone .

C ertainly I know such a man if he be Hereward the wolf s

‘ ’

head Hereward the outlaw Hereward the Wake as they call

, .
, ,

him And a good soldier he is though he be not yet made a

.
,

k night and married too to a rich and fair lady I served , , .

u nder this Hereward a few month s ago in the Z eeland war and ,
’
kno w n o man wh om I w ould sooner follo w .

‘
N o r I either chimed in Martin L igh t foot from the other
’
,

end o f the table .

N o r we cried all the men at —

‘ ’
,
arm s at once each v ie in g with -
,

the other in extravagant s t ories o f their hero s prowess and in ’

,

asking the knight o f Flanders whe t her they were true o r not .

T o avoid offending them Herewa rd was forced to con fess to ,

a great many deeds which h e had never done but he was right
glad to find that his fame had reached his native place and that ,

h e could count o n the men if he n eeded them .

‘
But who is this Hereward s aid he that he should have to ,
’
,

do wi t h your town here ? ’

Half a dozen voice s at once told him his o w n story .

‘ ’
I always heard said he d rily that t ha t gen t leman was o f
, ,
‘

some very n oble kin ; and I will surel y tell him all that has
’
befallen here as soon as I return to Flanders .

A t last they grew sleepy T h e men went o u t and brou ght in .

bundles o f s weet sedge S pread them against the wall and p re , ,

pared to lie down each with his weapon by his S ide Bu t when
, .

they were lain down Hereward beckoned to him Pery and ,

Martin L ightfoot and went o u t into the back yard under t he

, ,

pretence o f seeing to his horse .

P ery S u rt u rb ran d sso n said h e th ou se e m e st to be an ’

, ,

h onest man a s we in foreig n part s hold all the D anelagh folk

,

to be N o w it is fixed in m y mind to go u p and my servant

.
,

with me to yon hall and see what t hose French upstar t s are
, ,

about Wilt thou trust m e to go wi t hout m y fleeing back here

.
,

if I am found o u t o r in any way bringing thee to harm by ,

mixing thee u p in m y priva t e mat t ers ? And wilt thou if I d o

.

not c om e back keep for thine own the horse which i s in thy
,

stable and give m oreover this purse and this ring to t hy lady
, ,

if thou cans t find means to see her face to face and say t hu s
to her — that he that sent tha t pu rse and ring m ay be found if ,

h e be alive a t S t O mer o r with Baldwin Marq uis o f Flanders

, .
, ,

and that if he be d ead ( a s he is like eno u gh to be hi s trade ,

being nought but war ) sh e will still find at S t O mer a h ome .

and wealth and friends till these evil times be overpa s t ,

17 6 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

As Hereward had sp oken w i t h som e slight em o t ion he had ,

d ro p ped u nawares hi s assumed Flemish accent and had spoken ,

in broad bu rly L incolnshire ; and therefore it wa s tha t Pery ,

who had been staring at him by th e m oonlight all the while ,

said when he was done tremblingly

, ,

E i t her you are Hereward or you are hi s double ganger ,

-
.

You speak like Hereward you look like Hereward Just what , .

Hereward would be n ow you are Y o u are my lord whom ,

.
, ,

men call Wak e and you cannot deny it .

’

P ery if thou kn owest m e speak o f me to n o living soul save

, , ,

to thy lady m y m other ; and let me and m y S erving m an go -

free o u t o f thy yard gate If I ask thee before m or n in g to open

.

it again to me th ou wilt kn ow that there is not a Frenchman

,

left in the Hall o f Bourne .

’

P ery threw his arm s rou n d him and embraced him S ilently , .

Ge t m e only said Here w ard some long w oman s gear

,
’
,
’

and black mantle if t hou canst to cover this bright arm ou r o f

, ,

m In e
’
.

P ery went o ff in S ilence a s one stunned brou ght the mantle ;

and let them o u t o f the yard gate In ten minutes m ore the .
,

two had w ad ed t he Water gang scrambled the dyke and its -

,

pali s ade and stood under the gable o f the great h all N o t a
,
.

soul was stirrin g outside T h e serfs were all cowering in their .

huts like so many rabbits in their burrows listening i n fear to ,

the revelry o f their new tyrants T h e night wa s dark but .

not so dark that Hereward could not s ee be t ween him and t h e

S ky his brother s l ong l ock s floating in th e breeze
’
.

’
T hat I must have down at leas t said h e in a low v oice , , ,
.

T hen here is wherewi t hal said Martin L igh t foot a s h e

’
, ,

s tumbled over something

’
T h e drunken villains h ave left th e
.

ladder in the yard .

Hereward raised t he ladder took down the h ead and wrapped , ,

it in t he cloak and ere he did so h e kissed the cold forehead ,

.

Ho w he had hated that boy Well at least h e had never wil ,

fully harmed him o r the boy him either for t hat matter And
-
,
.

n ow he had died like a man killing his foe He was o f the t ru e ,

.

o ld blood after all And Hereward felt that h e would have

.

given all that he had save his wife o r his sword hand to have
,
-
,

t hat boy alive again to pet him and train him and teach him
, , ,

to figh t at hi s S ide .

T hen h e S lip p ed r ound to o n e o f the narrow unsh uttered

windows and looked in T h e hall was in a wasteful blaze o f .

’
light a whol e m onth s candles burning in o n e night T h e .

table was covered with all his father s choi c est pla t e t he wine ’

was running waste u p on t he floor the men were lolling at the

t able in e v ery s t age of d runkenness ; the loose w omen camp ,

followers and suchlike were alm ost as dr u nk as their mas t ers

, ,

and at th e table —head most dru n k o f all sat in E arl L eofric s

, , ,
’

seat t he new L ord o f Bourne

, .
1 78 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T hen Hereward took u p hi s brother s head and went in to ’

,

his mother .

T h e women in the bower opened to him T hey had seen all .

that passed fr o m the gallery above which as usual hidden by , , ,

a cu rtain enabled the women to watch unseen what pa s sed in

,

the hall belo w .

T h e L ady Godiva sat crou ched together all but alone — fo r ,

her bo w er maiden s had fled o r been carried o ff lon g sin c e — u p on

-

a lo w stool beside a long dark thing covered wi t h a p all S o .

utte rly cru s hed wa s she that S h e did n ot even lift u p her head ,

a s Hereward entered .

He placed his ghastly burden reveren tly beneath the pall ,

and then went and knelt before his mother .

Fo r a while neither spoke a word T hen the L ady Godiva .

suddenly drew back her hood and dropping on her k nees threw , ,

her arm s round Hereward s neck and wept till she could weep ’

n o m ore .

’ ‘
Blessed strong arms s obbed s he at last around me ! T o , ,

feel somethin g left in the world to protect m e ; something left

in the world which loves me .
’

Y o u forgive me m o t her ?
’
,

Yo u forgive me ? It was I I wh o was in fault — I wh o

‘
, ,

should have cherished you m y stronges t m y bravest my noblest , , ,

’
n o w m y all .

N o it was all m y fault and o n my head is all thi s misery .

If I had been here as I ought to have been all this might have , ,
’
never ha p pened .

‘
You would only h ave been m urdered t o o N o : thank God .

you were away ; o r God would have taken yo u with the res t .

His arm is bared against me and His face turned away from ,

m e All in vain in vain ! Vain to have washed m y hands in

.
,

innocency and w orshipped Him ni g ht and day Vain t o have

, .

builded minste rs to His h onour and heaped the shrines o f His ,

saints with gold Vain to have fed the hungry and clothed the
.
,

naked and washed the feet o f His poor t h at I might atone for
, ,

m y o w n sins and the S ins o f my house T hi s is His answer

,
. .

He has taken m e u p and dashed me down and nough t is lef t ,

.

but lik e Job t o abhor myself and re p ent in dust and ashes — o f
, , ,

I k now not what — I kno w n ot what— I k no w not what — unless

it be that poor Algar held some C hu rch lands I forget where
they are now though I warned him of t en of t hem My brains
, ,
.

are broken good saints I forget— would that I could forget

, .

more — and poor Morcar held them till this ruin I S it that .
,

Hereward ? T h e fa t her takes God s lands the son will n o t ’

res t ore them a dark crim e— who S hall a t one for that though
i t is but a few acres — a few a c re s af t e r all fl

And so she sobbed o n like any child ,

.

We will m ak e t hem u p m o t her we will mak e them up twice

‘
, ,

over B ut never say t hat God ha s deserted you S e e He has

. .
,
X IX HOW HE CL EARED B O U RN E O F FREN CHME N 1 79

sen t yo u m e said Hereward w ondering to find him s elf o f all , ,

men o n earth p reaching consolation ,

.

‘
Yes I have you ! Hold me L ove m e L e t me feel that
, . .

o n e thing loves m e u p on earth I want lo ve I mu s t have it : .

and if God and His m other and all the saints refuse their love
, , ,

I m u st turn t o the crea t ure and ask it to love me but for a , ,

(i ay
’
.

’
Fo r
ever mother , .

‘
You will no t leave me ? ’

’
‘
If I do I come back to finish what I have begun
, , .

‘
More blood ? 0 God Hereward n o t that L e t u s return ,

good for evil L e t u s t ak e u p our crosses L e t us bear o u r S in

. . .

L e t us humble ourselves under God s hand and flee in t o som e

’

,
’
convent and there die p raying for ou r coun t ry and o u r kin
,
.

‘
Men m ust wa t ch while w omen pray I will take you to a .

—
minster to Pe t erborough ’
.

N o n ot to P eterborough
,
‘
But m y uncle Brand is abbot there they tell me now th is , ,

four years and that rogue He rlu in prior in his place .

’

‘
Brand is dying dyin g o f a broken heart lik e m e T h e ,
.

Frenchman has g iven his abbey t o o n e T horol d the tyrant of ,

Malmesbury —a Frenchman like himself N 0 take m e wh ere I .

,

shall never S e e a Fren c h face T ake me to C rowland — and him .

with m e— where I S hall see nough t but E nglish faces and hear ,
’
E nglish chants and die a free E nglishwoman under S t G u t h la c s
, .

’
W I n gS .

h said Hereward bitterly S t G u t h lac is a righ t ,

‘
.

E nglishman and will have some sort of fellow feeling for us

,
-

while S t P eter o f course is somewhat t oo fond o f Rom e and

.
, ,

those Italian monks Well— blood is thicker than water so I .

’
hardly blam e t he blessed Apostle .

D o n ot talk so Hereward
’
.
,
‘
Much th e saints have don e for us m other th at we are to be , ,

so very respectful to their high mightinesses I fear that if .

,

t his Fren chman goes on with hi s plan o f t h rus t in g his monk s

into o u r abbeys I shal l h ave to do more even for S t G u t h la c
, .
,

t han ever h e did for me D o not say m ore mo t h er T his night .

, .

has m ade Hereward a new man N o w pre p are — and she kne w .
,

what he meant and gather all you r trea s ures ; and we will
‘

start for C rowland to m orro w afternoon -

.
’
1 80 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P
.

C HA P T E R XX
HOW HE RE W A RD W A S M A DE A K N I G HT A FT ER T HE FAS H I ON
O F T HE E N GL I S H

A W I LD night was that in B ourne All the folk free and unfree .
, ,

man and woman were o u t o n the streets asking th e meaning

, ,

o f those terrible shrieks followed by a m ore terrible silence , .

At last Hereward strode down from the hall his drawn sword ,

in hi s hand .

S ilence good folk s and heark en to me once and f o r all

‘
, , , .

T here is not a Fren chman left alive in Bourne If you be the .

men I tak e you for there shall not be o n e left alive between
,

Wash and Hu mber S ilence again ! —as a fierce cry o f rage

.
,
’

and j oy arose and men rushed forward to t ake him by the hand
, ,

women to embrace him T his is n o time f o r com p liments .

,

good folks but for quick wit and quick blows Fo r the law we
,
.

fight if we do fight ; and by the law we must w ork fight o r

, ,

not Where i s the lawman o f the town

.

‘
I was lawm an last night to see such law done a s there i s ,
’
left said P ery
,
But yo u are lawman n ow D o a s yo u will
.
‘
. .

’
We will obey you .

‘
Y o u S hall be ou r lawman shouted many voice s
’
.
,
—
I ? Who am I ? O u t o f law and a wolf s head ’
-
’
.
,

We will put yo u back into you r law —w e will give yo u your ,

lands in full hus t ing .

’

N ever m ind a h usting o n my behalf L e t us have a hu s ting .

,

if we have o n e for a bet t er end and a bigger than that N o w

,
.
,

men o f B ourne I have put the coal in the bu sh D are yo u blow

,
.

the fire till the forest is a fl am e from south to nor t h ? I have

fought a dozen o f French men D are yo u fight T aillebois and .

Gilbert of Ghent with William D uk e o f N ormandy a t their back ?

,

O r will you take m e here as I stand and give m e up to them as

, ,

an outla w and a robber to feed the crows outside t he gates o f ,

L incoln ? D o it if you will It will be the wiser plan my

,
.
,

friends Give m e u p to be j udged and hanged ; and so pu rge

.

yourselves o f the villainous m urder of Gilber t s cook — your late ’

’
l ord and master .

L ord and master We are free m en shouted th e holders ,

‘
o r yeomen gentlemen We hold o u r lands from God and the
.

sun .
’

‘ ’
You are o u r lord shouted the socmen o r tenant s ,
Who , .
‘

but you ? We will follow if you will lead ,

Hereward is com e home cried a feeble voice behind Let .

‘

m e come to him L e t me feel him . .

’

And through t he c rowd s u pp orted by two ladies tottered the , ,

mi ghty form o f S urturbrand t he blind Viki n g .
 82 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
S end round the war arrow , shou ted P ery him s elf ; and if -
’

t here was a man or two wh o shrank from the p roposal they ,

fo u nd i t prudent to shout as loudly a s did th e rest .

E re the m o rning light the war arrow wa s split into four ,

-

splinters and carried o u t to the four airts through all K es

, ,

t even If the sp linter were put in t o the hou se —father s hand

.
’
,

he must send it o n at once t o t h e n ext freeman s house If he ’

.

were a w ay it was stuck into his h ouse door o r into hi s great

,
-
,

chair by the fireside and w o e to him if o n his return he sent , , ,

it not o n likewise All through K esteven went that nigh t the .

arrow splin t ers and with them the whisper T h e Wake is com e
-
, ,
’
again till before m id day there were fifty well armed men in
,
-
,
-

the old camping —fi e ld outside the t own and Hereward har ,

a n gu in g them in word s o f fire .

A chill came over t hem neverthele ss wh en he told them that , ,

he must at once return t o Fla n ders .

But it must be h e said He had promised his good lord and

‘
,
’
.

sovereign Baldwin o f Flanders and h is word o f h on ou r he must

, ,

k eep T w o visits h e mu st pay ere h e went ; and then to sea

. .

But within the year if he were alive o n ground he would return , , ,

and with h im shi p s and men it might be with S weyn and all ,

t he po w er o f D enmark O nly let them hold their o w n till the .

D anes should come and all wo u ld be well S o would they show ,

.

t hat they were free E nglishmen able to h old E ngland against ,

Frenchmen and all strangers And whenever he cam e back he .

w ould set a light to T oft Manthor p e and Witham o n —the hill , ,

- -
.

T hey were his own farms o r should have been and better t h ey ,

S hould burn tha n F rench men hold them T hey could be seen .

far and W ide over the B ru n e sw o ld and over all the fen ; and
t hen all m en might k now for s u re that the Wak e was come
a gaI n
I

‘
And nine and forty of them says the chronicler he chose
‘
- -
,
’
,
’
to guard Bourn e ( seemingly th e lands which had been h is
n ep hew Mo rc ar s) till he sh ould com e back and tak e them f or
’

himself His own lands of Wi t ham T of t and Manthor p e Gery

.
, , ,

his cousin S hould hold till his return ; an d they sh ould send
what th ey could o ff th em to L ady Godiva a t C rowland
T hen t hey went down t o the water and took barge and laid ,

t h e corpse therein and Godiva and Hereward sat at th e dead

lad s head and Winter steered the boat and G w e n o c h took t he
’

s t roke o ar -
.

And th ey rowed away for C row land by many a mere and ,

many an ea ; t hrough narrow reaches o f cl ear brown glassy

wa t er b etw een the dark green al d ers b e t ween the p ale green - -

reeds where the coot clanked and t he bi tt ern boomed and the , ,

sedge bird not content wi t h its o w n sweet song m o c ked the

-
, ,

n otes o f all the birds around ; and then out in t o the broad
lagoons w here h ung m otionless h igh over head hawk beyon d
, , ,

h awk buzzard beyond buzzard kite beyond kite as far a s eye

, , ,
xx HOW HEREWARD W AS MAD E A K N IG HT 1 83

could see Into the air a s t hey rowed o n whirred u p grea t

.
, ,

S kein s o f wild fowl innumerable with a cry a s o f all th e bells o f ,

C rowland or all the hounds o f the B ru n e sw o ld ; while clear

,

above all their n oise sounded the wild whistle o f th e curlews ,

and the trumpet note o f t he great white s wan O u t o f the .

reeds like an arrow shot the pereg rine singled o n e luckle s s

, , ,

mall ard from th e flock caught him up struck him stone dead , ,

with o n e blo w o f his terrible heel and swept his prey with him ,

into the reeds again .

’
D eath ! dea t h ! death ! said L ady Godiva a s the feathers
‘
,
’
fl u ttered down into the boat and rested o n the dead boy s pall .

War among man and beast war o n earth war in air war in
the water beneath as a great pike rolled a t his bait sending a ,

S hoal o f white fish flying along t he s u rface And w ar says ‘

,
.

holy writ in h eaven above

,
0 T hou wh o didst die t o destroy .

’
death when will it all be o ver ?
,

And t hus they glided on from stream to stream u ntil they ,

cam e t o the sacred isle o f th e inheri t ance o f t he L ord th e soil

‘
,

o f S t Mary and S t Bar t h olom ew

. .the m ost h oly san ctuary o f
S t G u t h lac and his m onk s the minster m ost free from worldly
.

servitude the s p ecial alm shouse o f the m ost illustrious kings

the sol e place o f refuge for any o n e in all tribula t ions ; the
perpetual abo d e o f the saints the possession o f religiou s
men especially set apart by t he C omm on C ouncil o f the king
,

dom ; by reason o f the frequent m iracle s o f the m ost holy

C onfessor an ever fruitful m other o f cam p hire in the vineyards
,
-

o f E ngedi ; and by reason o f the privileges granted by the

kings a ci t y o f grace and safety to all wh o repent
,
’
As t hey drew near t h ey passed every minute som e fish e r s
,

l og canoe in which worked with ne t o r line th e criminal wh o

,

had saved hi s life by fleeing to S t G u t h lac and becoming his .

,
’
m an forthwith t he slave who had fled from his mas t er s cruelty I

and here an d t here in th ose evil day s the master who had fl e ,

from the cruelty o f Frenchmen wh o would have d one to him as ,

he had done to others But there all o ld gru d ges were pu t .

away T hey had so u ght th e peace o f S t G u t h la c ; an d th ere

. .

fore t hey must k eep his pea c e ; and ge t their living from the
fish o f t he five ri v ers wi thin the bounds whereof was p eace
, ,

as o f their o w n niet stream s for t he abbot and S t G u t h lac .

were the onl y l or s thereof and nei t her summ oner n o r S heriff ,

o f the king n or armed for c e o f k night o r earl could en t er

, ,

t }l ere .

At last they cam e to C rowland minster : a vast ra n ge o f

high peaked buildings founded o n piles o f o ak and alder driven
-
,

in t o t he fen — itself b uilt almos t en t irely o f t imber from the

’
B ru n e sw o ld ; barns granaries s t ables worksh ops stranger s
, , , ,

hall fi t f o r t he boun d less h ospi t ality o f C rowland ; in fi rm ary

, ,
’
refe ct ory dormitory libra ry abbo t s lodgi n gs c lo ist e rS wi t h
, , , ,
I

the great minster towering up a steep pile half w oo d half , , ,

1 84 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

stone with narro w round —headed window s and leaden roofs ;

, ,

and above all the g reat w ooden tower from which o n high
, , , ,

day s chimed o u t the m elody o f the seven famou s bell s which

, ,

had not their like in E nglish land G u t h la c Bartholomew and .

, ,

B e t t e lm were the names o f the biggest T u rk e t u l and T at w in o f ,

the middle and Pega an d Bega o f the smallest S o say s Ingulf

, .
,

who saw them a f e w years after pouring down o n hi s o w n head

in stream s o f m elted metal O utside the minster wall s were .

th e cottage s o f the c o rro die rs o r folk who for a corrody o r life , , ,

pittance from the abbey had given away their lan d s ; beyond ,
1

them again the natural ark o f gra ss dotted with mighty oaks
and ashes ; and b e yo mf all those cornlands o f inexhaustible
,

fertility broken up by the good Abbot E ge lric s ome hundred

,

years before from which in tim e s o f dearth the m onk s o f

, , ,

C rowland fed th e people o f all the neighb ouring fen s .

T hey went into the great courtyard All men were q uiet .
,

yet all men were bu s y baking and b rewing carpentering and ,

tailoring in t he workshops reading and writing in the

,

C loister p raying and S inging in the chu rch and teaching

the children in the schoolhouse O nly the ancient se m p e c t s .

som e near upon a hundred and fifty years o ld— wandered where
they would o r basked against a sunny wall like autumn flies
, ,

each with a young monk to guide him and listen to his tattle ,

o f o ld days Fo r said the law s of T u rk e t u l the good

.
,
N othing
disagreeable about the a ff airs o f the m onastery S hall be men
t io n e d in their p resence N o per s on shall presum e in an y way
.

to offend them : but with the greatest peace and tran q uillity
’
they shall await their end .

S o while the world outside raged and fought and conquered , , ,

and plundered they within the holy isle kept u p s ome sort o f
,

order and j ustice and usefulnes s and love to G o d and man

, , , .

1
T h i s fash i o n o f c o rro dy w as o n e wh ich b ro ught m uch l an d t o m o n k s
an d g rudgi n g t o h e irs at -law A s an i n stan c e — G e o ffre y d e B rach e co u rt
-
.

an d h is wi fe a f e w ye ars afte r g av e (with c o n se n t o f Al an d e Mo rto n h is

, , ,

n e ph ew an d h e ir an d G il b e rt o f Gh e n t h is fe ud al l o rd ) h is town sh i
, p of ,

B rac h e cu rt o r B rathwai te t o t h e Ci ste rci an m o n k s o f V au ld e y n o w G ri m s ,

th o rpe Park o n t h e fo llowin g co n d itio n s T h at h is wife sh o u l d h ave

, .

cl o th in g o f b l u e t an d l amb s skin s ; an d h e o f grisin g o r h alb ergit an d

’

lam b s sk i n s ; an d th at th e ir fo o d sh o u l d b e such as t h e m o n k s h ad
’
.

T h e ir t w o se rvan ts we re t o fare t h e sam e as th o se o f t h e b ro th e r h o o d .

T h e o pin i o n o f Al an d e Mo rton c o n c e rn in g such a b arg ai n m ay b e gu esse d ,

at l e ast b
y th o se w h o are aware th at it w as m ad e fo r t h e pu rpo se o f
e sc apin g c e rt ain
years o f pu rg ato ry ti e o f b u rn i n g alive in t h e n e xt , .

w o rld
Wh en t l k o f t h e piety o f o u r an ce sto rs in givin g lan ds t o t h e
we a
Chu rch , u l d always re m e mb er th at th is w as wh at th e ir piety t o o
w e sh o
o fte n sig n ifie d Wh e n w e co m pl ai n o f t h e sq u ire s in E dward t h e S i xth s ’
.
,

tim e fo r tak in g b ack t h e treasu re s an d l an d s o f t h e m o n aste ries w e sh o u l d

, ,

re m e mb e r th at th e y h ad b e e n
go t fro m th o se sq u ire s fore fath e rs o n such
’

gro u n d s as th e se an d n o o th e r , .
1 86 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Brand An d the m onk s let them in ; for the fame o f their

.

e d had passed th rough th e forest a n d all the French had

fl ed
,

And o ld Bran d lay back in hi s great arm chair his legs all ,

m u ffled up in fur s for h e could get n o heat and b y him stood

,

He rlu in the prior and wondered when h e would die and , ,

T horold tak e hi s pla c e and they sh ould drive o u t the o ld ,

Gregorian chants from the choir and have the new N orman ,

chant s o f Robert o f F ecamp and bring in French —Roman ,

c st o m s in all things and rule the E n glish boors with a ro d

0p
,

I ron .

And old Brand knew all that was in his heart and looked up ,

like a pa t ien t o x beneath the butcher s axe and said Have ’

, ,
‘

patience with me brother He rlu in and I will die as soon as I , ,

c an and go where there is neither French n or E nglish Jew nor

, ,

Gentile bond n o r free but all are alike in the eyes o f Him wh o
, ,
’
made them .

But when h e saw Hereward come in h e cast th e mu fflers o ff ,

him and s p rang up from his chair and was you n g and strong
, ,

in a m oment and for a m oment , .

And h e t h rew his arm s round Hereward and wept upon hi s ,

neck as his m oth er had done And Hereward wept u pon his
, .

’
neck though h e had n ot wept upon his m other s
,
.

’
T hen Brand held h im a t arms leng t h or thought h e held ,

him ; for he was leaning o n Hereward and to t tering all the ,

while and extolled him as the cham p ion the w arrior the stay , ,

o f his h ouse the avenger of his kin t he hero o f whom he had

, ,

al w ays p ro p hesied that his kin would need him and that then ,

h e would not fail .

B ut Hereward answered him m odes t ly and mildly

S peak n ot so to m e and o f me uncle Brand I am a very
‘
.
,

foolish vain S inful man who have come thro u gh great a d v e n

, , ,

tures I kn o w n o t h ow to great and strange happine s s ; and

, ,

n o w again to great and stra n ge sorrows and to an adven t ure

greater and s t ranger than all that has befallen m e from my
youth u p until n o w T herefore m ak e m e n o t proud u ncle .
,

Brand but keep m e m odest and low ly as befits all true knight s
, ,

and p enitent S inners ; for they tell m e that God resists the
p roud and giveth grace to the hu mble
,
And I have that t o d o .

which d o I cannot unles s God and His saints give me grace from
,
’
this day forth .

Brand looked at him astonished ; and then turned to ,

He rlu in .

D id I n ot tell thee prior ? T his is the lad whom yo u called ,

graceless and a savage ; an d see S ince h e has been in foreign ,

lands and seen t he ways o f k nigh t s he talks as clerkly as a

, ,
’
Frenchm an an d as p iously a s any m onk ,
.

T h e L ord Hereward said He rlu in

’ ‘
‘
has dou btless learned , ,

m u c h from the manners o f o u r nation which he woul d n o t have

xx HOW HEREWARD W AS MADE A K N I G HT 1 87

learned I n E ngland I rej oice to see him returned so C hristian

.

’
and so courtly a knight g .

T h e L ordyHe re w ard P rior He rlu in has learnt o n e thing in

‘
,

his travels — to know somewhat o f m en and the hear t s o f men ,

and to deal wi t h them as they deserve o f him T hey tell me .

that o n e T horold o f Malmesbu ry — T horold o f F ecam p the

y
st re l he that made the song o f Roland — that h e desires t his
fi
a g
n
,
-
e5 ,

’
I have so heard my y lord , .

T hen I command I Hereward L ord o f Bou rn e — that thi s

‘
, ,

abbey y be held against him and all Frenchmen I n t he name o f ,

S w e n d U lf sso n K ing o f E ngland and o f m e

,
And h e tha t ,
.

admi t s a Frenchman t herein I will shave his crown for him so ,

well that he shall never n eed razor m ore T his I tell thee ;
,
.

and this I shall tell t hy m onk s before I go And unless you .

obey the same m y d ream will be fulfilled and yo u will see

, ,

G o ld e n b o ro u gh I n a light low and you rselves burning in the ,

mids t thereof
S w e n d U lf sso n ? S w e n d o f D enmark ? What word s are
‘

these cried B rand .

You will know within S ix m onth s u ncle ,

.
’

I shal l kn ow better things m y b o y before six m onths are , ,

’
Uncle uncle d o n ot say that
, , .

‘
Why not ? If this m ortal life be at best a prison and a
grave what is it wor t h now t o an E nglishman
,
‘
More t han ever for never had an E nglishman such a
chan ce o f showing E nglish m e t tle and w in n I n g renown f o r the ,

E nglish n ame U n cle you m u st do something for m e and my

.
,
’
com rades ere we go .

Well boy ? ,
‘ ’
Mak e us k nights .

K nights lad ? I tho u ght you had been a belted knight thi s
,
’
dozen years ?
I mi ght have been made a kni g ht by m any after the French ,

fashion many a year agone I m i gh t have been knigh t when I

, .

S lew th e whi t e bear L adies have prayed m e to be knighted

.

’
again and again S ince S om ething ke p t m e from it Perhaps . .

( wi t h a gla n ce at He rlu in ) I wan t ed t o S how that an E nglish

squire could be the rival and the leader o f French and Flemish
’
knights .

‘
And th ou hast S hown it bra ve lad said B rand clapping his , , ,

g rea t hands .

Perhap s I l o n ged to d o som e mighty d eed at last which

‘
,

would g i ve m e a righ t t o go to t he bravest k nigh t in all

C hris t endom and say Give me th e accolade t h en ! T hou only
, , ,
’
art wor t hy t o k nigh t as good a m an as thyself .

’
P ride and vainglory said Brand shaking his h ead
‘
, ,

But n ow I am o f a soun d er mind I see n o w wh y I was

.

‘
.
1 88 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

k ept from being k nighted — till I had done a deed worthy o f a

tru e knight t ill I had migh tily avenged t he wronged and ,

mightily suc c oured th e oppressed till I had pu rged my soul o f

m y en mity against my own kin and could go o u t into the ,

world a new m an wi t h m y m other s blessing on m y head ,

’
.
’

But not o f the robbery o f S t Peter said He rlu in T h e .

,
’
.

French m onk wante d not for m oral courage n o French m onk

did in those day s And he proved it by those word s . .

D o not anger th e lad p rior n ow too above all time s when , , , ,

’
hi s heart i s s of t ened towards th e L ord .

He ha s not angered me T h e man is right Here lord . .

,

abbot and S ir prior i s a chain o f gold won in the wars It is , , .

wor t h fifty time s the s ixteen pence which I stole and which I ,

repaid double L e t S t P eter take it for the S ins o f m e and m y

. .
,

two comrades and forgive And n o w S ir prior I d o to thee

,
.
, ,

w hat I never did for mortal man I kneel and ask thy forgive .

K neel Winter K neel G w e n o c h And Hereward

pnesse it
.
, ,

He rlu in wa s of double mind He longed to keep Hereward .

o u t o f S t P eter s grace
. He longed to see Here w ard dead at his
’
.

feet n o t because o f any p ersonal hatred but because he foresa w ,

in him a terrible f o e to the N orman cause But he wished too .

, ,

to involve Abbot Brand as much as possible in Hereward s rebel ’

lions and misdeeds and above all in th e m aster offence o f , ,

-

knighti n g him fo r for that end h e saw Hereward wa s come , ,

.

M oreover h e wa s touched with t h e sudden frankness and

,

humili t y o f the famous champion S o he answered mildly .

Verily thou has t a knigh tly soul May God and S t P eter
‘
,
. .

so forgive thee and thy companions as I forgive thee freely and ,

from my heart .
’

N o w cried Hereward
’
‘
,
a boon A boon K night me and ’
these m y fellows uncle Brand t his day , ,
.

Brand was o ld and weak and looked at He rlu in I

I know said Hereward t hat the Fren c h look on u s E nglish

‘
,
’
, ,

m onk —made knights as spurious and adulterine unwor t hy o f th e ,

n ame o f knight B ut I hold — and what chu r c hm an will gainsay

.
,

m e — t hat it is nobler to receive sword a n d belt from a man o f

God t han from a m an o f blood lik e o n e s self ; for the fitt est man ’

to consecra t e the soldier o f an earthly king i s the soldier o f C hris t

’1
the K ing o f kings .

He speak s w ell said He rlu in

‘
Abbot grant him his boon ,
’’
.
,
.

Who celebrates high mass t o m orrow

‘
-

Wilton the priest th e monk o f E ly said He rlu in aloud

‘ ’
, , ,
.

’
An d very dangerou s and stubborn E nglishman added he to
Lm fl
I se
,

Good T hen this night you S hall watch in the church T

‘
. . o
’
morrow af t er the Gospel the thing shall be done as yo u will
, ,
.

Al m o s t wo rd fo r wo r d fro m f Herew ard

1
t h e L if e o .
1 90 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

At least this is certain that Hereward would say to his dying ,

day h ow h e had often proved that n one would figh t so well as

,

t hose who had re c eived their sword from God s knights th e ’

m onk s T herefore he would have i n after years almost all his

.
, ,

companions knighted by the monks ; and he brough t into E ly

with h i m that sam e good cu stom which h e had learnt at Pe t er
borough and kept it up a s long a s he held the i s le
, .

T hen h e said
Have you m onk s a limner here wh o can paint for me ? ,
’
T hat can I said Wil t on of E ly ,

T hen take m y S hield and raze from it thi s bear which I ,

’
carry .

Wilton brought pencil and paint and did so , .

N o w paint m e in a W tha t shall s t and for Wake and mak e

, ,

it — make it out o f the k nots o f a m onk s girdle for a S ign tha t

’
,
’
I am a m onk s knight and n ot a king s ; and tha t I am t h e ,
’

c hampion o f t he monk s of E ngland against the monks o f France ,

from this time for t h for ev erm ore .

’

’
Wil t on did it and made out o f two m onk s girdles n one
other than the after fam ou s Wake knot -
.

N o w do the same by Winter and G w e n o c h s shields Monk s

’ ’
.

’ ’
knight s are we ; and m onk s bat tles we will fight
Yo u must have a m otto to match wi t hal my good lord s a
.

id , ,
’

Wilton throwing his E nglish hear t into the work

,
.

‘
What better than my o w n name— Wake ? T hese are time s
in which good E nglishmen m ust not s leep —and sleep I will not ,
’
trust m e nor mine either .

Vigila
g that will be I n L atin
, .
’

Ay— let u s have L atin and show these Frenchmen that we

‘
,

are clerk s and gentlemen as well as they y

said the m onk So le m n ly Watch and
,

Vigila e t O ra
’ ‘
,
’
pray glest thou enter in t o t em ptation .

—
Watch and pray T hou S p eakest lik e a man o f God said ’
.
,

Hereward h alf sadly T h ou hast said so be it

,
God knows
.
‘
.
,

I have need o f t ha t too if only I kne w how B ut I will watch

, , . ,
‘

and my wife S hall pray ; and so will the work be well parted
between us .
’

And s o was born the Wak e m otto and the Wak e knot .

It was late when they got back to C rowland T h e good .

abbot received them with a troubled face .

As I feared m y lord you have been too hot and hasty T h e

‘
, , .

French have raised the country agains t you .

’

I have raised it against them my l ord

‘
,
.
’

But we have news that S ir Frederick

‘ ’
And who may he be ?
‘
A very t errible Goliath of these French o ld an d crafty a ,

bro t her o f o ld E arl Warrenne o f N orfolk whom God c onfound , .

And he has sworn t o have you r life and has gathered knights ,

and m en at arms at L ynn in N orfolk

- -
.
’
XXI HOW IVO T AIL LE BO IS MARCHED OU T O F S PAL D IN G 1 91

‘
Very good I will visit him as I go home lord abbot N o t , .

’
a word o f this to any soul .

I tremble fo r thee thou young D avid ’

,
.

O n e cannot live for ever my lord Farewell ’

, . .

A week after a boatman brought n ews to C rowland how S ir

Frederick was sitting in his inn a t L ynn wh en th ere cam e i n ,

o n e with a sword and said I am Hereward the Wake I was

, ,
‘
.

told tha t thou didst desire grea tly t o see me ; therefore I am

’
come being a courteous knigh t and t herewith smote o ff his
, ,

head An d when the knights

.
g and others w ould have s t opped
him he cu t his way thro n g h them killing g som e t h ree or fou r at ,

e a c li stroke himself unhurt ; for he was c lo t h e d from head to

,

foot in m agic armou r and wh osoever smote it t heir swords , ,

melted I n their hands And so gaining the door he vanished I n .

,

a great cloud o f sea fowl that cried for ever T h e Wake I s come
-
,

a gam
Ad
.

n after that th e fen men said to each other that all the bird s -
,
’
u pon the m eres cried nothing save T h e Wak e is come again .

And so alre ad v surrounded with myth and mystery Here

, ,

ward flashed in t o the fens and o u t again like t he lightning ,

brand destroying as h e passed

,
And the hearts of all th e .

French w ere t urned t o water ; and the land had peace from its
t yrants for many day s .

C HA P T E R XX I
HO W I V O T A L LE B O S M A RC HE D o u r o r S PA LD N G T
I I I OW N
A P ROU D man was Ivo T aillebois as he rode next m orning o u t ,

o f S palding town wi t h hawk o n fis t ho u nd at heel and a dozen

, , ,

m en at arm s at his back who would on due o r undue cause

- -
, ,

shown hunt men while he hunted g ame

, .

An adventurer from Anj ou bru t al ignorant and p ro fl igate , , ,

—lo w bo rn too fo r his o w n m en whispered behind his back
( , , ,

t hat he was no m ore than his nam e hinte d a wood cutter s son ) ,
’
,

he still had his deserts Valiant he was cunning and skilled in .

, ,

war He an d his troop of Angevin e ru t t ie rs had fought lik e

.

t igers by William s side at Hastings an d he had been rewarded

’

wi t h many a m anor which had b een E arl Al g ar s and sh ould ’

now have been E arl E dwin s o r Morcar S o r i t may be Here ’

,
’
, , ,
’
ward s own .

‘ ’ ‘
A fat land and fair said he to himself and after I have , ,

hanged a f e w m ore o f t hese barbarians a p ea c eable fi e f enough ,

t o hand down to t he lawful heirs of m y body if I had one I , .

m ust marry Blessed Virgin ! this it is to serve and honour

.

you r gra c i ou s glory as I have always d one according t o m y

,

poor humility Who would have though t that Ivo T aillebois

.

w ould ever rise so hi g h in life as t o be looking out for a wife ,

and that a lady too ? ,

’
192 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

T hen thought h e over the peerless beauties o f the L ady L ucia ,

E dwin and Mo rc ar s sister almost as fair as tha t hapless aun t

’
,

o f hers A ld yt h a K ing Harold s widow

’
,
Edd e v a faira Edd e v a
, .
,

pulcra stands her name in D omesday book known even to her

,
-
,

N orman conqu eror s as the beauty o f her time as Godiva her , ,

m other had been before her S carcely less beautiful wa s L ucia .

,

as I vo had seen her at William s court half captive and half ’

,
-

g u est : and h e longed for her ; love her he could n o t

’
I have .
‘

’ ‘
her father s lands q uoth he ; what more reasonabl e than to
,

have the daughter too ? And have her I will unless the , ,

Mam z er in his present merciful and political mood m ake s a

, ,

countess of her and m arries her up to some N orman c oxcomb

, ,

with a long pedigree — invented the year before last If he does .

thro w away hi s daughte r o n that E arl E dwin i n his fancy for ,

p etting and patting these savage s into good humou r he is not ’

,

likely to thro w away E d w in s sister o n a T aillebois Well I . .

m ust put a spoke in E d w in s wheel It will n o t be difficult to ’

.

mak e him or M orcar o r both o f them traitors once m ore and , ,

for ever We must have a rebellion in these parts I will talk

. .

about it to Gilbert o f Ghent We mu s t mak e these savages .

des p erate and William furiou s o r he wil l be soon giving them

, ,

back their lands besides asking them to court : and then h o w

,

are valiant knight s like us who have w o n E ngland for him t o , ,

be paid for their trouble ? N o n o We must have a fresh ,

.

rebellion and a fresh confiscation and then when E nglish lasses

, ,

a e going chea p perhaps the L ady L ucia may fall to m y

sg
,
’
are .

And Ivo T aillebois kept hi s word and without di fficulty for ,

h e had many to help him T o d rive the E nglish to desperation .

,

and to get a pretext fo r seizing their lands was the game which ,

the N ormans played an d but too well ,

.

A s he rode o u t o f S palding town a m an wa s being hanged o n ,

th e gallows there permanen t ly p rovided .

T hat was so common a S ight that Ivo would not have ,

stopped had n o t a priest wh o was comfor t ing the c riminal

, , ,
’
run forward and almos t thrown himself u nder t he horse s fee t .

‘
Mercy good my lord in the name of God and all His saints
,
’
,
.

Ivo went to ride on .

‘
‘
Mer c y ! and he laid hand s o n Ivo s bridle
’
If he took a ’
.

few p ike out o f your mere rem ember tha t the mere was his , ,
’
and his father s before him and d o n ot send a sorely tempted
’
soul out o f the world for a p altry fish .

‘
And where am I to get fish for L ent sir priest if every , ,

rascal nets my wa t ers be c ause his father did so b efore h im ? ,

’
T ake your h and o ff m y bridle o r par le s p lendeu r D e x ( Ivo , ,
’ ‘
t hought i t fine to use K ing William s favourite oath ) I will ,

hew it o ff .
’

T h e p riest looked at him with som e t hing o f honest fie rc e ,

ness in his eye s and dropping the bridle m uttered to himself ,

1 94 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

‘
We— n ot tell yo u
we But h e cam e upon u s
d aI e
S inggle handed you cowards ,
‘
S ir h e I S not a man but a witch or a devil He asked u s
'

, , .

what we did there O n e o f o u r men laughed a t his long neck .

and le g s and called him Heron

,
“
Heron I am says he and .
,
”
,
‘‘

”
strike like a heron right at t he eyes and wi t h that he cuts the , ,

m an over the fa c e with his axe and laid him dead and then , ,

another and another ’

’
T ill you all ran away villains
‘
,
.

We gave back a step — no m ore And he freed o n e o f those .

four and h e again t he rest ; and then they all set o n us and
, ,
’
wen t to hang us in their o w n stead .

‘
When there were ten o f yo u I thought ,
’

’
S ir as we told y
,
yo u he I s no mor t al man but a fiend , ,
.

Beasts fools W e ll I have hanged this o n e at least

, , ,

growled Ivo and then rode sullenly o n ,

.

Who is t hi s fellow cried he to the trembling E nglish .

lf ric Raher W u lfric th e Heron o f W ro k e sh am in

a
‘
I , ,

N or 0 l
’
‘
Aha ! And I hold a manor of his said Ivo to himself , .

L ook you villains this fello w I s in league with yo u

’

, , .

A burst of abj ect denial followed S ince t he French — since

‘
.

S ir Frederick as they call him drove him o u t o f his W ro k e sh am

, ,

lands he wander s t he country as you see ; to day here : but

, ,

hea v en only knows where he will be t o m orrow -

.
’

‘
And finds of cou rse a friend everywhere N o w march
, , .

and a string o f threats and curses followed .

It was hard to see why W u lf ric should not have found

friends ; as he was simply a small holder o r squire driven o u t , ,

o f house and land and turned adrif t on the wide world for the , ,

o ff en c e of having fought in Harold s army at the ba tt le o f ’

Hastings Bu t to give him food or shelter was i n N orman

.
,

eyes an act o f rebellion agains t t he rightful K ing William ; and

,

I vo rode o n boiling o v er with righteou s indignation along the

, ,

narrow d rove which led towards D eeping .

A pretty lass cam e along the drove driving a few S heep ,

before her and spinning as S h e walked

,
.

Whose lass are you shouted Ivo .

’ ’
T h e abbot s of C rowland please your lordship said she , , ,

trembling .

Much too pretty to belong to monks C hu c k her u p behind .

you one o f yo u
, .

T h e shrieking and struggling girl was moun t ed behind a

horseman and bound ; and Ivo rode o n
, .

A woman ran ou t of a turf b u t o n t he drove side a t tracted ,

’
by the girl S cries It was her m other .

My lass Give m e my lass for t he love of S t Mary and all ,

.

’
saints And S h e clu n g t o Ivo s bridle .

He stru ck her down and rode on over her ,

.
XX I HOW IVO T AI L L EB OIS MARCHE D O U T O F S PAL DIN G 1 95

A man cutting sedges I n a punt in th e lode alongside looked

’
u p at the girl s shrieks and leapt o n S hore s c ythe I n hand
Father father c iie d she
, ,
.

I
. . .

’
I ll rid thee lass o r die for i t said he as he sprang up the
’
, , , ,

drove dyke an d swept right and left at the h orses legs

,
’
.

T h e men recoiled O n e horse went down lam ed for life ;

.
,

another staggered backwards into the far t her lode and was ,

drowned But an arro w went throu gh the brave serf s heart

.
’
,

and Ivo rode o n curs i ng m ore bitterly than ever and com
, ,

forted himself by flying hi s hawk s at a covey o f p artridges .

S oon a group came along the drove which promised fresh

s p ort to the man h un t ers : but as the foremost per s on came u p
-
,

I v o stopped in wonder at the shout o f

I v o Ivo T ailleboi s
‘
Halt and have a care ! T h e E nglish
are risen and we are all dead m en
,

T h e word s were spoken in French and in French I v o ,

answered laughing ,

T hou art n ot a dead man yet it seem s S ir Robert ; art

‘
, ,

oin g o n a pilgrimage to Jerusalem that thou c omest in this

g
,

a sh i o n ? O r dost t hou mean to return to Anj ou a s bare as

thou camest o u t o f it ? ’

Fo r S ir Robert had lik e E dgar in S hakespeare s L ear re

’ ‘
, ,
’
served him self a blanke t else had they all been shamed , .

B ut very little more did either he his lady and hi s three child , ,

ren wear a s they trudged along th e drove in even poorer case

, ,

than that
Rob e rt o f Co n in gsb y ,

W h o c am e o u t o f N o rm an dy ,

With h is wi fe T iffan y ,

An d h is m ai d Mau pas ,

A n d h is d o g Hard igras .

Fo r
th e love o f heaven and all chivalry oke m e no j okes
'
‘
, ,

S ir I vo : but give me and mine clot h es an food T h e bar .

b arian s rose on u s last night — with Azer th e ru ffian who owned ,

m y lands at their head ; and drove u s out into the night as we

,

are bidding us carry t he ne w s to you for y ou r turn would

, ,

c ome next T here are forty o r m ore o f them i n Wes t D eeping

.

now and coming eastward they say, to visit you and what I s
, , ,

more than all Hereward 1 s come agaI n, .

’

Hereward cried Ivo wh o knew t hat name full well

‘
,
.

Whereon S ir Robert told him th e t errible tragedy of Bourne .

Mount the lady o n a horse and wra p her i n my c loak

‘
, .

Get that dead villain s clothes for S ir Rober t as we go back ’

.

’
P u t your h orses heads about and ride for S pald in g
’
.

What shall we d o with t h e lass

‘
.

‘
We cannot be burdened with the j ade S h e has cost u s .

two good horses already L eave her in the road bound as sh e .

,

is and let u s see if S t G u t h lac her master will come and untie
,
.

’
her .
1 96 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

they rode back C oming from D eeping t w o hour s after

So .
,
Az er and his men found the girl o n t he road d ead ,
’
Another coun t in the long score quoth Azer But when in
‘
, .
,

t w o hours m ore they came to S palding town they found all t he

, ,

folk upon the st reet S hou t ing and prais i ng the ho s t o f heaven
, .

T here pwas not a Frenchman left I n the town .

For when Ivo returned h ome ere yet S ir Rebert and hi s ,

family were well clothed and fed there galloped into S palding ,

from the north S ir A s celin w h ilo m e o f S t Valeri nephe w

and man o f T h o io ld would be abbot o f Pe t e rb o ro u gh
, , .
,
I

N o t bad n ew s I hope ? cried Ivo as Ascelin flanked into

, .

‘ ’
, ,

the hall We have enough o f our o w n Here I s all K esteven

.
‘
.
,

as the barbarians call i t risen and they are m urdering us right , ,

’
and lef t .

‘ ’
Worse n ew s than that Ivo T aillebois sir o r s ieur ’ ‘ ‘ ’

A s celin wa s loth to call b i rri being himself a man o f family and

” , ,

fashion ; and holding the nouveau x venus in dee p contempt .

Worse news than that T h e N orth has r i sen agai n and p ro

_
‘
.
,

claim ed P rince E dgar king .

‘
A king o f words ! What care I o r o u , as long as the
Mamzer God bless him i s a king o f deeds y ,

, ,

T hey have done their deeds though t o o G o sp at ric and

‘
, , .

Marle sw e yn are ba c k o u t o f S cotland T hey attack ed Robert .

de C omines at D urham and burnt him in his o w n hou s e

1
,
.

T here was but o n e o f his men got o u t o f D urham to tell the

news An d n o w they have mar c hed o n York ; and all the
.

chiefs they say have j oined them Arc h ill the thane and
, , ,

E d w in and Morcar and W alt h e o f too the young traitors

, , .

Blessed v i rg i n cried I vo thou art indeed graciou s to thy

‘
,

mos t unworthy k night !

What do yo u m ean
‘

Yo u will see some day N o w I will tell yo u but one word

‘
.
, .

When fools make hay wise m en build ricks T his rebellion — if

’

.
,

it had no t come o f it s elf I would have roused it We wanted , .

i t to cu re William o f this j ust and benevolen t policy o f his

, ,

which would have ended in s ending u s back to France as poor ,

as we left it N o w what am I expected to do ? What says

.
,

Gilbert o f Ghent the w i se ma n o f L ic — nic — what the pest do

,

you call that outlandish place which n o civilised lips can pro ,

nounce
Lic nic cole replied Ascelin who like the rest o f the French
.
, , ,

never could mana g e t o say L incoln He say s March to me

“
.
‘
, ,

and wi t h me to j oi n the king at York .

T hen he says well T hese fat acres will be none the leaner
.
,

if I leave t h e E n g lish S laves t o crop them for six m onths Men ! .

arm and horse S ir Robert o f D e e ping T hen arm and horse .

your s elves We march north I n half an hour bag and baggage

.
, ,

1
An cesto r o f t h e Co m yn s of S co tlan d .
1 98 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

Baldwin t h e Good C ount Palatine as he styled himself and

,
‘
,
’
,
his wife Ric h ild a the L ady o f Hainault , .

T hey probably cared as little for the succes s o f their sister

Matilda as they did for that o f their sister J udith and followed
,

out— Baldwin at least — the great marquis s plan o f making

-
’

Flanders a retreat for the fugitives o f all the countries round .

’
At least if (as seems ) S weyn s flee t made t he coas t o f Flanders
,

its rendez vous and base o f operations again s t K ing W illiam ,

Baldwin offered no resistance .

S o t he messenger s came and the plot s went o n Great was , .

the delight of Hereward and the ladies when they heard o f the
taking o f D urham and York but bit t er their sur p rise and rage
when they heard that G o spat ric and the confederates had pro
claimed Atheling king .

‘
Fools they will ruin all cried Gyda D o they expect .
‘

S weyn U lfsso n w h o never m oved a finger ye t unless he s aw

, ,

that it would pay him within the h our to spend blood and ,

treasure in puttin g that puppet b o y upon the throne instead o f

him s elf ? ’

Calm yourself great countess said Hereward w i th a smile

‘ ’
,
.
, ,

T h e man who puts him o n the throne will find it very easy to
‘

’
take him o ff again when he need s .

‘
Pish said Gyda He m ust put him o n the throne first.
‘
.

And how will he do t hat ? Will the men o f the D anelagh much ,

less the N orthumbrian s s outh o f T yne ever rally round an ,

’ ’
Atheling o f Ce rd ic s house ?
T hose between T yne and Forth will j oin him said Hereward
’
.
,
‘ ’
T hey are S axons like hims elf .

‘
And wh o are they that t hree fourths o f E ngland sho u ld be,
-

scorned for t heir sake ? If their cousins of We s sex wi t h my ,

boys at their head could not face thi s Frenchman h o w will

, ,

t hey ? It is in my blood and my kin in the D anelagh and the ,

D ane s that the s t rength o f E ngland lies and n o t in a handful

, ,

o f S cotch earls backed by a barbarian like Malcolm

, If the .

’
boy E dgar be G o sp at ric s cousin o r Mal c olm s brother -in law ,
’ -
,

what is t hat to E ngland o r indeed to t h em ? T h e boy is a mere ,

stalking h orse behind which each o f these greedy c hie fs expects

-
,

to get back hi s o w n land s in the north and if they can get them
back by an y o t her m eans well and good Mark my word s S ir , .
,

Hereward t hat cunni n g Frenchman will treat with them o n e by

,

o n e and betray them o n e by o n e till there is none left

’
.
, ,

Ho w far Gyda was right will be seen hereafter But a less .

p rac t ised di p lomat than the great countess might have sp e c u

la t ed reasonably o n such an event T h e connection bet w een .

S cotch and E nglish royalty was at the m oment m ost h armful , ,

to E ngland But m ore harmful far wo u ld i t have been had the

.
,

D anish invasion succeeded had E ngland been par t e d p erhaps ,

for ever from t he ruling houses o f S cotland and becom e a mere

, ,

appanage o f the S candinavian kings .

XX II HOIV HE REIVARD SAIL E D FOR EN G L AN D 1 99

T hen came darker news As Ivo had foreseen and as I v o had .

,

done his best to bring about William d ashed o n York and drove , ,

ou t the confederates wi t h terrible sla u gh t er profaned the ,

chu rches plundered t he town G o spat ric and the earls retreated
,
.

to D urham t he Atheling more cautiou s t o S co t land , ,

.

T hen came a strange story wor t hy of the grown child ren wh o , ,

in those o ld times bore the hearts o f boys with the ferocity and
,

intellect o f men .

A great fog fell o n the Frenchmen as they struggled over the

D urham moors T h e doomed c ity was close beneath th em
.

they heard Wear roaring in his wooded gorge Bu t a d arkness .

,
’
as o f E gy p t lay upon them , neither rose any from his place .

T hen the Frenchman cried T his d arkness is from S t C u t h

‘
, .

bert himself We have invaded his holy soil W h o has n o t

. .

heard how none wh o offend S t Cu thbert ever went unpunished ? .

how palsy blindne s s madnes s fall o n tho s e w h o dare to violate

, , ,

his san c t u ar
And the rench turned and fled before the face o f S t C uth .

bert and Willia m went down to Win chester angry and sad and ,

then wen t o ff to Glou cestershire and hunted — for whatever ,

befell he still would hun t— in t he fores t o f D ean

,
.

And s t ill S weyn and his D anes had n o t sailed and Hereward
w alked to and fro in his house i m patien t ly and bided his ,

time .

In Jul y Baldwin die d Arnoul the boy was C ount o f Flan .

, ,

ders and Ric h ild a his sorceress m other ruled the land in his
, ,
-
,

name S h e began to oppress t he Flemings — n o t t hose o f French

.

Flanders round S t O mer but those o f Flem ish Flanders t oward

,
.
, ,

th e n orth T hey threatened to send fo r Robert the Frison to

.

right them .

Hereward was perplexed He was Robert the Frison s friend .

’
,

and o ld soldier Ric h ild a was T o rfrid a s friend ; so was s t ill

.
’
,

m ore the boy Arnoul which party S ho u ld he t ake ? N either

, ,

if he could help i t And he longed to be safe out of t h e land

. .

And a t last his time came Mar t in L igh t foot ran in breath .
,

ss to tell how the sails o f a mighty flee t were visible from the
} gune s
,

‘
Here ? cried Here w ard
’
Wh at are the fools doing down .
‘

here wandering into th e very j aw s o f t he wolf

,
Ho w will they
land here ? T hey were to have gone straight t o th e L i n colnshire
coast G o d gran t t his mis t ak e be not the first of dozens
.

Hereward went into T o rf rid a s bower ’

.

T his is an evil business T h e Danes are here where they

‘
.
,

have no business instead o f being o ff S c h e ld t m o u t h as I entreated

, ,

them But go we m ust o r be for ever shame d N o w t rue wife

.
, .
, ,

are you ready ? D are you leave hom e and kin and friends once , , ,

and for all to go yo u know not whither with o n e who may be

, , ,

a gory corp se by t his day week

‘
I d are said S h e,
’
.
200 HERE W ARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

S o they went down the Aa by night, with T mother , o rf rid a s

’

and the child and all their j ewel s an d all they had in th e world
, , .

And their h o u se c arle s went wi t h them for t y men tried and , ,

trained wh o h ad vowed to follow Hereward round t h e world

, .

And there were two longshi p s ready and twen ty good mariners ,

in each S o when th e D anes made the S outh Foreland the nex t

.

m orning they were aware o f two gallant ships bearing d own o n

,

them with a strange knot embroidered o n their s ail s

, .

A proud man was Hereward that day as he sailed into the ,

midst o f the D anish fleet and u p to the royal ships and , ,

sh outed
‘
I am Hereward th e Wake and I come to tak e service under ,
’
m y rightful lord S weyn K ing o f E ngland , ,
.

C ome o n board then well do we know you and right glad

, ,

we are t o have T h e Wake with us .

’

And Hereward laid his s hi p s b ow upon the q uarter o f th e ’

royal shi p ( t o lay alongside was im p o s si b le for fear o f breaking ,

C ars ) and came o n board

, .

An d thou art Hereward

‘
asked a tall and noble warrior .

‘
I am And thou art S weyn U lfsso n the king ?
.
,
’

‘ ’
I am Jarl Asb io rn his brother ”

, .

’
‘
T hen where is the ki n g ?
‘
He is in D enmark and I command his fleet ; and with me ,

C anute and Harold S weyn s sons and j arls and bishops enough
’
, ,
’
for all E ngland .

T his was S poken in a som ewhat hau ghty tone in answer to

the look o f surprise and disappointment which H ereward had ,

unawares allowed to pass over his face

,
.

T hou art better than none said Hereward

’
N o w hearken
‘ ‘
,
.
, ,

Asb io rn the j arl Had S weyn been here I would have put my
.
,

hand between his and said in my o w n name and that o f all the
, ,
’
men in K esteven and the fen s S weyn s men we are to live and , ,

die But n ow as it is I say for m e and them thy m en we are

, , , ,
’
to live and die a s long as thou art true to u S
, .

’
T rue t o yo u I will be said Asb io rn , .

Be it so said Hereward T rue we shall be whatever betide

,
’
.
,
.

N o w whither goes Jarl Asb io rn and all hi s great meinie

, ,
’
We pur p ose to t ry D over .

‘
Y o u will not tak e it T h e French m an ha s strengthened it .

with o n e of his accursed keeps and without battering engines ,

yo u m ay sit before it a m onth

’
.

‘
What if I ask yo u t o go in thither ourself and try the ,

m ettle and the luck which they say never ailed Hereward yet ? , ,
’

’
I s h ould say that it wa s a child s trick to th row away against
a p altry ston e wall the life o f a m an w h o was ready to raise
for yo u in L incolnshire and C ambridgeshire five time s a s many
, ,
’
men a s yo u will l ose in tak ing D over .

‘
Hereward is right said more than o n e j arl We shall
,
’
.
‘

’
need h im in his o w n country .
202 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

He dared not enter the T hames He would n o t go o n to th e .

W ash ; but h e wen t into the O rwell and attacked Ipswich , ,

plundering right and left instead o f proclaiming K ing S weyn

, ,

and calling the D anish folk around him T hey naturally .

enough rose ; an d like valiant men beat him o ff w hile Here

, ,

ward lay outside the river m outh his soul within him black ,

with disappointment rage and shame He would n ot go in

, , . .

He would n o t fight against his o w n countrymen He would .

n o t help to turn the whole plan into a m arau diII g raid And ‘

he told Jarl Asb io rn so so fiercely that his life would have been
, ,

in danger had n o t the force o f his arm been as m uch feared as

,

the force o f hi s name was needed .

At last they came to Yarm outh Asb io rn would need s land .

there and try N orwich

,
.

Hereward wa s nigh de s perate but he hit upon a plan L e t .

Asb io rn do so if he would
,
He himself would sai l rou nd to the
.

W ash raise t he F e n men and march eastward at their head

,
-
,

t hrough N orfolk to meet him Asb io rn himself could n ot refuse .

so rational a proposal All the j arl s and bishop s a p p roved

.

loudly and away Hereward went to the Wa s h hi s heart well ,

n igh broke fore s eeing n othing but evil

, .

C HA P T E R XX III
HOW HE RE W A RD G A T HE RE D A N A RM Y
T HE voyage round the N orfolk coa s t was rough and wild .

T o rf rid a was ill ; the little girl was ill ; the poor o ld mother
wa s so ill that S h e could n o t even say her prayer s Packed .

uncomfortably under the awning o n the poop T o rf rid a looked ,

o n from beneath it upon th e rolling water -waste with a heart ,

full o f gloomy forebodings and a brain whirling with wild ,

fancies T h e wreath s o f cloud were gray witche s hu rrying o n

.
,

wi t h the S hip to work her woe ; the lo w red s torm —dawn was
streak ed with blood the water which gu rgled all night u nder
the lee wa s alive with h oarse voices and agai n and again she
started from fit f u l S lumber to clasp the child closer to her o r ,

look up for comfort to the sturd y figu re o f her husband as he ,

stood lik e a tower o f strength s teeri n g and commanding the

, , ,

long night through .

Yes o n him she could depen d O n his courage o n hi s skill .

, .

And as for his love had she not that utterly ? and what m ore
,

did w oman need ?

But S h e was going she scarce k ne w whither and she s carce
,

k new for what At leas t o n a fearful adven t u re which might

.
, ,

have a fearful end S h e looked at the fair child and rep roached
.
,

herself for a mom ent ; at the poor o ld m other whining and ,

m umbling her soft southern heart quite broken by the wild

,
XX III HOW HE REWARD G AT HE RE D AN ARMY 2 03

chill northern sea b reeze and reproached her s elf still m ore
-
.

Bu t wa s it no t her duty ? Him she loved and his she was and ,

him she must follow over S e a and land till death ; and if , ,

possible beyond dea t h again for ever For his sake S h e would
, .

slave For his sake she would be strong If ever t here rose in
. .

her a h ome sickness a regret for leaving Flanders and much

-
, ,

more for that sunnier sou t h where she was born he at least ,

S hould never be saddened o r weakened by o n e h int o f her sad

n ess and weakness And so i t befell that by the t ime they
.
,
‘
made the coast she had ( as the o ld chronicler says ) altogether
,
’
c onquered all womanly softness .

And yet she shuddered at the dreary mud creek into which -

they ran their shi p s at the dreary flats o n wh ich they landed ,

shivering swept over by t he keen n or t h east wind A lonely

,
-
.

land and within she knew n o t what o f danger it might be o f

, ,

hideous death .

But she would be strong : and when they were all landed ,

men arm s baggage and had pitched the tents which the wise
, , ,

Hereward had brought with them she rose u p like a queen and , ,

tool her little o n e by the hand and went among the men and
sp o !; e :
, ,

‘
Ho u se c arle s and mariner s You are following a great
captain upon a great adventure Ho w great he is yo u kn ow .

as well as I I have given him myself my wealth and all I

.
, ,

have ; and have followed h im I k now n ot whither because I ,

trust h im utterly Men tru s t him a s I t rust him and follow

.
, ,
’
him to the death .

T hat we w ill
And m en I am here among yo u a weak woman trying to be
, , ,

brave fo r his sak e— and for yours Be true to me t oo as I have .

, ,

been true to you Fo r your sake have I worked hard day and
.
,

night for m any a year For yo u I have bak ed and brewe d

, .
, ,
’
and cooked like any poor churl s wife I S there a garment on
, .

your backs which m y hands have not m end e d ? I S there a

wound o n yo u r limbs which m y hands have n o t salved ? O h if ,

T o rfrid a has been true to you promise m e th is d ay t h at yo u ,

will be true m en to her and hers that if— w hich Heaven for I

bid — aught should befall him an d me you will p ro t ect this m y ,

p oor old m other and this my child who has grown up am ongs t
, ,

you all — a lamb bro u ght up wi t hin th e lion s den L ook at her ’
.
,

m e n and promise m e o n the faith o f valiant soldiers that you

, , ,

will be lions o n her behalf if S h e shall ever need you P romise , .

me tha t if you have but one m ore s t roke left to strike o n earth
, ,

yo u will s t rike it to defend t he daughter o f Hereward and

T o rf rid a from cruelty an d shame .
’

T h e men answered with a shout which rolled along the fen ,

and s t artled the w ild fowl u p from far o ff pools T hey -

.

c rowded round their lady ; they kissed her hands ; they ben t
down and kissed their little playmate and swore — one by God
2 04 HEREWARD T HE WA K E CHA P .

and His apostle s and t he next by O din and T hor — that sh e

,

should be a daughter to each and every o n e o f them a s long a s ,

t hey could grip steel in han d .

~
T hen ( says th e ch ronicler ) Hereward s ent on spies to see ,

whether the Frenchmen w ere in t he lan d and how folk s fared ,

at Holbea c h S palding and Bourne

, , .

T h e two you n g S iwards a s knowing the co u ntry and the ,

folk p ushed forward and with them Martin L ightfoot to bring

, , ,

back new s .

Martin ran back all the way from Holbeach the very first ,

day with right good tiding s T here was not a Fren chm an in
,
.

the tow n N either was there they s aid in S palding

. Iv o , ,
.

T ailleboi s wa s still away at th e wars and long might he stay , .

S o forward they marched and everywhere the lan d sfo lk w ere ,

t illin g the ground in peace and when they saw that stout array ,

they hurried o u t to m eet the troops and bu rdened them with ,

food and ale and all they needed

, ,
.

And at Holbeach and at S palding Hereward S plit u p th e

, ,

war arrow and sent it through K esteven and s outh into the
-
, ,

C ambridge fen s calling o n all m en to arm and come to him at

, ,

B ourne in the name o f W alt h e o f and Morcar the ea rl s

,
.

And at every farm and town he blew the war h orn and -
,

summ oned every man who could bear arm s to be ready again st ,

t he coming of the D anish h ost from N orwich And so th rough .

all the fens cam e tru e what th e wild fowl said upon the m eres ,

that T h e Wake wa s come again .

And when he cam e to Bourne all men were tilling in peace ,

.

T h e terror o f T h e Wak e had fallen o n the Frenchmen and n o

m an had dared to enter o n hi s inheritance o r to set a French ,

foot o ver the thresh old o f that ghastly hall above th e gable ,

whereof still grinned the fifteen head s ; o n the floor whereof

still S pread the dark stain s o f blood .

O nly Gery d w elt in a corner o f the h ouse and with him ,

L eofric on ce a ro yst e rin g h o u se carle o f Hereward s youth n o w

’
,

a m onk o f C rowland an d a deacon whom L ady Godiva had , ,

sent thither that he might take care o f her poor And there .

Gery and L eofric had kept h ouse and told s agas to each other ,
’
over the beech l og fire night after night for all L eofric s study
-

was says the chroni c ler to gather together for the e d ifi c at io n

, ,

o f his hearers all the ac t s o f giants and warrior s o u t o f the

fables of the ancient s o r from faithful report ; and t o commi t
,
’
t hem to writing tha t he might keep E ngland in mind thereof
,
.

Which L eofric was afterwards ordained p ries t p robably in E ly , ,

by Bishop E ge lw in o f D urham ; and wa s Hereward s chaplain ’

for many a year .

T h en Hereward a s he had p romised set fire to the three

, ,

farms close to the B ru n e sw o ld ; and all his outlawed friend s ,

l urking in the fores t knew by t h at signal that Hereward was

,

come again S o they cleansed o u t the o ld house though they

.
,
2 06 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

And n ow pou red into Bourne from every side brave men and
t rue so m e great holder s dispossessed o f their land ; some the
,

sons o f h older s who were not yet dispossessed ; som e Mo rc a r s ’

men some E dwin s who had b e e n turned out by t he king and

,
’
,

alm ost all of them p robably blood relations o f Hereward s o r

, ,
’
,

o f K ing Harold s or o f each other

’
, .

‘
T o him came G u e n o c h and Alu t u s Gurgan forem ost in all ,
’
valour and forti t ude tall and lar e and ready for work and , , ,

with them their three nep he w s o d w in Gille so called b e , ,

‘

c ause he wa s n ot inferio r to t hat Godwin G u t h la c sso n who is

’
p reached much in the fables o f t he ancients and D outi and
‘
,

O u t i the twin s alike in face and manners ; and Godric the

’
, , ,

knigh t o f C orby n ephew o f the C ount o f Warwick and thus

, , ,

p robably Hereward s first cou sin o r ne p hew

’
, and T osti o f D ave
nesse his kinsman and Azer Vass wh ose father had possessed
, ,

L incoln T o w er and L e o f w in Moue — that is the scythe so called , ,

‘
because when he was mowing all alone and twenty country ,

folk set o n him with pitchfork s and j avelins he sle w and ,

wounded almost every one sweeping his scythe am ong them ,

as o n e that m o w e t h ; and W lu n c u s the Blackface so called

’
,

because he once black ened his face wi t h coal and came unk nown ,

among the enemy and sle w ten o f them with o n e lance ; and
,
‘ ’
T u rb e rt in a great grandson
, o f E arl E dwin ; and L e o f w in
-

P rat (perhap s the ancestor of the ancient and h onourable house s

o f P ratt o f Ryston ) so c alled from hi s

‘
P r ae t o r craft because
‘ ’
, ,

he had of t en escaped cunningly when taken by the enemy ,

’
having more t han on c e killed his k eepers and the steward of
Dray ton and T h u rkill and U t lam h e the ou t la w Hereward s ’
'

, ,

c ook and O ger Hereward s kinsman ; and Winter and Liv e re t

,
’ ‘
,

t wo very famou s ones and Randal the S eneschal o f Ramsey

‘
he was the standard bearer and W u lf ric the Black and W u lf ric
the White and Hugh the N orman a p riest and W u lfard his , ,

brother ; and T osti and Godwin o f Ro t h well ; and Alsi u and

Hu rkill and Hugh the Breton w h o was Hereward s chaplain ,
’

and W h ish aw his brother a magnificent knight which two

, , ,

came with him from Flanders — and so forth — names merely o f ,

whom naught is known save in a few cases from D omesday , , ,

book the man ors which they held But honour to their very
,
.

name s Honou r to the last heroes of the old E nglish race

. .

T hese valiant gentlemen with t he h o u se c arle s whom m ore , ,

or fewer they would bring with them con stituted a formidable

, ,

for c e as af t er years pro ved well

,
But having got his m en . ,

Hereward s first care was doubtles s t o teach them that art o f

’
, ,

war of which they lik e tru e E nglishmen kne w n othing , ,

.

T h e art of war has c hanged lit t le if a t all by the in t ro d u c , ,

tion o f gun p owder T h e campaigns o f Hannibal and Caesar .

su c ceeded by the sam e ta c ti c s as those o f Frederic an d Welli n g

ton ; and so as far as we can j udge did those o f the master
, ,

general of his age William o f N ormandy , .

X X III HOW HE REWARD GAT HE RED AN ARMY 2 07

But o f those tactics the E nglish knew nothing T heir armies .

were li t tle more than tumultu ous levies in which men m arched ,

an d fought u nder local leaders often divided by local j ealousies ,

.

T h e commissariat s o f the armies seem to have been S o worth

less that they had to plunder frie nds as well as foes a s they
went along ; and with plunder c ame every sort o f excess — as
when the N orthern men marching down to m eet Harold God ,

w in sso n and demand young E dwin as their earl laid waste

, , ,

seemingly o u t o f m ere brute wantonness the country round ,

N ortham p t on which must have been in E dwin s earldom o r at

’

, ,

least in t hat o f his brother Morcar And e v en the local leaders .

were n ot o v er -well obeyed T h e reckless s p irit of personal in .

dependence es p ecially among the Anglo D anes prevented any

,
-
,

thing like discipline o r organised movement o f masses ; and

,

ade every battle degenerate into a confusion o f single com

{fats.

But Hereward had learn ed that art o f war which enabled

the French to crush p iecemeal with their inferior numbers , ,

the vast but s t raggling levie s o f the E nglish His men .

,

mostly outlaws and homeless kept together by the p ressure ,

from withou t and free from local j ealousies resembled rather

, ,

an army o f professional soldiers than a country posse comi t atus .

And to the discipline which h e instilled into t hem ; to his

ability in marching and man oe uvring troops ; to his care for
their food and for t heir t rans p ort possibly al s o to his training
them in tha t art o f fighting on horseback in which the men o f
Wessex if no t the Anglo D ane s of the E as t are said to have
,
-
,

been quite unsk illed —in shor t to all that he had learned as a ,

mercenary under Robert the F rison and among the highly ,

civilised warriors o f Flanders and N ormandy must be attributed ,

the fac t that he and his lit t le army defied for years the utm ost
e fforts of t he Frenchmen ; appearing and disap p earing with such
strange swif t ness and con qu ering against su ch s t range odds as
, ,

enshrouded the gueril la captain in an atm os p here o f myth and

wonder only t o be accou nted for in th e mind o f French as well
, ,

as E nglish by the su p er n atural counsels of his sorcere s s wife

, .

Bu t Hereward grew anxiou s and m ore anxious as days and

w eeks went on and e t there wa s n o news o f A sb io rn a n d his
,

D anes at N orwich ime was precious He had to march his

. .

li tt le army to the Wash and then transport it by boats — no ,

easy ma t ter — to L ynn in N orfolk as his nearest p oint o f ,

a t tack And as the time went on E arl Warren and Ralph de

.
,

G u ad e r would have g athered t heir forces between him and the

D anes ; and a landing at L ynn might becom e impossible .

Meanwhile t here were bruits of great doi n gs in t h e nor t h o f

L incolnshire Yo u ng E arl W alt h e o f was said to be there and
.
,

E dgar the Atheling with him but what it por t ended no m an ,

kne w Mor c ar was said to have raised t he centre of Mercia

.
,

and t o be near S tafford E dwin to have rai s ed the Welsh and ,

2 08 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

to be at C hester w ith Ald yt h a hi s sister And Hereward sent .

S pies along t he E rmine S t re e t ~ t h e only road then toward t he , ,

n or t h —w est of E ngland — and s p ie s nor t hward along t he Roman

road to L incoln But the former met the Fren c h in force near
,

N ottingham an d cam e back much faster than they went

,
And .

the latter stumbled on Gilbert o f Ghent riding out o f L incoln ,

to Folkingham and had to flee into the fens and came back
, ,

much slo w er than t hey went .

At last n ews came F or into Bourne stalked W a lfric the .

Heron with axe and bow and leaping pole o n shoulder ; and
, , ,
-

an evil tale he br ought .

T h e D anes had been beaten utterly at N orwich Ralph .

de G u a d e r and his Frenchmen had fought like lion s T hey had .

killed many D anes in the assault o n the castle T hey had .

sal lied out on t hem a s they recoiled and driven them in t o the
river drowning many more T h e D ane s had gone down the
,
.

Yare again and o u t to sea northward n o man kne w whither

, ,
.

He the Heron prowling about the fenlands o f N orfolk to pick

, , ,

o ff straggling Fren ch men and look o u t for the D anes had heard ,

all the news from the lan d sf o lk He had watched the D anish fleet .

along the shore a s far as Blak eney But when they came to t he .

isle they stood out to sea right north west He the Heron ,
, ,
-
.
,
believed that they w ere gone for Humber Mouth .

After a while he had heard h ow Hereward was come again

, ,

and had sent round the war arro w and it seemed to him t ha t -

"
a landless man could be in n o be t ter company ; wherefore h e
had taken boat and come acro s s the deep fen And there he
,
.

was if they had need of him

,
.

N eed o f you ? said Hereward wh o had heard o f the deed at

’
,

W ro k e sh am Bridge N eed o f a hundred like you B u t this is

‘
. .

’
bitter news .

And he went in to ask counsel of T o rf rid a ready to weep ,

with rage He had disap pointed — deceived hi s m en He had

. .

drawn them into a snare He had promised that the D anes .

should com e Ho w S hould he look them in the face ?

.

L ook them in the face ? D o that at once : now : witho u t

‘

losing a moment C all them together and tell them all If

. .

their hear t s are staunch you may do great thing s wi t hout the ,

traitor earl If their hearts fail them yo u would have done

.
,
nothing with t hem worthy o f yourself had yo u h ad N orway as ,

well as D enmark a t your ba c k At least be true with them as .

, ,
’
your only chance of keep ing them true to you .

Wise wise w ife said Hereward and went o u t and called his
‘
,
’
, ,
band t ogether and t old them every word and all that had
, ,

p assed S in c e he left C alais S trait s .

And now I have deceived you and entrapped you an d I

‘
, ,

have no ri g ht to be your captain m ore He tha t will depart in .

peace le t him dep art before the Frenchm en close in on us o n

, ,
’
every side and s wallow u s up at o n e mouthful .
 HEREWARD T HE WAK E P
‘

2 10 C HA .

‘
Here comes some o n e very valiant o r very m uch afeard ,
’

said Herewar d as the horseman rode right upon him , S houting :

,

I am the king
T h e king ? roared Hereward and d ropping his lance
‘ ’
, ,

spurred his h orse forward kicking his feet clear o f the stirrups , .

He caught g the knight round the neck dragged him over hi s ,

’
horse S t ail and fell w ith him to the ground
,
.

T h e armour clashed ; the sparks flew from the o ld gray Roman

flints and Hereward rolling over once rose, and knelt upon , ,

hi s p risoner .

‘
William o f N orman d y ! yield o r die
T h e k ni ght lay still and s tark .

‘
Ride o n ! c ried Hereward from the ground ‘
Ride at
’
.

them and strike hard ! Yo u will soon find o u t which I s which .

’
T his booty I m ust p ick for myself What are you doing ? .

roared he after his k nights S 1pread o ff the road and k eep

‘
.
,
’
your line as I told y y ou and don t override each othe r C urse
, ,

t he h ot headed f o o ls ! T h e French will scatter them like

-

sparrow s Ru n o n men at arm s to stop th e French if we are

.
,
-
-
,
’
broken And don t forget G u isn e s field and the horse s legs
.
’
.

N o w king are you come to life y et

, , .

Yo u h ave killed him quoth L eofric the deacon whom Here

’
, ,

ward had beckoned to stop with him .

‘
I hope not L end m e a knife He I s a much sligh t e i m an
. .

than I fancied said Here w ard a s they got his helmet o ff

,
’
, .

And when it was o ff both s t arted and stared For they ,

.

had un c overed n o t the beetling brow Roman n ose and fi rm

, , ,

curved lip of the Ulysses o f the mid d le age but the face o f a b ,

fair lad with long s traw coloured hair and s oft blue eyes
, ,

staring into vacancy .

‘
Wh o are yo u ? shouted Hereward saying very bad words
’
, ,
‘
wh o come h ere apin g t he name of king ,
‘
M other ! C h ris t ina ! Margaret ! W alt h e o f E arl ! moaned ’

the lad raising his head and letting it fall again

, .

It I s the A t heling cried L eofric . .

Hereward rose and stood over the boy , .

‘
Ah ! what was I doing to handle him so tenderly ? I took
’
him for the Mamzer and thought o f a kin gs ransom ,
’
.

‘
D o yo u call that tenderly ? Y o u have nigh pulled the
’ ’
boy s head o ff .

‘
Would that I had ! Ah went o n He i e w ard ap o st ro ph is .
,

in g the unco n scious Atheling g ah that I had broken that ,

‘
,

white neck once and for all l T o have sent thee feet fore
most t o Winchester to lie by thy grandfathers and great ,

grandfathers and then to tell N orman William that he must

,

fight it out henceforth n o t wi t h a straw malkin like thee which ,

the v ery crows are n ot afraid to perch on but with a cock o f ,

a very di fferen t ha c kle S w eyn U lfsso n K ing o f D enmark , ,

And Hereward dre w Brain biter .
XX II I HOW HE REWARD GAT HERED AN ARMY 21 1

’
‘
Fo r mercy s sak e you will n o t harm the lad ? ’

‘
If I were a wise man now and hard hearted a s wise men ,
-

should be I should — I should

,
and he played the point o f
th e sword backwards and forward s nearer and nearer to the ,

lad s throat
’
.

‘
Mas t er ! master cried L eofric clinging t o hi s k nee s ,
‘
by all the saints ! What would O u r L ady in heaven say to
such a deed ? ’

‘
Well I suppose yo u are right And I fear what o u r lady
,
.

at hom e might say likewise : and we m ust n ot do anything

to vex her you k no w Well le t us d o it handsomely if we
, .
, ,

m ust d o it Get water somewhere in his helmet

. N o yo u , .
,

not linger I will not cut his throat before yo u com e

i
n ee .

ba c
L eofric went o ff in search o f water ; and Hereward knelt
with the Atheling s head o n his knee and o n hi s lip a sn eer ’

at all things in heaven and earth T o have that lad stand .

between him and all his proj ects ; and to be forced for ,
’
honou r s sake to let him stand ,

But soon his m en returned seemingly in high glee and other , ,

knights with them .

‘
He y lads ! said he I aimed at th e falcon and shot the
,
’
,
‘

goose Here i s E dgar Atheling prisoner S hall we put him to

. .

ransom
He has n o m oney and Malcolm o f S cotland is mu ch too wise ,

to le d him any s aid some o n e And some m ore rough j oke s ’

p assen
, .

i
‘ ’
D o yo u know sirs that h e who lies there i s your king ?, ,

asked a very tall and noble lookin g knight -

.

T hat do we not said Hereward sharply

’ ‘
T here is no king
, .

in E ngland this day a s far a s I kno w And there will be none , .

north o f the Watli n g S t reet till h e be chosen in full husting ,

and anointed at York a s well as at Winches t er o r L ondon We , .

have had o n e king made for u s in the la s t forty years and we ,

’
intend to m ak e the next ou rselves .

‘
And w h o art thou who talkest so bold o f king making ,
-

’
And wh o art t hou w ho askest s o bold wh o I am ? ,
‘
I am W alt h e o f S iw a rd sso n the earl and yon is my army , ,
’
behind me .

‘
And I am Hereward L e o f ric sso n the Wak e and yon i s m y , ,

arm y behind me .
’

’
I f the two champion s had flown at each other s throats and ,

t heir armies had followed t heir exam p le sim p ly as dogs fly at ,

each other they know n ot why no o n e would have been ,

as t onished in those unhap p y times .

But it fell not out upon t hat wise ; fo r W alt h e o f lea p ing ,

from his horse p ulled o ff his helmet and seizing Hereward by

, ,

both hands cried ,

Ble sse d is t he day which sees again in E n gland Hereward

'

‘
,
21 2 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

who has upheld th roughout all lan ds and seas th e honour o f

E nglish c hivalry
n d blessed is the day in which Hereward m eets the head
I

o f the house o f S iward where he should be at the head o f his ,

ow n men in h is o w n earldom When I sa w my friend t hy

, .
,

brother A sb io rn B u lax brought into the camp at D unsinan e ,

’
wi t h al l his woun d s in front I wept a young man s tears and , ,
“ ’ ”
said T here ends the glory o f the White Bears h ouse !
,
B ut -

this day I say — T h e White —Bears blood is risen from the grave ’

in W alt h e o f S iw ard sso n who with his S ingle axe kept the gate ,

o f York against all the army o f the French and who shall keep
’
against them all E ngland if h e will be as wise as he is brave ,
.

Was Hereward honest in his words ? Hardly so He wished .

to be honest As he look ed upon t h at magni fi cent you n g man

.
,

h e h o p ed and trusted that his words were true But he gave a .

‘
second look at the face and whispered to him self Weak weak , , ,
.

He will b e led by priests p erhaps by William him s elf I m ust .

be courteous but confide I m ust not .

’

T h e m en s t ood round and looked with admiration on the two ,

mo s t s p lendid E nglishmen then alive Hereward had taken o ff .

his helme t likewise and the contrast between the two wa s

,

as striking as the com p leteness o f each o f them in his o w n s t yle

o f bea u ty It was t he c on t ras t between the slo w h o u n d and t he
.
s

deer hound : each alike high c o u rage d and high —bred ; bu t the
- -

former S hort stu rdy cheerful and sagacious ; the latter tall
, , ,

stately melancholy and not over wise withal

, ,
.

W alt h e o f was a full head and shoulders t aller than He re w ar

He was o n e o f the tallest m en o f his generation and o f a ,

strength which wo u ld have been gigantic but for the too great ,

length o f neck and lim b which m ade him loose and slow in ,

body as he was somewhat loose and S lo w in m ind An o ld

,
.

m an s child although that o ld man was one of t he o ld giants

’
, ,

t here was a vein of weakness in him , which S ho w ed in the arched

eyebrow the S leepy p ale blu e eye the small soft m outh t he lazy
, , ,

voice the narrow and lofty brain over a shallow brow His fa c e
,
.

was n ot that o f a w arrior but of a saint in a pain t ed window ,

and t o his o w n place h e went and b ecame a sain t in his d u e , ,

time Bu t that he could o u t general William ; tha t h e could

.
-

even manage G o spat ric and his intrigues Hereward ex p ected as ,

li tt le as that his own nephe w s E dwin and Mor c ar could do it

,
.

‘
I have to thank you noble sir said W alt h e o f languidly , ,
’
,
‘
for sending your k nights to our rescue when w e were really
hard bes t ead — I fear mu ch by o u r o w n fault Had they told me .

whose men t hey were I should not have spoken t o you so

rou g hly as I fear I did .

T here is no o ffen ce L e t E nglishmen s p eak t heir minds as

‘
.
,

long a s E nglish land is above sea B ut how did you ge t in t o .

’
trouble and wi t h whom ? ,

W alt h e o f told him how he was goin g round the country rais ,
214 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

to York if they could get there and j oin G o spat ric and Marle ,

w e yn And certainly it was the m ost reasonable thing t o be

E
.

on e .

‘
But if yo u m ean to get to York yo u m ust march after ,

another fashion than t his said Hereward

’
S e e sir earl why ,
.
‘
, ,

you w ere broken by Gilbert and why yo u will be broken

again if this order h olds If yo u march your men along o n e o f
,
.

these o ld Roman streets By S t Mary these Roman s had .

,

m ore wit s than we fo r we h ave spoilt the roads they l eft us ,

and never made a new o n e o f o u r o w n

T hey were heathens and enchanters — and W alt h e o f cro ss ed ,
’

him self .

And conquered the world Well — if yo u m arch along o n e

‘
.

o f these streets yo u m ust ride as I rode when I came up t o

, ,

you Yo u must n o t let your knights go first and your men at

.
,
-

arm s straggle after in a tail a mile long like a scratch pack o f ,

hounds all S izes except each others Y o u m ust keep you r foot
,
’
.

men o n the high street ; and mak e your knigh t s ride in t w o

bodies right and lef t upon the wold to p ro t ect their flank s
, , ,
and baggage .
’

B u t the knight s will n ot A s gentlemen they have a right .

,
’
to th e best ground .

T hen they may go to whither they will go if the French ,

com e u p on them If they are o n the flanks and you are .

,
’
at t acked then they can charge in right an d left o n the enem y s
,
’
flank while the footmen make a s t and to cover the waggons
, .

Yes — that is very good I believe that i s your French

‘

fashion
It is the fashion o f common sense like all thing s which
‘
,
’
succeed .

B u t you see the knights w ould n ot submit to ride in the

‘

O
, ,
’
m I re .

T hen yo u m ust make them What el se have they h orse s fo r .

,

w hile honester men t han they trudge o n foo t ?

’

Mak e them ? said W alt h e o f with a shrug and a smile

‘ ’
,
.

T hey are all free gentlem en lik e our s el ves ’

.
,
‘
And like oursel v es will come to utter ruin because every
, , ,
’
o n e o f them must needs go his o w n way .

I am glad said W alt h e o f as they rode along that yo u

‘
,
’
, ,
‘

called this my earldom I hold it to be mine o f cou rse in right .

,

o f my father but the lan d sf o lk you k now gave i t to you r , ,

’
ne p hew Morcar .

I care n o t to whom it is given I care for the man who is .

o n it t o raise these lan d sf o lk and mak e them fi ght

, Yo u are .
,
’
here therefore yo u are earl .

’
Yes t he powers that be are ordained by God
, .

Y o u m us t n ot strain that t ex t too far lord earl ; f o r t he

‘
,

only p ower t ha t is whom I s ee in E ngland — worse luck fo r it ,

’
is William the Mam z er .
XX III HOW HEREWARD GAT HERE D AN ARMY 21 5

So I
’
have often thought .

‘
Yo u have ? As I feare d (T o him s elf ) T h e pik e will
have you again gudgeon ,
.

‘
He has with him th e Holy Father at Rom e and t herefore ,

the Blessed Apo stle S t P eter o f cou rse And — is a man righ t . .

in the sight o f heaven who resists them ? I only say it —but ,

where a man looks to the salvation o f his o w n soul — h e must

’
needs think thereof seriously a t least .

O h are yo u at that ? thought Hereward

’
,
T out est perdu . .

T h e question i s earl said he aloud simply this Ho w many’ ‘

men can you raise o ff this shire ?

, , , .

‘
I have raised — n o t so many as I could wish Harold and .

’
E dith s men have j oined m e fairly well but you r nephew ,

Mo rc ar s ’

’
I can command them I have h alf o f them here already . .

T hen — then we may raise the rest ?

’

T hat depends my lord earl for whom we fight , ,

‘
Fo r whom — I do n ot u nders t and
’
.

‘
Whether we fight for that la d c hild E d gar — o r for S weyn fi

o f D enmark the rightful king of E n g land

,
.

S weyn o f D enmark ! Who should be the rightful ki n g but ,

’
t h e heir o f the blessed S t E dward ? .

Bles s ed o ld fool He has done harm to u s enough on earth

without leaving us hi s second cous i n s aunt s malkins to harni
.
,
’ ’

u s after he I s I n heaven .
’

S ir Herewar d S ir Hereward I fear thou art not a s good a

‘
, ,

Christian as so good a knight sh ould be .

C hristian o r n ot I am as goo d a o n e a s my neighbou r s I

‘
, .

am L eofric s son L eofric put Hardicanute on t he t hrone ;

’
.

and you r father who was a man helped him You know what
, , .

has befallen E ngland since we D anes left the D anish stock at ,

’
Godwin s bid d ing and put o u r neck s under t he yoke of Wessex
,

m onk s and m onk m ongers Y o u may follo w you r father s

-
.
’

’
track o r not as you like I shall follow my father s and fight
, , .
,
’
for S weyn U lfl sso n and no man else , .

I s aid W alt h e o fi shall follow the anointed o f the

’ '

A
‘
, ,

L or ( ndy
T h e anointed of G o sp at ric and two or three boys ! said
‘ ’

Hereward K n ights ! T urn yo u r horses head s Right abo u t

.
‘ ’

fa c e all ! We are going back to the B ru n e sw o ld t o live and ,

’
die free D anes .

And to W alt h e o f s astonish ment who had never before ’

,

seen disci p line the knights wheeled round t h e m e n a t arm s

, ,
-

followed them ; and W alt h e o f and the Atheling were left to

themselve s on L incoln Hea t h
216 HEREWARD T HE IVAKE C HA P .

C HA P T E R XX IV
HOW A RC HB I S HO P A L D RE D D E D o r S I O RRO W
IN the tragedie s of the next fe w months Hereward took n o
part ; but they mu st be looked at near in order to understand ,

somewhat of the m e n who w e I e afterwards mixed up with him

for weal and woe .

When William went back to the S outh the confederates , ,

c hild E dgar the Atheling G o spat ri c and their friends had , , ,

come south a ain from D urham It was u n dign ifi e d ; a con .

f e ssio n o f w ea ness If a Frenchman had likened them to mice

.

com i ng o u t when the cat went away none could blame him ,
.

B ut so they did and Asb io rn and his D anes landi n g in

, ,

Humber m outh w e i e met ( says the Anglo S axon C hronicle ) by

‘

c hild E d gar and E arl W alt h e o f and Marle sw e yn and E arl

Gospatri o with the men o f N orthu m berlan d iidin g and
,
I

,
’
marching j oyfully with an immense arm y ; n ot having g the
I

spirit o f p roph ecy o r fore s eeing those things w h ic h were

,

coming o n t he earth .

T o them repaired E dwin and M orcar the tw o young earls ,

’
A rk ill and K arl the great thanes
,
‘
o r at l east the four sons
of K arl — for a cc oun t s di ffer and wh at few else o f the n orther n
,

nobility T osti had left u n m u rd e re d .

T he ymen o f N o rt h u m b e rlan d r ec eived the D anes with o p en

arms T hey would besiege York T hey w oul d storm t he n ew
.

French keep T hey would p roclai m E dgar king at York

. .

In t hat k eep sat two m en one of wh om knew his o w n mind , ,

the other did n o t O n e was William Malet knight o n e o f the

.
, ,

heroes o f Hastings a noble N orman and cha t elain o f York

, ,

castle T h e other was Archbishop Aldred

. .

Aldred seem s to have been a man lik e t o o many more — piou s ,

and virtuous and harmless enough and n o t w i t hout worldly

p ruden ce : b ii t his prudence was o f that sort which will surely
, ,

sw i m with the stream and hon ou r the p ower s that be if they

,
‘
,
’

be but prosperous enough For af t er all if success be not G o d

.
, ,

it I s lik e en ough to Him I n som e m en s eyes to do ins t ead S 0 ’

.

Archbishop Aldred h ad crowned Harold G o d w in sso n when ,

Harold s s t ar was in the ascendant 1 An d who but Archbishop

’
.

Aldred sh ould crown William when his star had c ast Harold s ,
’

d own from h eaven He would have crowned S atanas himself ,

had he only proved himself ki n g d c f ac t o — as he asse i ts himself

to be d e 7n re —o f t his wicked world .

S o Aldred who had not only crowned William but su p

, ,

1
S o says Fl o re n c e of Wo rc este r . T h e N o rm an ch ro n icl ers im pute th e
ac t t o S tig an d.
2 18 II E RE W ARD T HE WAK E C II A P .

b ed . O utsi d e
was the roar o f the battle and soon louder and ,

louder the roar o f flame T his was t he end o f his t imeservi n g

, .

and king making And he said many rayers and beat his
-
.
,

breast and t hen called to his ch aplain or clothes for he was ,

‘ ’
very cold I have S lain m y o w n S heep he moaned S lain my
.
, ,
‘

o w n S heep
His chaplain hap t him up in bed and looked o u t o f the ,

window at the fight T here was no lull neither wa s t here any

.
,

great advantage o n either side O nly from the southward h e .

could see fresh bodie s o f D ane s coming across the plain .

‘
T h e carcase is here and the eagles are gathered together , .

Fetch m e the Holy S acrament chaplain and God be mercifu l , ,

to an u nfaithful shepherd .
’

T h e chaplain went .

‘ ’
I have slain my own sheep m oaned the archbishop I , .
‘

have given them up to the wol v es given mine o w n minster -

,
a n d all the treasures o f the saints and — and I am very cold ’
-
,

When the chaplain came back with the blessed S acrament ,

Archbishop Aldred was more than cold ; f o r he was already

dead and sti ff But William Malet would n o t yield He and
"

. .

his Frenchmen fought day after day with t he energy o f despair , .

T hey asked leave to put forth th e body of the archbishop and

youn g W a lt h e o f who was a pious man in s i s ted that leave
, ,

sho u ld be given .

’
S o t he archbishop s co ffin wa s thrust forth of the castle gate -
“

and the monk s from the abbey came and bore it away and ,

b uried it in the cathedral church Q

-
.

And then the fight went o n day after day and more h ou se s ,

burned till York was all aflam e O n the eighth day t he m inster
,
.

’
was in a ligh t low over Archbishop Aldred s new made grave -
.

All w as burnt ; minster churches o ld Roman palaces and all , , ,

the glories o f C onstantin e the Great and the mythic past .

T h e besiegers hewing and hammering ga t e after gate had

, ,

n ow w on all but the keep itself T hen Malet s heart failed .

’

him A wife h e had and children ; for their s ak e he turned

.
,

c o w ard and fled by night with a few ni en at arm s across the ,

- -
,

burning ruin s .

T hen into w h at once was York the confederate earls and

, ,

thanes marched in triumph and proclaimed Ed gar king — a ,

king o f dust and ash es .

And where w ere E dwin and Morcar t he m eanwhile ? It i s

not told Were t hey struggling against William at S ta fford o r
.
,

hel p ing E dric the Wild and his Welshmen to besiege C hester ?
P robably t hey were aiding the insu rrectio n if not at these two ,

p oin t s still at some other o f their great earldoms of Mercia

,

and C hester T hey seemed to trium p h for a w h ile during the

.

autumn o f 1 0 6 9 t he greater part of E ngland seemed lost to

William Many N orman s p a c ked up t heir plunder and went
.

back to France ; and those whose hearts were t o o stout to

XX V HOW HE FO U N D A WIS E R MAN T HAN HIMS E L F 219

return showed n o mercy to the E nglish even a s William S howed ,

none T o crush the heart o f the people by m assacre s and

.
,

mutilations and devastation s wa s the only hope o f th e in v ad e r

, ,
I

an d thoroughly he did hi s work whenever he had a chance .

C HA P T E R XX V
HO W HE RE W A RD FO U N D A W SE R I MA N IN E NG L AN D
T HA N H M S E L F I
T HE RE have been certain men so great that he wh o de s cribes ,

t hem I n words— much m ore p retend s t o analyse their inmo s t

feelings —must be a very grea t man himself o r incur the accusa ,

ti on o f p i e su m p t io n And such a great man was William o f

.

N ormandy — one o f those unfathomable ma s ter — persona g es wh o ,

m ust not be rashly dragged o n any stage T h e gen i us o f a

.
.

B ulwer in attem p t i ng to draw him took care with a wise

modes t y not to dra w him I n t oo much detail : to confess alway s
, ,

’
that there wa s m uch beneath and behind I n William s character ,

which n one even o f his contemporaries could guess And s till

, , .

more m odest than Bul w er I s this chronicler bound t o be .

But o n e may fan c y f o r once in a way what William s ,

’

tho u ghts were when they brou ght him the evil news o f York
,
.

Fo r we kno w what his acts were ; and he acted u p to his

thou ghts .

Hunting h e wa s they s ay in th e Forest o f D ean w hen first

, , ,

h e heard that all E n gland nor t h o f th e Watling S treet had , ,

broken loose and that he was k ing o f only half the isle
, .

D id h e — as when hun t ing I n the Forest o f Rouen he got the

, ,

news o f Harold s corona t i on p la y with hi s b o w stringing and

’
,

unstringing it nervously till he had m ade u p his mighty mind ? ,

T hen did he go home to his lodge g and there spread o n th e ,

roug h oak board a parchment map o f E ngland which n o child ,

w ould deign to learn from n ow but was then good enough to ,

guide armie s to vic t ory because the eyes o f a great general ,

looked upon it ?
As he p ored over the map by th e light o f a h o g deal torch o r ,

rush candle what would h e see u p on i t ?

,

T hree separate blazes o f insu rrection from north west to ,

east along the Watling

, g S treet ‘
.

At C hester Ed ric the wild T ha n e wh o accordin g to

, , , ,

D omesday book had lost vast lands in S hro p shire ; Algit h a

-
, ,

Harold s ywidow ; and B le t h w allo n and all his Welsh ; th e

’ ‘

’
white mantles swarming along C hester streets n o t as u sually , ,

to tear an d ravage like the wild cats o f their o w n rocks but ,

fast friends by blood with Ald yt h a once their queen o n Pe n ,

220 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

m ae n m a w r the young earl Algit h a s brother Here ~

.
1
E dwin , ,
’
,
ward s nephew — h e m us t be with them too if he were a man
’

,
.

E astwar d round S taff ord and the cen tre of Mercia another
, , ,

blaze of furious E nglish valour Morcar Ed win s brother must .

,
’
,

be there as their earl if he too was a man

, , .

T hen in the fens and K esteven Wha t m eant thi s new s that .
,

Hereward o f S t O mer wa s come again and an army wi t h him ?

.
,
T hat he wa s levying war o n all Frenchmen in the name o f ,

S w eyn K ing o f D enmark and o f E ngland ? He is an outlaw a

, ,
d esperad o a b oastful swash buckler thought William it m ay
,
-
, ,

be to him self He found o u t in after years that he had mis

, .
, ,

taken his m an .

An d n orth at York in th e rear o f those three insu rrections

, , ,

lay G o spat ric W alt h e o f and Marle sw e yn with the N orthum

, , ,

brian host D urh am was lost and C omyn burnt therein But
.
,

York s o boasted William Malet could hold o u t for a year He

, ,
.

should not need to hold o u t for so long .

And last and worst o f all hu n g on the eastern coast th e

, ,

mighty fleet of S weyn who claimed E ngland as his o f right ,

.

T h e foe whom he had m ost feared ever since he set foot o n

E nglish soil a collision with whom had been inevitable all
,

along was come at last but w here would he strik e his blow ?
,

William knew doubt it n ot that the D ane s had been defea t ed , ,

at N orwich : he knew doubt it not for his spies told him , ,

everything that they had pur p osed entering the Wash T o
,
.

prevent a j unction between them and Hereward was impossible .

He mu st prevent a j unc t ion between them and E dwin and

hI o rc ar .

He determine d it seems — f o r h e did it — to cut the E ngl ish ,

line in two and mar c hed upon S tafford as its centre

, .

But all records of these campaigns are fragm entary confused , ,

contradictory T h e N ormans fought and had n o tim e to wri t e

.
,

history T h e E nglish beaten and crushed died and left n o

.
, ,

sign T h e only chro n iclers o f t he time are monks And little

. .

could O rd e ric u s Vi t ali s o r Florence o f Wor c ester o r he o f , ,

P eterborough faithful as he was w h o filled u p the s ad pages o f

, ,

the Anglo —S axon Chronicle — li tt le could they see o r u nderstand

o f the masterly strategy which was conqueri n g all E ngland for
N orman m onks in order that they following the army like , ,

black ravens might feast themselves u p on the prey which

,

others won for them T o them the death o f an abbot the .

,

squabbles of a m onastery the j ourney o f a prelate to Rom e are , ,

m ore im p or t ant t han the man oe uvres which decided the life and
freedom o f tens o f t hou sands .

S o all we know is tha t William fell u pon Mo rc ar s men at

’
,

S t a fford and sm o t e them with a great des t ruction rol ling the
,

1
S ee t h e a d mirab l e d e scriptio n of th e trag e dy of P e n m ae n m aw r, in
B u lwe r s Haro ld
’
.
222 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

forced hi s way up to th e T ees a second time o ver snow -covered ,

moors ; and this time S t C uthbert sent n o fo g bei n g satisfied

.
,
’
presumably w ith William s orthodox attachm ent t o S t P eter .

and Rome so the C on qu eror treated q uietly with Walt h e o f

and G o sp at ric who lay at D urh am
, .

G o sp at ric got an earldom from T ee s to T yne and paid ,

o w n o r it much hard m oney and trea s ure — bought it in fact

gée sai
, ,

W alt h eo f go t back hi s earldom an d m uch o f Mo rc ar s From

’
, .

the fen s to the T ee s was to be hi s province .

And then to the astonishm ent alike of N orman s and E nglish

, ,
and it may be o f him self h e married J udith the C onqueror s
, , , ,
’

niece and became once m ore William s loved and trusted ’

friend — o r S la v e .

It seem s inexplicable at first s ight I n explicable save as an .

,

instance o f that fascination w hich the strong som e t ime s e x e r

ci s e o v er the weak .

T hen William turned south - west E dwin wild E dric the .

, ,

dispossessed thane o f S h ropshire an d t he wilder Ble t h w allo n ,

and hi s Welshmen were still harryin g and slaying T hey had

, .

j ust attacked S hre w sbury William would come upon them by .

a way they thought not of .

S o over t h e backbone o f E ngland by way probably o f

Halifax o r Huddersfield through pa t hless m oors and bog s ,

d own t owards the plain s of L ancashire an d C heshire h e p ushed ,

o v er and o n His soldiers from the plains o f sunny France

.

could n ot face the cold the rain the mora s ses the hideous
, , ,

gorge s the valiant p easants — still the finest and shrewdest race
,

o f m en in all E ngland — who set u p on them in wooded glens o r ,

rolled stone s o n them from the limestone crag s T hey pra ye d .

to be dismissed to go home , .

’ ’ ‘
‘
C oward s might go back s aid William ; he should go o n , .

If he could not ride he would walk Whoever lagged he would

,
.
,

be forem ost And cheered by his example the arm y at la s t

.
,

debouched upon the C heshire flats .

T hen he fell u on E dwin as he had fallen upon Morcar He , .

drove the wild e lsh through the pass o f Mold and up into ,

their native hills He laid all waste w ith fire and sword for
.

many a mile a s D om esday - book testifies to this day

,
He .

strengthened the walls o f C hester ; trampled o u t the last embers

of rebellion ; and went down south to S alisbury K ing of E ngland ,

on c e again .

Why did h e n o t push o n at once against the o n e rebellion left

aligh t that o f Hereward and his fen m en ?
,
-

It may be t hat he understood him and them It may be that .

he meant to treat wi t h S w ey n as he had done if t he story be , ,

true with A sb io rn It is m ore likely that he could do n o more

, .

that his arm y af t er so swift and long a c am p aign required rest

, , .

It may be that the t ime o f service o f many o f h is mercenaries

XX V HOW HE FOU N D A W ISER MAN T HAN HIMSE L F 2 23

wa s expired Be that as it m ay h e mu s tered them at O ld

.
,

S arum — the Roman B ritish burgh which still stands o n the

d own side — and rewarded them a c cording to their deserts from , ,

the lands o f the conquered E nglish .

Ho w soon Hereward knew all this o r how h e passed th e ,

winter o f 1 0 7 0 —7 1 we cann ot tell B ut to him it m ust h ave been

, .

a winter o f bitter p erplexity .

It was impossible to get information from E dwin and n ew s

from York was almost impos s ible to get for Gilbert of Ghent
st ood between him and it .

He fel t himself n o w pent in all but trapped S in ce h e had ,

.

set foot last in E ngland ugly t hings had risen up on which h e ,

had calculated too li tt le namely N orman cas t les A whole , ,

’
.

ring o f them in N orfolk and S u ff olk cut him o fl from the south .

A castle at C ambridge closed the S outh end of the fen s another

at Bedford th e western end while L incoln castle to the north
,

cut him o ff from York .

His men did n o t see th e di fficulty ; and wanted him t o march

towards York and clear all L indsey and right up to the
,

Humber .

Gladly would he have done so when he heard that the D anes ,

were wintering in the Humber .

‘
B ut how can we tak e L incoln castle with out artillery o r
even a battering ram -

’
L e t us march past it then an d leave it behind , ,
.

‘
Ah m y son s said Hereward lau ghing sadly do you sup
, ,
’
, ,
‘

p ose that th e Mamzer spends his time — and E n glish m e n s life ’

and labou r— in hea p ing u p t hose great stone m ountains that ,

you and I m ay walk past them ? T hey are p ut there j ust to

prevent o u r walkin g past unles s w e choose to h ave the garrison ,

sallying o u t t o attack o u r rear and cut us o ff from home and , ,

c a rry o ff o u r women into the bargain when o u r backs are ,

turned f
T h e E nglish swore and declared that they had never t hought,

0 f t } at .

N0 We drink t o o m uch ale o n this side o f th e Channel to

.
,

think o f tha t — o r of any thing beside .

’

‘
B ut said L e o f w in P rat if we have n o artillery we can
,
’
,
‘
,
’
make some .

S poken like yourself good comrade

‘
If we only knew , .

’
h ow .

‘ ’
I know said T o rf rid a ,I have read o f su ch things in book s .

o f the ancients and I h ave watched them m aking continually

,
—I li t tle kn ew why o r that I should ever turn engineer ’
, .

‘
What is there that yo u do n o t kn ow ? cried they all at ’

once And T o rf rid a actually sho w ed herself a fair practical

.

en g i neer .

But where was iron to c ome from ? Iron for catapult springs -
,

iron for ram heads iron for bolts and bars ?

-
,
22 4 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

‘
T o rf rid a,
’
said Hereward ,
‘
you are wise . Can yo u use the
divining rod
’
Why my knight ? ,
‘
Be c ause there might be iron o re in the wolds and if yo u -

’
could find it by the ro d we might get it u p and smelt it , .

T o rf rid a said humbly that she w ould t ry and walked with

the divining rod between her pretty fingers fo r many a mile in
wood and wol d wherever the ground look ed red and r u sty
, .

B ut she never found any iron .

‘
We m u s t take the tires o ff the cart wheels said L e o f w in -
,
’

P rat .

‘
But how will the carts do without ? Fo r w e shall want
them if we marc h .
’

‘
In P rovence where I was born the wheels were made o u t
, ,

o f one round piece o f wood C ould we n o t cut wheel s like .

them ? asked T o rf rid a

’
.

You are t he wise woman as usual said Hereward ,

’
.

T o rf rid a burst into a violent flood of tears no o n e knew ,

wh y .

T here came over her a vision o f the creaking cart s and the ,

little sleek oxen dove coloured and dove eyed wi t h their

,
- -
,

canvas mantles tied neatly o n to keep o ff heat and flies ,

l ounging o n wi t h their light load o f vine and olive twigs -

benea t h the blazing southern sun When should she see the .

sun once more ? S h e looked u p at the brown branches overhead ,

ho w ling in the D ecember gale and do w n at the brown fen ,

below dying into mist and darkness as the low D ecember sun
,

died down and i t seemed as if her life was d ying down wi t h it .

T here would be no m ore sun and no m ore summers for her , ,

upon this ear t h .

N one certainly for her poor old m o t her He r southern blood .

wa s chilling more and m ore beneath the bitter s ky o f K esteven .

T h e fall o f the leaf had bro u gh t wi t h it rheumatism agu e f an d

’

m any miseries C unning o ld leech wives t rea t ed t he French

.
-

lady wi t h tonics mu gw o rt an d bogbean and good wine eno w , , .

Bu t like D avid o f old she g ot n o heat ; an d before Yule tide

, ,
-

came she had prayed herself safel y o u t o f this world and into
, ,
’
t h e world to come And T o rf rid a s heart wa s the more light
.

when she saw her go .

S h e was absorbed utterly in Hereward and his plot s She .

lived for nothing else hardly even for her child and clung to ,
’
her husband s for t unes all the more fiercely the m ore desperate ,

t hey seem ed .

S o tha t small band o f gallan t m en labou red on waiting for ,

t h e D anes and trying to make artillery and take L incoln keep

, .

And all t he while so unequal is for t un e when G o d W ills ,

t h roughou t t he S ou thern Weald from Hastings to Hind head ,

-
,

every co p se g lared wi t h charcoal heap s every glen was burrowed ,

with iron diggings every hammer —pond stamped and gurgled ,

226 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
E nglish aristocracy And there they sat in Abbot T hurstan s
.

hall and waited for S weyn and the D anes

, .

’
But the w orst Job s messenger w h o during that evil winter ,

and s p ring came into the fen was Bish op E ge lw in o f D urham

, ,
.

He it was most p robably who brought t he news o f Berkshire

, ,

laid waste with fire and sword He it was m ost cer t ainly w h o .
, ,

brought the worse news still th at G o spat ric and W alt h e o f were ,

gone o ver to the king He was at D urham seemingly when he .

, ,

saw that and fled for his life ere evil overtook him f o r t o
, ,

yield to William that brave bisho p had n o mind .

But when Hereward heard that W alt h e o f wa s married to the

’
C on queror s niece h e smote his hands toge t her and cursed
, ,

him and the m other wh o bore him to S iward the S tout

, .

C ould thy father rise fro m the grave he would split thy
‘

craven head in the very lap of the F re n c h w o m an .

’

‘
A hard lap will h e find i t Hereward said T o rf rid a I know , ,
’
.

her— wanton false and vain Heaven grant he do n o t rue the

, ,
.

day he ever saw her

Heaven grant he may ru e it Would that h er b o so m were I

knives and fi sh —hook s like that o f the statue in the fairy tale ,
.

S e e what he ha s d one for us He i s earl not only o f hi s o w n ,

lands but o f poor Mo rc ar s too and o f half hi s earldom He is

,
’
, .

E arl o f Huntin gdon o f C ambridge t hey say — o f this ground o n

, ,

which we stand What right have I here n ow ? Ho w can I call

.

o n a single man to arm as I could in Mo rc a r s name ? I am an

’
,

outlaw here and a robber and so is every man w ith me And

, .

do yo u thin k tha t William did not know that ? He saw well

enough what he was doing when he se t u p that great brainless
idol a s earl again He wanted to split u p the D anish folk and
.
,

he has done i t T h e N orthumbrians will stick to W alt h e o f

. .

T hey think him a mighty hero because he held York gate alone ,

with his own axe against all the French .

’

Well that was a gallant deed

, .
’

Pish we are all gallant men we E nglish I t i s not cou rage ,

.

that we want it is brains S o the York shire and L indsey m en

, .
,

and the N ottingham men t o o will go with W alt h e o f And , .

round here and all through the fens every coward every
, , ,

prudent man even —every man wh o likes t o be within the law and ,

t o feel his head safe on his shoulder s— n o blame to him — will

draw o ff from m e for fear o f this new earl and leave us to end ,

as a han d ful of outlaws I see it all And William sees it all . . .

He is wise enough the Mamzer and so is hi s father Belial to

, , ,

whom h e will go home som e day Yes T o rf rid a he went o n .

, ,
’

af t er a pause m ore gently bu t in a t one o f exquisite sadness

, , ,

you are right as yo u always are I am n o match for that m an

,
. .

I see it now .
’

I never said that O nly . .

‘
O nly you told me again and again that he wa s the wisest
’
man o n ear t h .
XX VI HO\V HE REWARD FU L FI L L ED HI S “ ORD S T
227

And yet for that very reason I bade you win gl ory withou t
‘
, ,
’
end by defyi n g the wisest m an on earth .

‘
And do yo u bid m e do i t s t ill
God knows what I bid said T o rf rid a bu rsting into tears
‘
,
’
,
.

’
L e t m e go p ray for I n ever needed i t m ore
, .

Hereward watched her kneeling as he sat m oody all but , ,

des p erate T hen he glided to her side and said gen t ly

.

T each m e h ow to pray T o rf rid a I can say a p ater o r an

‘
, .

ave But that does not comfort a m an s hear t as far as I could

.
’
,
’
ever find T ea c h me to p ray as yo u and my mother pray
.
, .

’
An d she put her arm s ro u nd the wild m an s neck and tried ,

to teach him like a little child , .

C HA P T E R XX VI
HOW HE RE W A RD F U I
L F L LE D HI S W O RDS T O T HE PR I OR OF
T HE G O L DE N B O RO U G H

IN the course of that winter died good Abbot B rand Hereward .

wen t over to see him and found him moaning t o himself texts
,

o f Isaiah and confessi n g the sins of his peo p le

,
.

W o e t o the vineyard t hat bringe t h for t h wild grape s W o e .

to those t hat j oin house to house and field to fi e ld — like u s and ,

the G o d w in sso n s and every man that could till w e stood alon e
,

in th e land Many ho u ses great and fair shall be wi t hout in

.
, ,

habitants It is all fore t old in holy w rit Hereward m y son

.
, ,
.

Woe to t hose wh o rise early to fill themselves wi t h s t ro n g drink ,

and the tabret and harp are in their feas t s : but t hey regard
not the works of the L ord T herefore m y people are gone in t o .

captivity because they have n o knowledge Ah — t hose French

, .

men h ave knowledge and too m u ch of it w h ile w e have brains

,

filled wi t h ale instead of j ustice T herefore hell hath enlarged .

herself and opened her m outh w ithout measu re — and all go

,

down in t o it one by o n e An d dost thou think thou shal t

, .

escape Hereward thou stou t —hearted

, ,
‘
I nei t her kno w nor care : but this I k now that whitherso ,

ever I go I shall go sword in hand

, .
’

‘ ’
T hey that tak e t he sword shall p erish by the swor d said ,

Brand and blessed Hereward and d ied

, .

A week after cam e news that T horold of Malmesbu ry was

coming to tak e the abbey of P eterborough and had got as far ,

as S tamford w i t h a right royal t rain

,
.

T hen Hereward sent Abbot T horold word t h at if he o r h is

Frenchmen put foot into Peterboro u gh h e Hereward would ,

bu rn i t over t heir heads And that if he rode a mile beyond .

S t amford town h e should walk into i t barefoo t in his shirt

, .

Whereon T horold a b o d e at S t amfor d and ke p t u p h is s p iri t s by ,

singing t he S ong of Rola n d which some say h e him self c om p osed ,

.
2 28 HE REWARD T HE \VAK E C HA P .

A week after that and the D anes were come , .

A mighty flee t wi t h S weyn U lffsso n at their head w en t u p

, ,

the O use t owards E ly Another with A sb io rn at their head .

, ,

having j oined t hem o ff the m outh o f the Humber sailed ( it ,

seems ) u p t he N ene All the chivalry o f D enmark and Ireland .

was come and with i t all the chi v alry and the unchivalry o f , ,

the Baltic S hores —Vikings from J o m sb u rg and Ark ona Gott

.
,

la n ders from Wisby and with them their heathen tribu t aries ,

Wends Finns E sthonian s C o u rlan d e rs Russians from N ovo

, , , ,

gorod and th e heart of Holmgard L etts who still offered in the , ,

forest of Rugen human victims to the four headed S w an t o w it

,
-

foul hordes in S hee p skins and p rimeval fil t h wh o migh t have ,

been s c ented f rom Huns t anton N ess ever since their ships had
rounded the S ka w .

Hereward h urried to them with all hi s m en He was .

a n xious o f co u rse to p revent t heir plunderi n g t he lan d sf o lk as

, ,

they went — and that the savages from the Bal t ic S hore would
certainly do if they could h owever reasonable the D anes O rk
, , ,

n e ym e n and Irish O stmen might be

,
.

Food o f course they m ust tak e where they could find it ;

, ,

but o utrages were not a necessary though a too common , ,

adj un c t to the pro c ess o f em p t ying a farmer s granaries ’

.

He found the D anes in a dangerous mood ; sulky and d is

gusted as they had good right to be T hey had gone to the
, .

Humber and found n othing but ruin ; the land waste ; the
,

F rench holding both the shores o f the Humber and Asb io rn

cowering in Humber m ou th hardly able to feed his m en T hey -
,
.

had c ome t o c onq u er E ngland and no t hing was left for them to ,

conquer but a f e w peat bogs T hen they w ould have w hat -

.

there was in them E very o n e knew that gold gre w up in .

E ngland ou t of the groun d wherever a m onk put his foot And , .

they would p lunder C rowland T heir forefa t hers had done it .

,

and had fared n one the worse E nglish gold they w ould have .
,

if they could n o t get fat E nglish manors .

‘
N o I not C rowland said Hereward Any place but Crow .

l and endowed and h onoured by Canute the Great— C rowland

, ,

whose abbot was a D anish n obleman whose m onks were D anes ,

t o a m an of th eir o w n flesh an d blood C an u t e s soul would

,
.
’

rise u p in Valhalla an d curse th em if they took t he value o f a ,

penny from S t G u t h la c S t G u t h la c was their good friend

. . . .

He wo u ld send th em bread meat ale all they needed but , , ,

woe to the man who set foot upon his grou nd

Hereward sent o ff messengers to C rowland warning all to be ,

ready t o esca p e in t o t he fens and entreating U lfke t yl to emp t y

his s t orehouses into his bar g es and send food to the D anes ere ,

a day was p ast And U lf k e t yl worked hard and well till a

.
,

string o f barges w ound i t s way through the fens laden with ,

beeves and bread and ale barrels in plenty ; and with m onks ,
-

too w h o welcomed the D anes as their brethren talked to the m

, ,
23 0 HERE WARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

sent h im ; an d that unless he saddled and rode his best that

n ight with his m einie of men —
,
at — arms his Golden Borough ,

would be even as T roy town by m orning li ght .

’
‘
A m o i hommes d arm es shouted T horold as h e u sed to ,

shou t whenev e r he wan t ed to scourge his wretched E nglish

m onks at Malmesbu ry in t o some French fashion .

T h e men leaped up and p ou red in growling ,

.

‘
T ake m e this m onk and kick him into the s treet f o r wak ,

ing m e with such news .

’

‘
But gracious lord the heathen will surel y b u rn Peter
, ,

borough and folks said that y ou were a mighty m an o f war .

’

S o I am ; but if I w ere Roland O liver and T urpi n rolled

‘
, ,

into o n e how am I to fight Hereward and the D anes wi t h forty

,

m e ri at arm s ? Answer m e that thou dunder —

-
headed E nglish
p or lg
,
’
er .

S o Y w ar wa s kicked into the col d W hile T horold raged up ,

and down his chamber in m antle and slippers wringi n g his ,

h ands over the treasure o f the Golden Borough snatched from ,

his fingers j ust as he wa s closing them upon it .

T hat night the m onk s o f P eterborough prayed in t he minster

till the long hours passed into the sh ort T h e c o rro d ie rs and .
,

servan t s of the m onas t ery fled from the town ou t side in t o the ,

Milton woods T h e m onk s prayed o n inside till an h o u r after

.

’
matins When the first flu sh o f th e summer s dawn began to
.

S how in the north eastern S k y they heard mingling with their -

, ,

o w n chant another chant which P eterborough had n ot heard

, ,

since it was Me d e h am p st e ad t hree hundred years ago —the ,

terrible Yuch hey saa saa — the war song o f the Viking s o f the
- - - -

north .

T heir chant sto p ped of itself With blan ched faces and .

trembling knees they fled regardless of all discipline u p into

, , ,

t h e mins t er t ower and from the leads looked o u t north ea s t -

ward o n the fen .

1
T h e firs t rays o f th e sum m er sun were j u s t s treaming
o ver the v a st sh e e t o f emerald and glittering upon the winding ,

river 5 and o n a winding line too seemingly endless o f sc arle t , , ,

c oats and shields black hulls gilded poops and vanes and , ,

beak heads and the flash and foam of innumerable oars

-
,
.

And nearer and louder came the o a r roll like th u n der -

,

w orking u p from the east and mingled with it that grim yet ,

laughing He ysaa which bespoke in i t s very no t e th e revelry o f

,

S lau g hter .

T h e ships had all their sails o n deck But as they came nearer .
,

t he monks c ould see t he banners of the tw o foremost vessels ‘

T h e o n e was t he red and white o f the terrible D annebrog .

T h e o t her t he scarcely less terrible Wake knot of Hereward

,
-
.

‘
He will b u rn the minster ! He has vowed to do it AS a .

T h is b e fe ll o n t h e fo u rth d ay o f t h e N o n e s o f Ju n e
1 ’
S o says t h e
‘
.

An glo S ax o n Ch ro n icl e fro m w h ich t h e d e tai ls o f t h e sack are tak e n

-
.
X X VI HOW HE REWARD FU L FILLE D HIS WORDS 2 31

child he vowed, and he m us t do it In thi s very mi n ster the .

fiend entered in t o him an d possessed him and t o this minster

has the fiend brought him back to d o his will S atan my .
,

brethren havin g a S pecial S p ite (as m us t needs be) against S t

, .

P eter rock and pillar of the Holy C h urch chose o u t and in

, ,
’
spired this man even from h is m o t her s womb t hat he m ight be
, ,

the foe and robber of S t P eter and t he hater o f all who lik e .
, ,

my humility honou r him and strive to bring this E nglish land

, ,

in due obedience to t hat blessed A p ostle Bring forth the relics .

,

my brethren Bring for th above all thin gs those filings o f S t

.
, , .

P e t er s o w n c hains t he S pecial glory o f o u r m onastery— and

’
,
’
perhaps its safeguard this day .

S ome such bombast would any m onk o f those days have

talk ed in like case An d yet so stra n ge a thing is man he
.
, ,

might have been withal like He rlu in a shrewd and valiant man , , .

T hey brought out all the relics T hey brought out the filings .

them s elves in a box o f gold T hey held them o u t o v er the

, .

walls at the shi p s and called on all the saint s to wh om they

,

belonged But they stop p ed that lin e o f scarlet black and gold
.
, , ,

as much as their S p iritual descendants stop the lava stream o f -

Vesuvius when they h old out similar m atters at them with a

, ,

hop e unchanged by t he experience of eight hundred years T h e .

He ysaa rose louder and nearer T h e D anes were coming And . .

they came .

And all the while a thousan d sk ylark s rose from o ff the fen ,

and chanted t heir own chant aloft as if appealing to heaven ,

’ ’
against that which man s greed and m an s rage and man s ,
’
,

su p erstition had made o f this fair ear t h o f God

, .

T h e reli c s had been brought o u t : but a s they would not ,

work the only thing to be don e was to p u t them back again and
,

hide them safe lest they s hould bow down like Bel and stoop
,

like N ebo and be carried like them into cap t ivity t h emselves
, , , ,

being w orth a very large sum o f money i n the eyes o f the m ore
C h ris t ian part o f t he D anish h ost .

T hen to hide the treasures as well as they could w hich ( say s

the Anglo S axon C hronicle ) they hid somewhere in the steeple
-
.

T h e D anes were landing n o w T h e sh out which they gave as .

they lea p ed on S hore made t he hearts o f the poor m onks S ink

lo w. Would they be m urdered as well as robbed ? Perhaps ,

n o t — p robably not Here w ard would see to that And some

. .

wanted to capitulate .

He rlu in w ould not hear o f it T hey were safe enou gh S t . . .

’
P eter s relics might no t have work ed a miracle o n t he S pot :
but t hey m ust have done some t hing S t Peter had been . .

ap p ealed to o n his honour a n d on his honour he m ust surely ,

take the ma t ter up At all events the walls and gate s were .
,

s t rong and the D anes had no ar t illery L e t them howl and

,
.

rage round the holy p lace t ill Abbot T horold and the Fren c h ,

men o f the c ountry rose and d rove them to their S hip s .

232 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

In that la s t thought the cunning Frenchman wa s not so far

wron g T h e D anes pushed u p through t he li t tle t own and to
.
,

the minster ga t es but entrance was impos s ible and they

p rowled round and ro u nd like raging wolve s about a winter
steading but found n o crack o f entry -
.

P rior He rlu in grew bold ; and comi n g to the leads o f the

gateway tower looked over cautiously an d h olding up a certain
, ,

m ost sacred em blem — not to be profaned in th ese pages

cursed them in the name o f hi s whole P anth eon .

Ah a He rlu in ? Are you there ? ask ed a sh ort square m an

‘
,

in gay armou r Have you forgotten the peatstack o u tside

.
‘

B o lld yk e Gate and h o w yo u bade light it u nder m e thirty years

,

s ince
‘ ’
T hou art Winter ? and the prior uttered what would be
’
con s idered from an y but a chu rchman s lips a blasphem ou s and
bloodthirsty curse .

‘ ’ ’
Aha ! T ha t goe s like rain o ff a duck s back to o n e who has
been a m in ster scholar in hi s time Yo u D anes O stmen I .

down If yo u shoot at that m an I ll cut you r heads o ff He ,

’
.

is the oldest f o e I have in the world and th e only one who ever ,

hit m e without my hitting him again and nobody shall touch

’
him but m e S o down bows I say .
, .

T h e D anes — h um orous all o f them — s aw that there was a j est

toward and perhap s some earnest too and j oined in j eering the
, ,

pn or .

He rlu in had du ck ed his head behind the parapet n o t from

cowardice but simply because he had o n no m ail 5 and might be
,

shot any m oment But wh en he heard Winter forbid them to .

touch him he lifted u p his head and gave his o ld pupil as good
, ,

as he b rought .

With his sh arp swift French priest s tongue h e s neered h e ’

j eered he scolded he argued and t hen threatened S uddenly

, , .

changing his tone in words o f real eloquence he appealed to ,

t he superstitions o f his hearers He threatened them with .

supernatu ral vengeance He set before them all the terror s o f .

the unseen world .

9

S ome o f the m began to slink away frightened S t P eter was . .

an ill man to have a blood feud with .

Winter stood laughing and j eering in return f o r full ten

, ,

minute s At last . I asked and you have n ot answered have ,

you forgotten t he o ld peatstack outside B o lld yk e Ga t e ? Fo r if

you have T h e Wak e has not He has piled it against the gate 7
,
.
,
’
and i t should be burnt throu gh by this time Go and see . .

He rlu in d isappeared with a c u rse .

’
N o w yo u sea c ock s said Winter springing up
‘
, We ll to
-
, ,
.
‘ ’

the B o lld yk e Ga t e and all start fair , .

’

T h e Bo lld yk e Gate was o n fire and m ore so were the ,

suburbs T here was no ti m e t o save them as Hereward would

.
,

glad ly have done, for t he sake of the c o rro d ie rs T hey m ust .

23 4 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

But to day he spoke them fair However his fair S pee c hes
-
.
,

profited lit t le n ot being understood by a horde o f L e t ts and

,

Finns wh o h owled and bayed at him and tried t o t e a r the

, ,

crucifix from his hand bu t feared T h e white C hrist .

’

T hey were already gaini n g courage from th eir o w n yells in

a m omen t more blood would have been shed and then a general ,

massacre must have ensued .

Hereward saw it and shouting After m e Here w ard s men ,

‘
,
’

A Wake A Wak e swung L ett s and Finns right and left like
c o rn sh e av e s and stood face to face with He rlu in
,
.

An angry savage smote h imo n the hind head full with a ston e
axe He s t aggered and then looked ro u nd and laughed
.
,
.

‘
Fool hast thou n o t heard that Hereward s armour wa s ’

forged by d w arfs in the m ountain bowels ? O ff and hunt for -

,

gold o r it will be all gone

,
.
’

T h e Fi r m wh o was astonished at getting no m ore from his

,

blow than a fe w S park s and expected instant d eath in return , ,

took the hint and vanished j abbering as did his fellow s ,

.

N o w He rlu in the Frenchman I said Hereward

, .

N o w Hereward the rob b er o f saints said He rlu in

‘
,
.

I t was a fine S ight T h e soldier and the churchman the .

,

E nglishman and the Fren chman the m an o f the then w orld , ,

and the man o f the then C hurch pitted fairly face to face , ,
.

Hereward tried for o n e moment to stare down He rlu in Bu t .

those terrible eye glances before which Vikings had quailed -

, ,

turned o ff harmles s from the m ore terrible glance o f the man

w h o believed himself backed by the Maker o f the universe and ,

all the hierarchy o f heaven .

A S har p unlovely face it wa s ; though like many a great

, ,

ch urchman s face of those days it was neither thin nor haggard

’
,

but rather round sleek o f a pu ff y and unwholesome paleness , ,

.

But there was a thin lip above a broad square j aw w hich ,

S howed that He rlu in was neither fool n o r coward .

‘
A robber and a child o f Belial thou hast been from thy
cradle and a robber an d a child o f Belial thou art now D are .

’
t hy las t iniqui t y S lay the servants o f S t P eter o n S t P eter s
. . .

al t ar wi t h t hy worthy comrades th e heathen S aracens and

,
1
, ,

set up Maho u nd with them in the holy p lace .

’

H re w ard laughed so j olly a laugh that the prior w as taken

abac i
,

’ ’
S lay S t P eter s m onk s ? N o t even his rats
. I am a m o n k s
knight as my k not tes t ifies T here shall n o t a hair o f you r j .
,

head be t ou ched O nly I m u st clear o u t all Frenchmen hence

.
,

and all E nglishmen likewise as storks have chosen to pack with ,

the cranes Here Here w ard s m en ! mar c h t hese traitors and

.
,
’

1
T h e Dan e s we re co n tin u ally m istak en b y m e diaeval chu rch m e fo r n

c
S ara en s, an d t h e S ara c e s co n sid e re d t o b e i d o late rs A m au m e e o r id o l
n .
, ,

m e an s a Ma o m e h t
.
XX VI HOW HE REWARD FU L FIL L E D HIS WO RDS 23 5

their French prior safe o u t o f th e walls and into Milton woods , ,

’
to look after their poor c o rro d ie rs .

O u t o f this place I stir n o t Here I am and here I will live .

o r die as S t P eter shall send aid

’
. .
,

B ut as he s p oke h e was precipitated rudely forward and ,

hurried almost into Hereward s arm s T h e wh ole body o f

’
.

m onk s when they heard Hereward s words cared t o hear no

,
’
,

m ore but desperate between fear and j o y ru s hed forward

, , ,

bearing away their prior in the midst .

S o go the rats o u t o f P e t erborough an d so is m y d ream ful

‘
,

filled N o w for the treasure and then to E ly

. , .
’

But He rlu in burst himself clear o f the frantic m ob o f m onk s ,

and turned back o n Hereward .

T hou wast dubbed k n ight in that church

‘
I kno w it man and t hat church and the relics o f the saints
, ,

in it are safe therefore Hereward gives his w ord ’

. .

T hat— but n ot that only if thou art a tru e k night a s thou

‘
, ,
’
h oldes t E nglishman , .

Hereward growled savagely and made an u gly s tep to w ard ,

He rlu in T hat was a poin t which he would not have questioned

. .

T hen behave as a knight and save save — as the m onk s , ,

d ragged him away save t he hospice T here are women

ladie s there I shoute d he a s h e was borne o ff ,
.

T hey never m et again o n earth : bu t both comforted them

’
selves i n after years that tw o o ld enemies last d eed in oo m ,

m on had been o n e o f m ercy .

Hereward uttered a cry o f horror If the wild L etts even .

,

t he Jo m sb u rge rs had go t in all wa s lost He rushed to the

, , .

door I t was no t yet burst but a bench swung by stron g arms

.
, ,

was battering i t in fast .

T o me Hereward s m e n
’
‘
Winter Gery S iwards S t and ,

back fellows Here are friends here inside If you do not I ll

,
. .
,
’

’
cut you down .

But in vain T h e door was burst and in poured t h e savage

.
,

m ob Hereward u nable to sto p them headed t hem o r p re

.
, , ,

t ended to do so with five o r S ix o f his o w n men round him and

, ,

went into the hall .

O n the ru shes lay som e half dozen groom s T hey were -

.

butchered ins t an t ly sim p ly because they were there Hereward ,

.

saw : but could n ot prevent He ran as hard as he could to the .

foot o f the wooden s t air which led to the u p per floor .

Guard t he s t air foot Winter and he ran u p -

, .

T w o w om en cowered upon the floor sh rieking and praying ,

wi t h hands clas p ed over their heads He saw that the arm s o f .

o n e o f them were of the m ost delicate whi t eness and j udging ,

h e r to be th e lady bent over her L ady you are safe ,

I w ill .
‘
.

protect you I am Hereward . .

’

S h e spra n g u p and thre w h erse lf with a scream into his

,

arms .
236 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Hereward Hereward S ave m e I am .

‘
Alf t ru d a said Herewar d .

It was Alft ru d a if possible m ore beautiful than ever .

I h ave got you she cried I am safe n o w T ake m e away . .

O u t of t h is h o rrib le place — T ak e m e into th e woods — Any

where — O nly d o not let me be burnt here— st ifl e d like a rat .

Gi v e m e air Give m e water and S h e clung to him so madly

that Hereward a s he held h er in his arm s and gazed on her
, ,

extraordinary bea u t y forgot T o rf rid a f o r th e second time

, .

B u t there wa s n o t ime to indulge in evil thoughts even had ,

any crossed hi s min d He caught her in his arms and c o m

.
,

man d ing the maid to follo w hurried do w n the stair , .

Winter and the S iwards were d efending th e foot with swing

ing blades T h e savages were h owli n g rou nd like o u rs about a
.

bull and when Hereward appeared above with the w omen ,

there was a loud yell o f rage and envy .

He should n ot have th e women to h imself— T hey would s hare

t h e plunder equally— was sh outed in half a d o z en barbarou s
lialect s .

Have you lef t any valuab les in the chamber ? whispered he

‘ ’

to Alft ru d a .

Yes j ewels— robe s — L e t them have all only save me

, ,

L e t me pass roared Hereward T here is rich booty in the .

‘

room above and you m ay have it as these ladies ransom

,
’
.

T hem yo u d o n ot touch Back I s ay let m e pas s .

, ,

And h e rushed forward Winter and the h o u se c arle s formed .

round him and the wom en and hu rried d own th e hall ; while ,

the savages hurried u p the ladder to quarrel over their spoil , .

T hey were out in t he courtyard and safe f o r the m oment , .

But whi t her should he tak e her ?

’

'
E arl Asb io rn said o n e o f th e S iward s
,
But how to find .

h 1m
‘
here i s Bishop Ch rist ie rn
T An d th e bishop w as c au gh t p

and stop p e d .

T his is a n evil day s work S ir Herewar d

‘ ’ ’
.
,
‘
T hen h elp to mend it by tak i n g care o f these ladies like a ,
’
man o f G o d And h e ex p lained the case
. .

’
Y o u may com e safely with m e my poor lambs said th e
‘
, ,

bishop .I am glad to find s omething to do fit for a chur c hman .

’
T o m e my h o u se ca rle s
, .

But they were all o ff plu n dering .

We will stand by you and the ladie s and see you safe down ,

t o the ships said Win t er and s o they wen t o ff

,
’
,
.

Here w ard would gladly have gone wi t h t hem as Alft ru d a ,

t e o u sly entreated him But he heard his n am e called o n every

.

side in angry t ones .

Wh o wants Hereward
‘

E arl A sb io rn — Here he is
‘ ’
.

T hose scou n d rel monks have hi dd en all the al t ar fu rn i t u re .

23 8 HE RE W ARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

I am sorry for you j arl said Hereward But for the poor
, ,
’
.

’ ’
E n glish m e n s sake so i t m ust be , .

I ing S weyn shall j udge of that Why dost hold m y wrist

!
.
,

man
’
D aggers are apt to get loose in su c h a press as this
‘
.

Always T h e Wake said Asb io rn with a for c ed laugh

‘
,
’
,
.

Alway s T h e Wak e And a s thou saidst K ing S weyn the

‘
.
,
’
j ust shall j u dge bet w een us .

Jarl A sb io rn s w ung from him and into the now thinnin g ,

p ress S oon only a fe w remained to search by the glare o f t h e

.
, ,

flames for wh at their fellows might have o verlooked

, .

N o w the play is played o u t said Hereward we may as well

’ ‘
, ,
’
go d own and to our ship s .

S ome drunk en ru fiian s would have burnt the church for mere
‘

m is c hief But A sb io rn as well as Hereward stopped that And

.
, ,
.

gradually they got the men d own to the ships ; some drunk ,

some struggling under p lunder ; some cursing and qua rrelling

because nothing had fallen t o their lot It was a hideous scene : .

bu t o n e to which Herewar d as well as A sb io rn was too well , ,

accustomed to see aught in it save an hour s inevitable troub le ’

in getting the m e n o n board .

T h e m onk s had all fled O nly L e o f w in the L ong was lef t .

,

and he lay S ick in the in fi rm a ry Whether he was burnt there .

in o r saved by Hereward s m en is n o t told

,
’

, .

And so was the Golden Borough sacked and burnt N o w .

then whither ? ,
’

T h e D anes w ere to go to E ly and j oin t he arm y there .

Hereward would march on to S tamford secu re t he town if he

could ; then to Huntingdon to secure i t likewise ; and o n to ,

E ly af t erwards .

’
You will not leave me am ong these savages ? said Alft ru d a .

Heaven forbid I You shall come with m e as far as S tamford ,

’
and then I will set you o n you r way .

’
My way ? said Alf t ru d a in a bitter and hopeless tone ,
.

Hereward mounted her on a good horse and rode beside her , ,

looking — and he well knew it — a very p erfect knight S oo n they .

began to talk What had brought A lf t ru d a to P eterborough of

.
,

all pla ces o n ear t h ?

A woman s fortune Because I am rich — and some say fair
‘ ’
.

— I am a puppet a S lave a prey I was going back t o m y Jzo -

, , .

’
D o lfi n .

Have you been away from him then ? ,

’

‘ ’
Wh at ? D o you no t know ?
Ho w should I kn ow lady ? ,
’

Yes m os t true Ho w S h oul d Hereward know anything

‘
, .

a b u t A lft ru d a ? But I will tell you Maybe you may not care
to q
.

l ear l
‘
About you ? Anything I have often longed to kn ow how .

— what you were doing .

’
XX VI HOW HE REWARD FU L FI L L E D HIS “T O RDS 23 9

Is it possible ? Is there o n e human being left o n ear th

‘

who cares t o hear abou t Alf t ru d a ? T hen listen Yo u know that .

when G o sp at ric fled t o S c o t land his son s went wi t h him — young

G po s a t ri c W a lt h e o f 1
and h e —D o lfi n E thelreda his girl wen t .
, , , ,

too— and she is to marry they say D uncan Malcolm s eldest , , ,

’

son by I n ge b io rg S o G o spat ric will find himself som e day

.
, ,
’
father in la w of the K ing o f S cots
- -
.

I will warrant him to find his nest well lined wherever h e

‘
,
’
be But o f yourself ?
.

I refused to go I could n ot face again that bleak black

‘
.

N orth Besides — but that is no c oncern o f Here w ard s

.
’

Hereward was o n the p oint o f saying Can anything concern ,

’
you and not be interesting to m e ?
,

B ut S h e went o n
I refused and ,
’
And h e misused you ? asked he fiercely
‘
.

‘
Better if h e had Better if he had tied m e to his stirrup .
,

and scourged m e along into S c otland t han have left m e to n ew ,

dangers and to o ld tem p tations

,
.
’

What tem p tations

Alft ru d a did n o t answer but went o n
He told m e in his l ofty S cots fashion t h at I was free to do
’
,

w hat I list T ha t he had long since seen tha t I cared no t for

.

’
him and that he would find many a fairer lady in his own land .

T here he lied S o you did not care f o r him ? He is a noble

.

’
knight .

What is that to me ? Women s hearts are not to be bough t ’

and s old w i t h their bodies as I was sold C are for him ? I ,

.

care for n o creatu re upon earth O nce I cared for Hereward .

,

like a sil ly child N o w I care n o t even for him . .

’

Hereward was sorry to hear that Men are vainer than .

women ; j us t as pea c ock s are vainer than peahens ; and Here

ward was — alas far him — a specially vain man O f course for .
,

him to fall in love wi t h Alft ru d a would have been a shameful

S in ; h e would n o t have commi tt ed it for all the t reasures o f

C onstan t ino p le but it was a n ot un p leasant though t t hat Alf

t ruda should fall in love with him But h e only said ten d er ly .
,

and c ourteously
‘ ’
Alas poor lady 1
‘
P oor lady T o o true that last . For whi t her am I going ,
.

n ow ? Back t o that man once more .

’

T o D o lfi n
T
m y master like a ru n away slave I went down south to
o , .

Queen Matilda I knew her well and sh e was k ind to me as

.
, ,

1
T h is W alt h e o f G o spat ricsso n m u st n o t b e c o n fo u n d e d with W alt h e o f
S iw ard sso n t h e yo u n g e arl
, He b e cam e a wi ld b o rd e r Ch ie ftai n th e n
.
,

B aro n o f A t t e rd ale an d th e n g av e A t t e rd ale t o h is si ste r Q u ee n E th e l re d a

, , ,

an d t u rn e d m o n k an d at l ast ab b o t o f Crowlan d ; c rawli n g h o m e

, po o r
, ,

fell ow lik e m an y an o th e r t o d ie in pe ac e in t h e san ctu ary o f t h e Dan e s

, , .
2 40 HE RE W ARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

sh e is to all thing s that breathe But n o w tha t G o sp at ric is .

come i n t o t he king s grace a g ain an d has bought the earldom o f

’

N or t hum bria fro m T ees to T yne

,

Bought the ea rl dom

T hat has he and paid for it righ t heavily ’
.

T raitor and fool ! He will n o t keep it seven years

‘
T he .

Frenchman will pick a quarrel w ith him and cheat him o u t o f ,

’
earldom a n d m oney too .

T h e which William did within three year s , .

‘ ’
May it be so B u t w hen h e came into the king s grace he ,
’ ’
m ust needs demand m e back in his son s nam e .

‘ ’
What does D o lfi n want wi t h you ?
His father w a n ts my m oney and stipul ated for it wi t h the
k iri g And besides I s uppose I am a p retty plaything enough
.
,

sti ll
D ol fin is right Ho w could
‘
Y o u ? You are di v ine perfect ,
. .

’
a man who had once enj oyed you live wi t hou t you ? ,

Alft ru d a laughed a laugh full of m eaning : but what that

,

m eaning was Hereward c ould n ot divine .

S o n o w she said what Hereward has to d o as a true and

’
, , ,

courteou s knight i s to gi ve Alft ru d a safe condu ct and if h e c an

, , , ,

a guard and to de liver her up loyally and knightly t o his o ld

friend and fellow warrior D o lfi n G o spat ric sso n earl o f whatever
-
, ,

he can lay h old o f for the current m onth .

’

Are yo u in earnest
Alft ru d a laughed o n e o f her strange lau ghs looki n g straigh t ,

before her Indeed she had never looked Hereward in t he face

.

dorin g the wh ole r ide .

’
What are t hose o p en holes ? Graves ?
T hey are Barnack stone quarries which W alt h e o f the Wittol ,

has j ust given away to C ro w land Better tha t though than .

, ,
’
kee p them for his new F ren ch cousins to build castles withal .

S o ? T ha t is a p ity I thought they had been graves and

.

then you migh t h ave covered m e up in o n e o f them and lef t me ,

’
to sleep in peace .

What can I do for yo u Alft ru da my o ld playfellow Alft ru d a , , , ,

’
w h om I saved from the bear ?
If Alf t ru d a had foreseen the second m onster into whose j aws
she was to fall she would have prayed you to h old tha t t errible
,

hand o f you rs whi c h n ever since m en say has s t ruck withou t

, , ,

victory and ren own You w o n your first honour for m y sake
. .

B u t who am I now that you S hould turn o u t o f your glori o us

,

p ath for me
‘
I will do anything— anything But why miscall thi s noble .

prin c e a mons t er ? ’

‘
If he were fairer than S t John m ore wise than S olomon .
, ,

and more valiant than K ing William he is t o me a monster ; ,

for I loa t he him and I kn o w n ot why But do your duty as a

, .

knight sir C onvey the lawful wife to her lawful spouse

, . .
’
2 42 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P
country and that as yo u had given your s elf u p to him o f your
,

own accord he thought it wisest to detain yo u a s a hostage fo r

, ,

D o lfin s allegiance
’ ’
.

He shall s ay so I will m ak e h im say s o ’

. .

S o be it N o w here we are at S tamford town and I m ust

.
,

to m y trade D o you like to see fighting Alf t ru d a — the man s

.
,
’

game the royal game the only game w or t h a thought o n earth ?

, ,
’
Fo r you are like to s ee a little in the n ext ten minute s .

I S hould like to see you fight T hey tell m e none i s so swif t .

and terrible in the battle as Hereward Ho w can yo u be other .

w ise who S le w the bear — when w e were two happy children to

,
’
gether ? But shall I be safe ?
S afe ? o f course said Hereward wh o longed peacock like
‘ ’ -
, , , ,

to S ho w o ff his prowes s before a lady who was — there wa s n o

denying it — far m ore beautiful than even T o rfrid a .

But he had n o opp ortunity t o S how o ff that p rowess Fo r as .

,

h e galloped in over S tamford Bridge Abbot T horold galloped ,

o u t at the opposite end of the town through C asterton and up ,

the Roman road to Grantham .

After whom Hereward sent Alft ru d a (fo r h e heard that ,

T horold wa s going to Gilbert at L incoln ) with a guard o f

kn ight s bidding them do him n o harm but s aying tha t Here ,

ward k new him to be a preu x chevalier and lover o f fair ladie s

that he had sent him a right fair one to bear him company t o
L incoln and hoped that h e would sing to her o n the way the
song o f Roland .

And Alf t ru d a wh o knew T h orold wen t willingl y since it

, , ,

could no better be .

After which according to Gaim ar Hereward tarried three

, ,

days at S tamford laying a heavy tribute o n the burges s es fo r

,

harbouring T horold and his N ormans and also surprised at a

drinking bout a certain special enemy o f his and cha s ed him ,

from room to room s w ord in hand till he took refuge shamefully ,

in an outhou s e and begged his life And when h is knight s came

, .

back from Grantham he marched to Bourne , .

T h e next night s ay s Richard o f E ly o r it may be L eofric

‘ ’
, ,

himself Hereward saw in hi s dream s a man standing by him

‘
,

o f inestimable beauty o ld o f year s terrible o f co u n t enan c e in

, , ,

all the raiment o f his bo d y m ore splendid than all thing s which
he had ever seen o r conceived in hi s mind who threatened him
,

with a great club w hich he carried in his hand and wi th a ,

fearful doom that he should take back to hi s church all that

,

had been carried o ff the night before and have them restored ,

utterly each in its place if h e wished to provide for the salva

, ,

tion o f his soul and escape o n the spot a pitiable death But
, .

when a w akened he was seized with a divine terror and restored

, ,

in the same hou r all that he took away and so departed going , ,
’
onward with all his men .

S o say s the ch ronicler wishi n g as may be well believed to , , ,

XX VI HOW HEREWARD FU L FILLED HIS WORDS 243

’
advance the glory o f S t Peter and to purge his hero s nam e .
,

from the s tain o f sacrilege Besides t he monks of Peter b orough .

, ,

n o doubt had no wish that the w orld should sp y o u t their

,

nakedness and become aware that the Golden Borough was

,

s tripped o f all its gold .

N evertheless truth will out Golden Boro u gh wa s Golden

,
.

Boroug h n o more T h e t re asu I e s were never restored ; they

.

went to s ea with the D anes and were scattered far and wide ,
‘
to N O I way to Ireland to D enmark ; all the spoils says the
, ,
’

An glo -S axon C hronicle which reached the latter country being ,

‘
,

t h e pallium and some o f the shrines and crosses ; and many of

’
th e other treasures they brought to o n e o f the king s towns and ,

laid them up in the chur c h But o n e night through g their care .

,

lessnes s and dru nkenness the chu rch was burned w it h all that , ,

was therein T hu s was the minster o f P eterborough burned

.

and pillaged May Almighty God have pity o n it in His great

.

m ercy And thu s Abbot T u ro ld came to Peterborough

. .

When Bishop E ge lric heard this h e excommunicated the m en ,

’
who had done this evil T here was a grea t famine this y ear . .

Hereward when blamed for the deed said always that he did
, ,
’
it because o f his allegiance to the monastery
‘
.

And some o f the treasu re at least he m ust have surely given , ,

back he so appeased the angry shade o f S t Pe t er Fo r o n that

,
. .

night when marching past S tamford he and his lost their way
, , .

‘
T o whom a cer t ain wonder happ ened and a miracle if it can , ,

be said that su ch would be worked in favou r o f men o f blood .

Fo r while I n t he wild n i ght and d ark they wandered I n the wood ,

a h u ge wolf met them waggi n g his tail like a tame dog and , ,

wentgbefore them on a path And they taking the gray beast .

,

in t h e darkness for a white d o g c heered on each o t her to follo w ,

h i m to his farm which ought g to be hard by And I n the silence

,

o f the midnigh t that t h e y might see th eir way suddenly candle s

, ,

app eared b urning and clinging to the lances o f all the knigh ts
,
— not very bright however but lik e those whi c h the folk called
, .

c an d e lae nympharum — w ills o f th e wisp B ut none could p ull .

them o ff o r al t oge t her extinguish them o r throw them from

, ,

their hand s And thus they saw their way and went o n al tho u gh
.
, ,

astonished o u t o f mind with the wolf leading them until day ,

dawned and t hey sa w to their great astonishment that he was

, , ,

a wolf And as they ques t ioned amo n g themselves about w hat

.

had befallen t h e wolf and t h e candles disappeared and they

, ,

came whither they had been minded beyond S tamford town , ,

’
thanking G o d andywondering at what had h app ened
‘

, .

Af t ergwhich Hereward took T o rf rid a and his child and all , ,

he had and took ship at Bard e n e y and went for E ly Which

, , .

when E arl Warrenne heard h e laid wait for him seemingly , ,

near L it tle p ort : but got n othing thereby according to Richard ,

of E ly but t he p leasu re o f giv m g and taking a great d eal o f bad

,

language , and ( after his men had refuse d rea s onably enough , ,
244 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

to swim the O use and attack Hereward ) an arrow which Here ,

w ard m o d icu m se i n c lin an s stooping forward says t he chronicler

, , ,
— who probably saw the deed — ~shot at him across t h e O use as
,

t he earl stood cursing on the t o p o f th e dyke Which arrow flew .

so stout and strong t hat though it sprang back from E arl ,

Warrenne s hauberk it knocked him almos t sen s eless o ff his

’
,

horse and forced him to defer his pu rpose of avenging S ir

,

Frederic his brother .

Af t er which Hereward threw himself into E ly and assumed , ,

by consent o f all the command o f the E nglish who were therein

, .

C HA P T E R XXVII
HO W T HE Y HE L D A G RE AT M E E T I N G I N T HE HA L L O F E LY

T HE RE sat round the hall o f E ly all th e magnates o f the east

land and east sea T h e abbot was o n his high seat ; and on a
.

seat higher than his pre p ared S p e c ially S weyn U lfsso n K ing
, , ,

o f D enmark and E ngland By them sat the bish ops E ge lw in .

,

t he E nglishman and Ch rist ie rn the D ane Asb io rn t he young ’

E arls E dwin and Morcar and S weyn s two sons ; and it may , ,

be the sons o f T osti G o d w in sso n and Arkill the great thane

, , ,

and S i w ard Barn and Hereward himself Below them were ,

.

k nights Vikings ca p tains great holders from De m n ark and

, , , ,

t he prior and inferior o ffi cers o f Ely m inster And at the .

bottom o f the mis t y hall o n t he other side of the column o f ,

bl ue va p our which went trembling up from the great heap o f

burning turf amidst were h o u se c arle s m onks wild men from , , ,

the Bal t ic shores crowded together to hear what was d one in

,

that parliame n t o f t heir betters .

T hey spoke like free D a n es the betters from the upper end
of the hall but every man as he chose T hey were in full
, .

T hing in parliament as their forefa t hers had been wont to be ,

for coun t less ages T heir House o f L ords a n d their House o f

.

C omm ons were not yet defined from each o t her but they knew
the rules o f t he house th e courtesies o f debate and by practice , ,

o f free speec h had educated themselves to bear and forbear

, ,

like gentlemen .

B u t the S p eaking was loud and earnest often angry that ,

’

fl
‘
ay .What was to be done ? was the ques t ion before the
ouse .

’
T hat depended said S w eyn the wi s e and p rudent kin g on
‘
, , ,

what c ould be done by t he E nglish to c o operate with them -

.
’

And what that was has been already told .

‘
When T osti G o d w in sso n ye bisho p s j a rls knight s and , , , ,

holders ca m e t o m e five years ago and bade me take m y righ t s

, ,

in this lan d o f E ngland I answered him that I had n o t wit ,

enough to do the deeds which Canute my u ncle did and so sat

2 46 HEREWARD T HE WAKE C HA P .

so you m ust have a shrewd answer to give beside knocking

, ,
’
them down .

S weyn spoke without rising T h e good knight forget s that

this expedi t ion has cost D enmark already nigh a s m uch as
Harold Hard raad e s cost N orway It is hard upon the D anes
’
.
,

if they are to go away empty —handed as well as disap p ointed .

’

T h e king has right ! cried Hereward

’
L e t them tak e the
‘ ‘
.

p lunder o f P e t erborough as p a y for what they have done and ,

w hat besides they would have done if A sb io rn the j arl — nay ,

men o f E ngland l et us be j ust —what Asb io rn h imself would

,

have done if there had been heart and wit o n e mind and o n e ,

purpose in E ngland T h e D anes have done their best T hey

, . .

have shown themselves what they are o u r blood and kin I ,

.

k now that some talk o f treason of bribes L e t u s have n o m ore , .

such vain and foul suspicion s T hey cam e a s o u r friends and .

as o u r friends let them go and leave us to fight o u t o u r o w n ,

’
quarrel to the last drop o f blood .

Would G o d said S weyn thou wouldest go too thou good , ,

knight Here earls and gentlemen o f E ngland ! S weyn Ulfs

.
,

son o fl e rs to every o n e o f you who will com e to D enmark with

'

,
’
him shelter and hospi t ali t y till better times sh all come
, .

T hen arose a mixed cry S ome would go some would n o t .

,
.

S ome o f the D anes took the proposal c ordially ; some feared

bringing among themselves men who would needs want land o f ,

which there was none to give If the E nglish came th ey mu s t .

,

go u p the Baltic and conquer fresh lands f o r them s elves from

,

hea t hen L etts and Finn s .

T hen Hereward rose again and s pok e s o n obly and s o well ,

that all ears were charmed .

T hey were E nglishmen ; and they would rather die in their

o w n m erry E ngland than win new kingdoms in the cold nor t h
east T hey were sw orn the leaders o f them to die o r con qu er
.
, , ,

fi ghting the accursed Fren c hman T hey were bound to S t . .

P eter and to S t G u t h lac and to S t Felix o f Ramsey and S t

, .
,
.
,
.

E t h e ld re d a the holy virgin beneath whose roof they stood to ,

d efend against Frenchm en the saints o f E n glan d whom they C

despised and blasphemed whose servants they cast o u t thrust ,

‘

in t o prison and mu rdered that they might bring in Frenchmen

, ,

from N ormandy Italians from the P op e o f Rome , S weyn .

U lfsso n spoke as became him as a prudent and a generou s ,

p rince ; the man wh o alone o f all kings defied and fought t h e

g rea t Hard raad e till neither co u ld fight more the true neph ew
o f C anu t e t he king o f kings and they thanked him but they
w ould live and die E nglishmen .

And every E nglis h man shouted Hereward is right We .

‘

’
will live and die figh ting the Fren ch .

And S weyn U lf sso n rose again and said with a great oath , ,

T hat if t here had been three such men as Hereward in E ngland ,

’
all w ould have gone well .
xxv i i HO W T HEY HE L D A G RE AT ME ET IN G 2 47

Hereward laugh ed T h ou art w rong f o r once wise ki n g .

, .

We have failed j ust because t here w ere a dozen men in E ngla n d

,

as good as I every man wantin g his o w n way and too m any

,

cooks h ave spoiled the broth What w e wan t ed is n o t a dozen .

men like me bu t one lik e thee to t ake u s all by the back o f t he

, ,

neck and shake u s soundly and say D o t hat o r die , , ,

An d so af t er much talk the m eeting broke u p

,
And when , .

it brok e up there cam e to H ereward in t he hall a noble looking

,
-

man o f his o w n age and p ut his hand within h is and said , ,

D o yo u n o t know m e Hereward L e o f ric sso n

‘
,
‘
I know thee not good knigh t m ore pity but by thy dre ss , ,
’
and carriage thou shouldes t be a tru e V ikin gsso n
, .

I am S igt ryg Ran ald sso n now K ing o f Waterford And my , .

“
wife said to me If there be treach ery o r faint heartedness
,
-
,

remember this— that Hereward L e o fric sso n s lew the ogre and ,

Hannibal o f Marazion lik ewise and brought m e safe t o thee ,

.

And therefore if tho u p ro v e st false to him niddering thou art ;

, , ,
”
and n o niddering is spouse o f mine .

‘
T hou art S igt ryg Ran ald sso n cried Hereward clasping ,

him in his arms as the scenes o f his wild youth ru shed across his
,

mind Better is o ld wine than new and o ld friends likewise

.
, .
’

And I and my five ship s are thine to death L e t who will

, , .

’
go back .

T hey must go s aid Hereward half peevishly

’ ‘
S wey n has
‘
-
.
, ,

right and Asb io rn too T h e gam e is played o u t S weep the

,
. .

’
c hessmen o ff th e board as E arl Ulf did by Canute t h e kin g , .

An d lost his life thereby I s hall s tand by, and s ee thee

‘
.

’
play th e last p aw n .

’
An d lose thy life in likewise .

‘
What matter ? I heard thee s ing
d th a prie st d e ath
A b ed- ea , ,

A s raw e a
t d th a c o w d e ath , ,

S uch d th k e s n o t m e
ea li .
”

No r likes it m e eith er Hereward L e o fric sso n ,

.
’

S o the D anes sailed away : but S igt ryg Ran aldsso n and his
five S hips remained .

Hereward wen t u p to the min s ter towe r and watched the

O use flashi n g wi t h countless oars northwar d toward S o uthrey
Fen And w h en they were all out o f sight he went back and
.
, ,

l ay down o n his bed and wept on ce and for all T hen he ,

-
.

arose and went d o w n in t o the hall to abbots an d m onks and

, ,

earls and k nights and was the boldest cheeriest wittiest o f , , ,

them all .

’
T hey say quoth he to T o rf rida that night that some m en
‘ ‘
, ,

have gray heads o n green S houlders I have a gray heart in a .

’
green body .

And my heart i s growing very gray t o o said T o rfrida

‘
,
’
.
2 48 HE REWARD T HE WA KE C HA P .

C ertainly not thy head

And he played with her raven locks ’
. .

T hat m ay come t oo and too soon ’

, .

Fo r indeed they were in very evil case

, , .

C HA P T E R xxv m

HO W T HE Y F O UG HT AT A L D RE T E

W HE N William heard that the D anes were gone he marched o n ,

E ly as o n an easy prey
, .

Ivo T aillebois came with him h ungry af t er tho s e S palding ,

land s the ren t s whereof Hereward had been taking fo r his men
,

for now twelve month s William de Warrenne was there .

,

vowed to revenge the death o f S ir Frederic his brother ,

.

Ralph G u ad e r was there flushed with hi s success at N orwich ,

.

And with them were all the Frenchmen o f the east who had ,

been either expelled from their lands o r W ere in fear o f ,

expulsion .

‘
With them too wa s a great army o f mercenarie s ru fiian s
, , ,

from all France and Flanders hired to fight for a certain term o n , ,

the chance o f plunder o r o f fi e fs in land T heir brains were .

all a flam e with the tales o f inestimable riche s hidden in E ly .

T here were there the j ewels o f all the m onasteries round there
were th e treasures o f all t he fugitive E nglish nobles ; there were
there— w hat was there not ? A n d they grumbled when William
halted them and hutted them at C ambridge and began t o feel ,

cau t iously the streng t h o f the p lace — whi c h m ust be strong o r ,

Hereward and the E nglish w ould n ot have made it their camp

o f refuge .

P erhaps he rode u p to Madingley windmill and s aw fif t een

miles a w ay clear against the sky the long line o f what
, ,

seemed nough t but a low u p land park wi t h t he minster t ower ,

amon g the trees and between him and them a rich champaign ,

o f g rass over whi c h i t was easy enough to march all t he armies

,

o f E urope ; and thought Ely an easy pl ace to t ake But men .

told him that between him and those trees lay a black abyss o f
mud and peat and reeds Haddenham fen and S mi t hy fen with , ,

the deep sullen West wa t er o r Ald reche o f the O use windi n g

1 ‘
-

through them T h e o ld Roman road to S tretham was sunk and

.

gone lon g since under the bog whe t her by E nglish neglect o r , ,

whether (as som e think ) by actual and bodily sinking of the

w hole land T h e narrowest space between d ry land and dry
.

1
I ive t h e s ppo se e ym o l o i e s o f o n e o f t h e vari o s spe llin s o f
g u d t g u g
A b e e r is Ab e y e , t h e Ald e rsh o re ; a tt h th
’
‘
Alre h e d e , n o w A ld re t h .
I
-

b e er s ill , pe r aps, S t E t h e ld re d a, o r A
tt t h rey, e rse l S t A rey s ud h f ud
’
. . .

Ca seway l e a s t o t h e S po ; S t A
u d rey s we ll is, o r w as, o n t h e sl o pe
t ud
’
.

ab o ve an d t h e n am e o f t h e
pla e m ay b e sim ply A rey s Hy e
’
c ud th .
25 0 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Meanwhile the besieged had not been idle T hey had .

thrown u p a turf rampart o n the island shore and ante ,

muralia e t p I o p u gn a c u la —doubtless overhan ging hoardings

I
’ ‘
,
’

o r sca ffolds through the floor o f which they could shower d own
,

m issiles 1
And so they awaited the at t ack contenting them
.
,

selves with glidin g in and o u t o f the reeds in their canoe s and ,

annoying the builder s with arrows and cross bow bolts -

.

At last the bridge was finished and the sow safe across the ,

Westwater and thrust in as far as it would float am ong the , ,

q
re o n the high tide T hey in the fort could touch it with a
.

po e .

T h e E nglish would have destroyed it if they could B ut T h e .

Wake bade them leave it alone He had watched all their .

work and made up his m ind to the event

, .

T h e rats have set a tra p for themselves he said to his men ; ,

’

g
f an
I n sI e
w e s hall be fools t o break it u p till the rat s are safe
.

S o there the huge sow lay black and S ilent S howing no t hing , ,
to the enemy but a side o f strong plank covered wi t h hide to ,

p revent its being burned It lay there for three hou rs and T h e
.
,

Wake let it lie .

He had never been so cheerful so confident Play the man , .

this day every o n e o f you and ere nightfall yo u will have

,

taught t he Frenchman once more the lesson o f York He seem s .

’
to have forgotten that It is time to remind him o f it . .

And he looked to his b o w and t o his arrows and prepared to ,

play the man himself ; as was the fashion in those o ld days ,

when a general proved his worth by hitting harder and m ore

surely than any o f his men .

At last the army was in m otion and Willingham field o pp o ,

site was like a crawling ants nest Brigade after brigad e ’

.

moved down to the reed beds and the assault began ,

.

And now advanced along the causeway and along the ,

bridge a dark column o f men surmounted by glit t ering steel

, ,

knights in complete mail footmen in leather coats and j erkins

at first orderly enough ea c h under t he banner o f hi s lord but
,

m ore and more mingled and crowded as each hu rried forward , ,

eager for his selfish share o f the inestimable treasure s o f E ly .

T hey p ushed along the bridge T h e mass became m ore and .

m ore crowded men stumbled over ea c h other and fell o ff into ,

the mire and water calling vainly for hel p but their co m rades
,

hu rried o n unheeding in the mad thirst for s p oil ,

.

O n they cam e in thousands ; and fresh thousands st reamed

out of the fields as if the whole arm y intended to pour itself
,

into the isle at on c e .

’
T hey are n umberle s s said T o rf rid a in a serious and
, ,

astonished voice as she stood by Hereward s side

,
’
.

1
W as th i s Hereward s Fo rt wh ich w as stil l sh own in t h e fen s in ’
‘ ’

t h e d ays o f Ro ge r o f We n d o ve r ?
XX VIII HOW T HE Y FOU G HT AT ALDRE T H 25 1

Would they were ! said Hereward

‘
L e t them com e o n
’
.
‘
,

thick and t hreefold T h e more their nu mbers the fatter w ill.

,

th e fish below be before to morrow m orning ,

L ook there -
.
,
’
already !
And already the bridge was swaying and si n ki n g beneath ,

their weight T h e men in places were ankle deep in water

.
, ,
.

T hey ru s hed o n all the more eagerly filled the sow and ,

swarmed u p to i ts roof .

T hen what w ith its o w n w eight what with the weight o f the
, ,

laden bridge which dragged upon i t from behind t he huge so w ,

be an to tilt backwards and slide down the slimy b a nk , .

he men o n the top tried vainly t o kee p t heir foo t ing ; t o

hurl grapnels into the rampart to shoot o ff t heir q uarrels and
arrows .

Yo u must be q uick Frenchmen shouted Hereward in deri

’
, ,
’
sion if you mean to come o n board he re
,
‘
.

T h e French knew that well : and as Hereward spok e t w o ,

panels in the front o f the so w creak ed o n their hinges and ,

dro p ped landward forming two drawbridges over which reeled

, ,

to the attack a close body o f knights min gled with soldiers ,

bearing scaling ladders .

T hey recoiled Between the ends o f the drawbridges and the

.

foot o f the rampart was some two fath om s bread t h o f black ’

ooze T h e ca t as t rop he which T h e Wak e had foreseen was com e

.
,

and a shout o f derision arose from the unseen defenders above .

C ome o n leap it lik e m en ! S end back f o r you r h or s es

‘
, ,

knights and ride them at it lik e bold hu n t smen

,

T h e front rank co u ld not but rush on for the pressure behind

forced them forward whether they would o r n ot In a moment , .

they were wallowing waist deep ; tram pled o n ; disappearing

u nder their struggling comrade s who disappeared in their ,
turn .

L ook T o rf rid a ! If they plant their s caling ladders it will

‘
, ,
’
be o n a foundation o f t heir com rade s corpses ’
.

T o rf rid a gave o n e glance through the openings o f the hoard

ing upon the writhing mass below and turned away in horror , .

T h e m en were not so merciful D own between t he b o ardin g .

beam s rained stones j avelins arrows increasing th e agony and

, , ,

death T h e scaling ladders w ould not stand in the mire ; if

.

they had s t oo d a m omen t the s t ruggles of the dyin g would have ,

th rown them down And still fresh victim s pressed o n from .

behind S hou t ing D e x Aie

, O n to the gold o f Ely and still
the sow under the weight sli p p ed farther and farther back i n to
, ,

t he stream and the foul gulf widened between besieger s and

,

besieged .

At las t o n e s caling ladder was planted upon th e bodies of the

dead and h ooked firmly o n the gunwale of the hoardi n g E re
, .

it could be h u rled o ff again by t he E nglish it was so crow d ed ,

with men that even Hereward s strength wa s in s u fficient to lif t ’

25 2 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

it o ff He stood at the top ready to hew down the first comer

.
,

and he hewed him down .

But t he French were not to be daunted Man after man .

dropped d ead from the ladder top — man after man took his ,
’
p lace sometimes scrambling over each other s backs .

T h e E nglish even in the insolen ce of victory cheered them

, ,
‘
with honest admiration Y o u are fellow s worth fighting yo u .
,

French
S o we are shouted a knight the first and last wh o crossed
’
, ,

that parapet for thrus t ing Hereward back wi t h a blo w o f his ,

w o d hilt he s taggered past him over the hoarding and fell o n

-

iI s lznees
, ,

A dozen men were upon him : but h e was u p again and

shouting
’
T o me men at arm s ! A D eda !
‘
, A D eda ! But n o m a n
- -

answered .

Yield quoth Hereward .

S ir D eda answered by a blo w o n Hereward s helmet which

’
,

felled T h e Wak e to his knees and brok e t he sword into twen t y ,

splinters .

Well hit ! s aid Hereward as h e ro s e

‘ ’
D on t tou c h h im ,
.
‘ ’
,

men ! this is my quarrel n o w Yield sir ! you have done .

,

ri o u gh for your honour It is m adness to throw away your

p
.

1fe
o
’
.

T h e knight looked round o n the fierce ring o f face s in the ,

midst o f which he stood alone .

’
T o none but T h e Wake .

’
T h e Wake am I .

‘ ’
Ah said the knight had I but hit a little harder
, ,
‘

‘
You would have broke your sword into m ore splinter s My .

armour i s enchanted S 0 yield lik e a reasonable and valiant .

man .
’

‘ ’
What care I ? said the knight stepping o n to the earth
work and sit t ing down quietly
, I vowed to S t Mary and . .

K ing William that into Ely I would get this day and in E ly I ’
am so I have done m y work .

And now yo u shall taste — as such a gallant knight deserves

‘

t he hos p itality o f Ely .

’

It was T o rf rid a who spoke .

’
My husband s p risoners are mine and I when I find them ,

such gallant knights as you are have n o lighter chain s for them ,
’ ’
than t hat w hich a lady s bower can afl o rd .

\
S ir D eda was going to make an equally c o u t e o u s an sw e r
r ,

when over and above the shouts and c urses o f the combatants
rose a yell so keen so dreadful as made all hurry for w ard to , ,

the ram p art .

T hat whi c h T h e Wak e had foreseen was com e at last T he .

bridge strained m ore and m ore by its livi n g burden and by

, ,

the falling tide had parted - n o t at the E ly end where the , , ,

25 4 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

a s he thought o f his own falsehood and o f hi s fair daughter , ,

w e p i n g in vain for the fair bridegroom whom he had promise d

to fier .

S iward Barn a s they call h im the boy O rgar and T h u rkil

‘
, , ,

Barn T hose are t h e knight s E ge lw in Bishop o f D urham is

. .
, ,
there too and besides them all and above them all Hereward , ,

the Wake T h e lik e o f that knight I may have seen

. His .

b etter saw I never .

’

‘
S ir fool said E arl Warrenne wh o had n o t yet— s m all blame ,

to him — forgotten hi s brother s death T hey have soused thy

’
.
‘

brains with their muddy ale till thou kn owest n o t friend from ,
’
foe What hast thou to come hither praising u p to t h e king s
.
,

m aj esty such an outlawed villai n as that w ith whom n o honest ,

’
knight w ould kee p com pan y ?
‘
If you E arl Warrenn e ever found D eda drunk o r lying it
, , ,
’
is m ore than t he king here has done .

’ ‘
L e t him S peak earl said William I have not an h onester
‘
, , .

man in my camp ; and he S peak s for my information n o t f o r ,

’
y ours .

T hen for your s will I speak sir king T hese men treated
‘
.
,

me k nightly and sent me away without ransom

, .
’

’
T hey had an eye to their o w n profit it seems grumbled the
‘
, ,

But force me they d id to swear o n the holy Gospels that I

S hould tell you r maj esty t he tru t h the whole trut h and nothing , ,
’
but the truth And I kee p my oath q uoth D eda
.
, .

‘
Go o n then without fear o r favou r Are there any other
, , .

’
men o f note in the island ?
’
No .

‘
Are they in wan t o f provision s
‘ ’
L ook h o w they have fattened m e .

W hat d o they complain of ?

‘ ’

‘
I will tell yo u sir king T h e monk s like m any more took
‘

.
, , ,

fright at the coming over o f o u r French m en o f God to set right

all their filth y barbarous ways and that i s why they thre w E ly
open to the rebels .
’

’
I will be even with the s ots q u oth W illiam , .

However they t hink that danger blown over j ust now fo r

,

they have a story among them which a s m y lord the king never , ,
’
h e r l l fo re he may a s well hear n ow
afi h ée , .

‘
Ho w you r maj esty s hould have s ent acro ss the se a a whole
shipload o f French m onks .
’

‘
T hat have I and will m ore till I reduce the s e swine in t o
, ,

somethin g like obedience to his Holiness of Rome ’

.

‘
Ah but your maj esty has n ot heard h o w o n e Bruman a
, ,

valian t E n g lish knigh t was sailing o n the sea and caught those,
’
m onks Whereon he t ied a great sack t o the S hip s head and
. ,

cut the bot t om o u t and made every o n e o f those monks get into
,
XX I X HOIV S IR DE DA B RO U G HT N EWS FRO M E LY 25 5

that sack and s o fall through into the sea whereby he rid the
’
monk s o f E ly o f t heir rivals .

’ ’
Pish why tell me such an o ld wive s fable knight ?
‘
,
‘
Because the m onks believe t hat o ld wives fable and are ’
,

stout hearted and st i ff necked accordingly

-
’
.

’
T h e blood o f martyr s i s the seed o f th e C hurch said
‘
,
’ ‘
William s chaplain a pupil and friend o f L anfran c : and if
,

these men o f Belial d rowned every m an o f God in N ormandy ,

ten would spring up in their places to convert this benighted

and besotted land o f S im o n it e s and Balaamites wh ose priests , ,

like the brutes which peri s h scru p le not to defile them selves , ,

and the s ervice o f the altar with things which they impudently ,
’
call their wi v es .

’
‘
We kno w that good chaplain q uoth William impatiently
, , .

He had enough o f that language from L anfran c himself an d ,

m oreover was thinking m ore o f the isle o f E ly than o f the celi

,

bacy o f the clergy .

Well S ir D eda
,

S o t hey have got together all their kin ; for among these
‘

m onk s every o n e is kin to a than e o r knight or even an earl , ,

and there t hey are bro t her by brother cousin by cousin knee to
, , ,

knee and back to back like a pack o f w olve s and that in a

, , ,

hold which you will no t enter ye t awhile .

’

’
D oe s my friend D eda doubt his duke s S kill at last ? ’

S ir duk e — sir k ing I m ea n n o w for kin g yo u are and ,

deserve to b e — I know what you can do I remember how we .

took E ngland at o n e blo w o n S enlac field but see you here sir ,

king how will you take an island with fou r such saints to guard
,

it as S t E t h e ld re d a S t W it h b e rga S t S e x b e rga and S t E rmen

.
,
.
, .
, .

ild a 1
’
By promising the holy ladies said William with a s mile to , , ,
‘

’
honou r the m be t ter than ever did yet an E nglish swine .

‘
Amen : b u t again h o w will you tak e an island where four
,

kings such as you ( if the world would hold fou r such at once)
could not stop one churl from p loughing t he land o r o n e bird ,

ca t cher from set t in g lime twigs 1 -

‘
And what if I cannot s t o p the b ird c at c h e rs ? D o they ex
peet to lime Frenchmen as easily as S parrows ? ’

S parrows ! It is not S parrow s tha t I have been fattening

o n this last m onth I tel l you S ire I have seen wild fow l
.
, ,

alone in that island enough to feed them all the year round I .

was there in the m oulting time and saw the m take — o n e day ,

o n e hundred o n e two hundred ; and once

,
as I am a belted ,
knight a thousand du ck o u t o f o n e single mere 2 T here is a
, .

1
I h av e fo ll owe d De d a s acco u n t o f E ly an d it s fo l k as g ive n b o th in
’

t h e Pe te rb o ro ugh MS S an d in t h e L i b er E lien sz s al m o st wo r d fo r wo rd
'

.
,

th ro ugh o ut .

2
Fic e d u lae (b e cc afic o s b y wh ich t h e g o o d m o n k m e an s wh eate ars an d
,

such sm all b i rd s) c o o t s d ive rs w at e rcro w s cran es an d duck s

‘ ’
, , , , , .
25 6 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

w ood there with herons sprawling about the tree tops — I

,
-

did not think there were so many in the world otters and
weasels ermines and pole cats for fur robes and fish f o r L ent
,
-
,

and Fridays in every puddle and leat— pike and perch roa c h ,
’
and eels o n e very o ld wife s table w hile the k n ights think
,

scorn of anything worse than smelt and burbot 1

.

‘
S plendeu r D e x qu oth William who N orman lik e did n ot , ,
-
,

dislike a good dinner I must keep L ent in E ly before I die

.
‘’
.

T hen you had best make peace with the burbot - eating
’
k nights my lord ,
.

But have they fl e sh meat -

T h e island is half of it a gard en — richer land they say is

‘
, ,

n one in these realm s and I believe it but besides tha t there is

, ,

a deer park there with a thousand h ead in i t red and fallow b e

-
, ,

sides hares and plenty of swine and goats in woods and shee p
2
,

and cattle and if they fail there are plenty more t o be got they ,

k now where .
’

’
T hey kn ow where ? D o you sir knight ? asked William ,

keenly .

O u t o f every little islan d in their fens fo r forty miles o n end ,

.

T here are the herds fattening themselves o n the riches t p astures

in the land and n o m an needing to herd them fo r they are all
, ,
’
safe amon g dykes and m eres .

I
‘
will mak e m y boats sweep their fens clear o f every
1I e a(
ak e care m y lord king les t never a boat c ome ba c k from
T , ,

t hat errand With their narrow fl at bottomed p unts cut o u t o f

.
-
,

a single log and their leap ing poles wherewi t h they fly over
,
-
,

d ykes o f t hirty feet in width — they can ambu scade in those

reed beds and alder beds kill whom they will and then flee
- -
, ,

away th rough th e marsh like so m any horse fl ie s And if no t ,

-
.
,

o n e trick have t hey lef t which they n ever try save when driven ,

into a corner but from that may all saint s save us

’
What then ?
‘

’
Firing the reeds .

’
And destroyi n g their o w n cover ?
‘

’
T rue therefore they will only d o it in de s pair .

T hen to despair will I drive them and try their worst

‘
So ,
.

these m onks are a s stou t rebels as the earls ? ’

I only say w hat I saw At t he hall table there dined each .

-

d ay maybe some fifty belted knights with every o n e a monk ,

1
I n n m e rab le e e ls, re a wa e r -wo lve s an d pi e re l, pe r e
‘
u g
t t ro a e s, ck ch ch
b rb o s, an d m rae n as, w i
u t w e all wa e r se rpe n s
u h ch c t t h
’
-
( T e se ast se e m .

t o b e m y i al, n l e ss t h e sil r s lan i s s ill l in e re , as i m ay ave o n e ,

th c u uu g t g d t h d
in t h e wa e rs o f t h e O se )
t S o m e im e s al so isic ii ( sm e l s, I pre s m e , as
u t . t u
th e y are s i ll ab n a n
t u d t u
in t h e O se ) an d t h e ro yal fish ru m b u s ( rb o ) tu t
s re ly a m i sn o m e r f o r t h e s
u r eon tu g .

2
T a t h e o a as we ll as t h e s a w as o mm o n in t h e e n s, t h e o rn s
h t g t tg c f h
fu d
o n in pe a an d ravel e s i y
t g t tf .
25 8 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

” “
sword s as if they h ad b een two reeds C ome ! cries he enough .
,

o f thi s Y o u are two stout knights well matched and yo u c an

.
,

fight out this any other day and away he and his men go down
the dyke end to th e w ater .
’

L eaving Richard safe ?

’

Wounded a little — but safe eno u gh .

’

And then
We followed them to the boat a s hard as we co uld killed I

one of their boatm en wi t h a j avelin and caught a nother ,

.

‘ ’ ‘
K nightly done ! and William swore an awful oath and ,

worthy o f valiant Frenchmen T hese E nglish se t yo u th e e x .

am p le o f chivalry by letting your comrade fight his o w n bat t le

fairly instead of se t ting o n h im all together ; and you repay
,

the m by hunting them down with darts because yo u d are n o t ,

go within s w ord s stroke o f better men than yourselves Go I

’
-
. .

am ashamed o f yo u N o stay Where is you r p risoner ? Fo r

.
, .
,

S plendeur D e x I will send h im back safe and sound in retu rn

,

for D eda to tell the knights o f E ly that if they kn o w s o well

,

the courtesies o f war William o f Rouen does too ,

.
’

T h e prisoner sire quoth the knight trembling i s — i s

’
, , , ,
’
Y o u have not m u rdered him ?
Heaven forbid but
He broke his bond s and escaped ? ’

Gnawed t hem through S ire as we s upposed and e s caped , , ,

through the mire in th e dark after the fashion o f these accursed ,

frogs of G irv ian s .

’

But did h e t ell you nought ere he bade you good morning ? ’

He told u s th e names o f all the seven He that beat down .

the s w ords was Hereward himself}

‘
I t h o u gh t as m uch When shall I have that fellow at m y
.

S Id e q
O

He that fought Richard wa s o n e W e n o c h .

’

‘
I have heard of him .
’

.
He that we took was Azer t he Hardy a m on k o f N icole
‘
,

L I c o le And the rest were T u rst an t h e Younger ; o n e S i ward

.
,

ano t her monk ; L eofric the deacon Here w ard s minstrel an d ,

’

B o t e r the trai t or m onk o f S t E dmund s ’

’
.
, .

‘ ’
An d if I catch them quoth William I will make an abbot
, ,
’
o f every o n e o f them .

S ire ? quoth the chaplain in a deprecating tone

‘ ’
.
,

C HA P T E R XXX
HOW HE RE W A RD P L A E D Y T HE P O T T E R ; AND HO W HE C HEA T ED
T HE K N G I
T HE Y
of E ly were now m u c h strai t ened being S h ut in bo t h by ,

land and wa t er and what was to be done ei t h er b y themselve s ,

XXX HOW HE REWARD PL AY E D T HE P OT T E R 25 9

or by the king they k n ew n o t Would William simply s tarve

, .

them o r at leas t inflict o n them so perpetual a L ent— for o f

,

fish there co u ld be n o lack eve n if they ate o r drove away all ,

th e fowl— as would tam e down t heir proud spiri t s ; which a diet

o f fish and vegetables from some ludicrous t heory of monastic ,

physicians was su p p osed to do ? O r was he gathering vast

,
1

arm i es from they k new not whence to t ry once and for all
, , , ,

another assault o n the island — it might be from s everal p oints

at once ?
T hey must send out a spy and find o u t news from the outer ,

world if news were t o be gotten B ut who would go ?

, .

S o asked the bishop and t he abbot and t he earls in council , , ,

’
in the abbot s lodging .

T o rf rid a was among them S h e was always among them n o w . .

S h e was their Alruna wife their wise woman whose cou nsels -
, ,

all received as m ore t han human .

‘
I will go said she ris ing up lik e a godde s s o n O lympus
,
’
,
.

’
I will cut o ff my hair and put o n boy s clothes and smirch m y , ,

self brown with walnut leaves and I w ill go I c an talk their -

.

French ton gue I know their French ways and as for a story
.

to cover my j ourney and my doings trust a woman s wit to ,

’

’
invent that .

Th
looked at her with delight in her courage but with , ,

d o n tey .

‘ ’
If William s French grooms got hold o f yo u T o rf rid a i t ,

would not be a little walnut brown which would hide you said ,
’

Hereward But it is like you to o ffer— worthy o f you who

.
‘
,

have no peer .
’

’
T hat she has n o t q uoth churchmen and soldiers alike
,
.

N evertheless — to send you would be to send T h e Wak e s

‘ ’

’
p ray i ng half ; and that w ould be bad reli g i on T h e Wake S .

’
fighting half I s goi ng while you pray here asgwell as watch , .

‘ ’
Uncle un c le ! said the young earls send Winter Gery
, ,
‘
, ,

L e o f w in P rat any of your good men : but n o t yourself

, If we .

’
lose you we lose ou r head and o u r king
, .

all begged Hereward to let any man go rather than him

f
i
,

se1 nd
‘
I am going lords and knights and what Hereward say s h e
,

does It is o n e day to Brandon It may be two days back for

. .

if I miscarry— as I m ost likely shall— I must c ome home round

about O n the fourth day you S hall hear o f me o r from me
.
, .

C ome with me T o rf rid a

’
, .

An d h e strode out .

He crop p ed his golden l ocks he cropped his golden beard , ,

and T o rf rid a wept as sh e c ro p p ed them half with fear for him

, , ,

half for sorrow over his shorn glories .

T h e Co rn is — t h e s
1
h to utest tall e st an d m o st pro l ific race o f t h e S o uth
, ,
— live o n h ar l an
y y in d th g e l se b u t fish an d ve g etab l e s .
 2 60 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

I am no S am son my lady ; m y stren gth lieth n o t in my

‘

lock s N o w for some ras c al s clothe s— a s little dirty as you can

,
’
.

’
get me for fear o f com pany
,
.

And Hereward p ut o n filthy garments and taking mare

S w allo w with him got into a barge and went across the river ,

t o S oham .

He could n o t go d own th e Great O u se and u p the L ittle ,

O use which was his easiest way for the French held all the
, ,

river b elow the isle ; and besi d es to have come straight from , ,

E ly might cause sus picion S o he we n t down t o Fordham and .

,

crossed the L ark at Milden hall and j ust before he go t to Mil

d e n h all he met a p otter c arrying pots upon a pony
, .

Halt my stout chu rl quoth he and put thy pot s o n m y

‘
, ,
’
,
‘

’
mare s back .
’

T h e man wh o w ants them m ust fight fo r them qu oth that

’
,

stout churl raisin g a heavy sta ff ,

.

T hen here is he tha t w ill quoth Hereward ; an d , j u mping

‘ ’
,
’
o ff hi s mare he twisted the sta ff o u t o f the potter s hand s and
, ,

knocked him down therewith .

T hat will teach thee to know an E nglishman when thou

‘

’
s eest him .

’
‘
I have met my master qu oth the churl rubbin g his head , , .

‘
B ut dog does not eat dog and it is hard to be robbed by an
’
E nglishman af t er being robbed a dozen t imes by t he French
,
.

I Will not rob t hee T here i s a silver penny f er t h y pots and .

thy coat— for that I mus t have likewise And if thou tellest t o .

mortal man aught about this I will find those w h o will cut thee ,
’ ’
up for dogs meat ; but if n o t then turn thy horse s head and ,

ride back to E ly if thou c anst cross t h e w ater and say what

, ,

h as befallen thee ; and thou wilt find there an abbot who will
’
give thee another penny for thy news .

S o Hereward took the p ots and the p otter s clay greased coat
’
-
, ,
‘
and went on through Mildenhall cryin g sai t h th e ch ron icler , ,
’
,
“
‘
afte r the manner o f potters in the E nglish tongue P ots ! .
, ,

pots good pots and pan s

B ut when he got through Mildenhall and well into the rabbit ,

warrens he gave mare S wallo w a kick and wen t over t he hea t h

, ,

so fast nor t hward that his p ots danced such a d a n c e a s brok e

,

half o f t hem before h e go t to B randon .

N ever mind qu o t h he they will thin k that I have sold

‘ ’ ‘
, ,

them ’
An d when h e neared Brandon he p ulled u p sorted h is
.
,

po t s k e p t the wh ole ones threw the shreds at the rabbits an d

, , ,

w alk e d on into B randon solemnly leading the m are an d crying

‘

, ,

I ots
sem er marcida d f i — lean and ill look
So p e t e o rm s asp e c t u -

ing— was tha t fam ou s m are says the ch ronicler tha t n o one , ,

would suspect her sp lendid p owers or take her for any t hing but ,
’
a p otter s nag when she was c aparisoned in p ro p er character
,
.

Hereward felt thoroughly at h ome in hi s part as able to play

262 HE REWARD T HE WAKE CHA P .

‘
A charm ? thought Hereward ’
Maybe she can tell me .

news if she b e a witch T hey are sh rewd soul s these witches

, .
, ,

and know m ore than they tell And if I can get any new s I .
,
’
care not if S atan bring s it in person .

S o he kno c ked again til l the Old woman look ed out once ,

more and bade him angrily be O ff

,
.

‘
But I am belated here good dame and afraid of the French , , .

And I will give thee th e best bit o f clay o n my m are s back — pot ’

— a n — panshin —crock — j ug o r what thou wilt for a night s ’

p , ,
’
lodging .

—
Have you any little j ar s j ars n o longer than m y hand ? ’

asked she for she used them in her trade and had brok en one ,

o f late : but t o pay for o n e S h e had neither m oney n or mind ,

.

S O she agreed to let Hereward S leep there for the valu e o f two ,
’
j ar s . But what o f that u gly brute o f a horse o f thine ?
‘ ’
S h e will do well enough in the turf shed -
.

’
T hen thou must p ay with a pan s hin .

Ugh groaned Hereward th ou d riv e st a hard bargain for ,

an E nglishwoman with a p oor E nglishman ,

.
’

‘
Ho w knowest tho u that I am E nglish ? ’

S o m uch the better if thou art n o t th ought Hereward and

‘ ’
,

bargained with her fo r a panshin against a lodging for the h orse

in the turf house and a bottle o f bad hay
-
, .

T hen h e went in bringing hi s panniers with him with osten

,

t at io u s care .

T hou canst sleep there o n the ru s hes I have n ought to give .

t hee to eat .
’

‘
N ought needs nought
’
said Hereward thre w himself ,

’Ov l on a bundle o f rush and in a few minutes snored

Io n dly
,

But he was never less asleep He looked round the whole .

place and he listened to every word .

T h e devil as usual was a bad paymaster for the witch s

’
, ,

cabin seemed only somewhat m ore miserable than that o f o t her

Old women T h e floor was mud the rafters unceiled the stars
.
,

sh one through the turf roof T h e Only hint o f her trade wa s a .

hanging shelf o n which stood five o r six lit t le earthen j ar s and

, ,

a few packets o f leaves A parchment scrawled with charact ers .

,

which the owner herself p robably did n o t understand hung ,

against the c o b wall ; and a human skull— probably used only

t o frighten her p atients— dangled from the roof tree -
.

B u t in a corner stuck against the wall was someth in g which

, ,

chilled Hereward s blood a little —a dried human hand which he

’
,

k new must have been s t olen O ff the gallows gri p ping in its ,

fl e sh le ss fingers a candle which h e k new was made Of human ,

fat T hat candle he knew duly lighted and carried would enable
.
, , ,

the witch to walk unseen into any house o n earth yea through , ,

t he court o f K ing William him s elf while it drowned all men ,

in preternatu ral slumbe r .

XXX HOW HE REWARD PL AY E D T HE POT T E R 263

Hereward was very much frightened He believed devoutly .

in the powers o f a witch .

S o h e trembled o n hi s rushe s and wished himself safe ,

t h r u gh that adventure without being tur n ed into a b are o r a

q
,

w ol
I would sooner be a wolf than a hare Of cou rse but— wh o
‘
,

comes here ? ’

And to th e first Old crone who sat winking her bleared eyes , ,

and warmi n g h er bleared hands over a little heap O f peat I n

the middle o f the cabin entered another crone if possibl e uglier, ,
.

T w o o f them ! If I am n o t roasted and eaten this night I

‘
,
’
am a l ucky man .

And Hereward cros s ed himself devoutly and invoked S t ,

.

E t h e lf rid a Of E ly S t G u t h la c o f C rowland S t Felix o f Ramsey

, .
, .

— to w h ich lasty saint he recollected he had been somewhat ,

,

remiss : but above all S t Peter o f P eterborough whose trea , .

,

sures h e h ad given to the D anes And h e argued stoutly with .

S t P eter an d with his o w n conscien ce that th e mean s s anctify

.
,

th e e nd and that he had done it all for the be s t

,
.

If th ou wilt h elp m e o u t o f this strait and the rest blessed

‘
, ,

apostle I w ill give t hee — I will go to C on stantino p le but what

,

I will win it — a golden table twice as fine as those villains

carried O ff ; and o n e Of the B o u in e m anors — Witham — o r T oft
,
I

O r M in t h o rp e — whichever pleases thee best i n full fee ; and a

g
,
— an a
B ut while Hereward was casting in his m ind what gewgaw
further might su ffice to appease the apostle h e was recalled t o ,

b u siness and common sense by hearing the two Old hags talk to
each o t her I n French .

His heart leaped f o r j oy and h e forgot S t Pe t er utterly

y , . .

Well h o w have you sped ? Have you seen t he king ?

,
’

N O ; but I v o T aillebois E h ? Who the foul fi end hav e you .

’
lyin g th ere ?
O nly an E nglish brute He cann ot understand us T alk . .

on : on ly d o n t wake the h o g Have you got th e gold ?

’
.
’

’
N ever mind
‘
.

T h en t here was a grum bling and a quarrelling from whi c h ,

Hereward unders t ood that the gold was to be shared between

them .

Bu t i t is a bit of a chain T o c ut it will s p oil it

‘ ’
. .

T h e other insisted and he heard t hem chop the gold c hain in

two .

An d is this all
I had work enou g h to get that He said no play n o p ay ;
‘
.
,

and he would gI v e i t m e af t er the isle was taken But I told .

him m y S p irit w as a J e w ish s p iri t that used to serve S olomon ,

the W ise and he w ould n ot serve me m uch les s come over t he ,

sea from N ormandy unles s he smelt gold for he loved it like

,

any Je w .
’
26 4 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
And what did you tell him the n ?
‘

T hat the king m ust go back to Ald re t h again for only from
thence would he tak e the isle for — and that was tru e enough
I d reamt I s aw all the water Of Ald re t h full o f w olves clam ~ ,
’
bering over into t he island o n each o t her s backs ’
.

’
T hat mea n s th at some of them will be drowned .

‘
L e t them drown I left him to find o u t that part o f the
.

dream himself T hen I told him h o w he m ust make anoth er

.

cau seway bigger and stronger than the last and a tower o n
, ,

which I could stand and curse the E nglish g And I promised .

him to bring a storm right in the face s o f the E nglish so that ,

’
they could neither fight nor see .

’
B ut if t he storm does n ot come ?
‘

It will com e I k now the si gns o f the sky —wh o better

‘
.

and the weather will break up in a week T herefore I told him .

h e m ust begin his w orks at once before t he rain cam e o n ; and ,

that we would go and ask the guardian of the well to tell us1
’
t he fortunate day for a t tacking .

‘
T hat is my business said the other ; and my spirit likes
‘ ’
,

the smell of gold a s well as yo u rs L ittle yo u would have got .

from m e if you had not given me half the chain

,
.
’

T hen the t w o rose .

’
L e t us see whether t he E nglish hog I s asleep
O n e o f them cam e and listened to Hereward s breathing and
’

put her hand u p on hi s ches t His hair stood on end ; a cold .

sweat came over him But he snored m ore loudly than ever
. .

T h e t wo o ld crones wen t out satisfied T hen Hereward rose .

,

and glided af t er them .

T hey went down a meadow to a little well which Hereward ,

had marked as he rode t hither hung round with bit s O f rag and
owers as S im ilar h oly wells are decorated in Ireland to this
fl
‘ ’
,

ay .

He hid behind a hedge and watched them stooping over the ,

well mum bling he knew not what of cantrips

, .

T hen there was a silence and a tinkling sound as o f water , .

O n c e — twice —thrice counted the wi tc hes N ine ti mes he

‘ ’
,
.

counted the tinkling sound .

T h e ninth day — the ninth d ay and t he king shall tak e E ly

‘ ’
, ,
”

S id O e i n a cracked scream r i s i n g and shakinggher fist towards

t fie isp
,

e .

Hereward was m ore than half minded to have pu t his dagger

— the only wea on which he had — into the two O ld beldames
p
But the fear o f an outcry ke p t him still He had found o u t .

already so much that he was determined to find o u t m ore S O

,
.

to morrow he w ould go up to the court i t self and t ake what ,

luck sent .

He slip p ed ba c k to the cabin and lay down again ; and as ,

1
Cu st o d e m fo n t iu m, t h e gu ard ian i rit
’
s
p .
266 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

make an end o f him once fo r all for h e i s a great tyrant and ,

t rrib le and devours us poor folk like s o m any mites in his

cieese
,
’
.

‘ ’
T ak e this babbler into the kitchen an d feed him quoth , ,
E arl Warrenne and so the colloquy ended .

Into the ki t chen again the p otter went T h e king s luncheon .

’

was preparing ; so he listened to the chatter ; and p icked u p

’
this at least which was valuable to him t hat the witches story
, , .

was true ; that a great attack would be made from Ald re t h :

that boats had been ordered up the river to Co t in glad e 1 and ,

pioneers and entrenching tool s were to be sent o n that day t o

the Old causeway ,
’
But soon he had to take care o f himself E arl Warrenne s .

commands to feed him were cons t rued by the cook boy s and -

Scullions into a comman d t o make him drunk likew ise T o m ake .

a laughing stock o f an E ngli shman was t o o tempting a j est t o

-

be resisted ; and Hereward was d renched (say s the chronicler)

with wine and beer a n d sorely baited and badgered At last ,
.

o n e rascal hit u p on a notable plan .

’
Pluck o u t the E nglish hog s hair and beard and put him
‘
,

blin d fold in the midst o f hi s pots and s ee what a s mash we ,

’
shall have .

Hereward pretended n ot to understand the words which were ,

spoken in French ; but when they were interp reted to him he ,

grew s omewhat red about the ears .

S ubmit he would not But if he defended himself and made .

,

an u p roar in the king s court he might very likely find him self’
,

riding O din s horse before the h our was o u t However happily

’
.
,

for him the wine and beer had made him stout o f heart and
, ,

when o n e fellow laid hold o f his beard h e resisted s turdily , .

T h e man struck him and that hard Hereward h o t o f , .

,

temper and careles s o f life struck him again right under the
, , ,
ear .

T h e fellow dropped for dead .

‘
Up leap t cook boys scullions l é cheurs (who hung about
-
, ,
’

‘
t he kitchen to l é cher lick the platters ) and all the foul ,
’
,

m outhed rascality o f a great medi aeval household and atta c ked ,

’
I Ie r w ard cum fur e i s e t t rid e n t ib u s with fork s and fl e sh
‘

Il 0 0 lg
I

s .

T hen wa s Hereward aware o f a great broach o r s p it before , ,

t he fire and recolle c ting h o w h e h ad used such an o n e as a b o y

against t he m onk s o f P e t erborough was min d ed to use it against ,

the cook s o f Brandon which he did so heartily that in a few ,

m m e n t s he had killed one and driven the others backward in

ap
,

I e ap .

But his case was ho p eless He wa s soon overpowered by .

1
S e e m in gly
l ad e l e at o r can al th ro ugh Co tten h am
a , , , Fen t o t h
Westwater pro b ab ly a Ro m an wo rk n o w o b lite rate d , .
xxx HOW HEREWARD PLAYED T HE POT T E R 267

number s from outside and dragged into the hall t o receive , ,

j udgment for the mortal cr ime o f slaying a m an within the

precincts of the court .

He kept up heart He knew that the k in g was there ; h e .

k new that h e should m ost likely ge t j u stice from the k ing .

If not h e could but discover himself, and so save his life for
, ,

t hat William would kill him willingly he did n ot believe ,

.

S o he went in boldly and willingly and up the hall where , , ,

o n t he dais stood William the N orman ,

.

William had fi nished his lun cheon and was standing at the ,

board side A page held water in a silver basin in which h e

-
.
,

was washing his hands T w o m ore knelt and la c ed his lon g .

,

boo ts for he was as always going a h unting , ,

-
.

T hen Hereward looked at t he face o f t h e great m an and felt ,

at once that it was t he face O f the greatest man whom he had

ever met .

’ ’
I am not that man s match said he to himself P erhaps it , .

’
will all end in being his man and he m y master , .

S ilence knaves said William and speak o n e o f you at a

, ,
‘

time Ho w cam e this ?

.
’

‘
A likely story forsooth said he when he had heard , A , .
‘

poor E nglish po t ter comes into my court and m urders my m en ,

under my very eyes fo r m ere sport I do n o t believe yo u .

,

rascals ! Yo u ch url and he spoke t hrough an E n glish inter

, ,
’

‘
preter tell m e your tale and j ustice you S hall have o r t ak e as
, , ,

you deserve I am the K ing o f E ngland m an an d I know you r

.
, ,
’
t ongue t h ough I speak it n o t yet m ore pity
, , .

Hereward fell o n his knees .

If you are indeed m y lord the king then I am safe ; for

‘
,

t here is j ustice in yo u : a t least so all men say And h e told .

’

his tale manfully .

S plendeu r D e x but this is a far likelier story and I believe ,

it Hark you you ru ffian s ! Here am I trying to conciliate

.
, ,

these E nglish by j us t i c e and m er c y whenever they will le t m e ,

and here are you ou t raging them and driving them mad and ,

des p erate j us t t hat you may get a handle against them and
, ,

t hus ro b the p oor wre t ches and drive t hem in t o the forest .

From the lowes t to the highes t — from Ivo T aillebois there ,

down to you cook boys — yo u are all a t t he same game And I -

.

will stop i t T h e n ext t ime I hear O f ou t rage t o unarmed man

o r harmless woman I will hang tha t culprit were he O d o m y , ,

brother himself .
’

T his ex c ellent speech was enforced with oath s so strange and

terrible tha t Ivo T aillebois shook in his boots and the c ha p lain
,

prayed fervently tha t t he roof might n ot fall in on their heads .

T ho u smile st man ? said William quickly to the kneeling

‘ ’
, ,

Hereward S O thou u n d e rst an d e st French ?

.
’

A few w ords only mos t graciou s king which we potters

‘
, ,

pick u p wandering everywhere with our wares said Hereward

, ,
’
,
268 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’
s p eaking in French ; for so keen w as William s eye that he
‘

th o ught it safer to play no tricks with him .

N evertheless h e made his French so execrable that the very

, ,

scullions grinned in spi t e o f their fear, .

L ook you ; said William you are n o common churl

‘ ’
you ,
‘

’
h ave fought too well for t hat L e t me see you r arm . .

Hereward drew u p his sleeve .

‘
P o t ter s do n ot carry sword s car s like th ose neither are -

they tattooed lik e E nglish thanes Hold up thy head ; man .

,

and let us see thy throat .

’

Hereward who had carefully hung down his head to prevent

,

hi s throat pa t terns bein g seen was forced to lif t it up

-
, .

‘ ’
Aha ! S O I expected T here is fair ladies work there Is . .

not thi s he who wa s said to be so like Hereward ? Very good .

P u t him in w ard t ill I come back from h unting B u t do him .

no harm For — and William fixed o n Hereward eyes o f th e

.

m os t intense intelligence w ere he Hereward himself I S hould ,

be right glad to see Hereward safe and sound my man at last ,

and earl o f all be t w een Humber and the fens ’

.

But Hereward did not rise at the bait With a face o f stupid .

and ludicrous terror he made rep ly in broken French , .

‘
Ha v e mercy m ercy lord king ! Make n o t tha t fiend earl
, ,

over u s E ven I vo T aillebois there would be be t ter than he

. .

S end him to be earl over the im p s in hell o r over t he wild ,

Welsh who are worse still : b u t not over us good lord king , ,

wh om h e hath polled and p eeled till we are

S ilence said William laughing as did all round him , , .

T h ou art a cunning rogue enough w hoever thou art G O into , .

limbo and behave thyself till I com e back

,
.
’

‘
All sain ts s end your grace good s p ort and thereby m e a ,

good deliverance quoth Hereward who knew that his fate

,
’
,

might d epend o n the temper in w hich William returned S O he .

was thrust into an outhouse and there locked u p , .

He sat o n an empty barrel meditating on t he chances Of his ,

submitting to the king after all when the door opened a n d in , ,

strode one with a drawn sword in o n e hand and a pair o f leg ,

S hackles in the o t her .

‘
Hold o u t thy shins fellow ! T hou art not going t o sit at
,

t hine ease t here like an abbot after killin g o n e of u s grooms , ,

and bringing the rest o f u s into disgrace Hold o u t thy legs I

'

,
.

say
N othing easier quo t h Here w ard cheerfully and held o u t a
’
, ,

leg B ut when t he m an stoop ed to p u t on the fette rs he re

.
,

c e i v e d a kick whi c h sen t him staggeri n g .

After whi c h h e re c olle c ted very li t tle a t leas t in this world ,

.

For Hereward c u t O ff his head with his o w n sword .

After which ( says t he chronicler ) he brok e aw ay o u t O f the

h ou se and over garden walls and palings hi d ing an d runnin g
, , ,

till h e got t o t he fron t gate and leaped upon mare S wallow , .

270 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

sleep ing child His pur s uer s were two miles behind ; black
.

do t s among t he barrows o n Barton hill He had time to rest .

h er and trotted o n steadily kee p ing to the upland s and t he ,

in
i road from whence he could see far and wide o v er the
,

an
O n by N ewmarket heath — nameless and desert then — over
smooth c halk turf ; through glades o f fern and thorn ; past
barrows where slep t the heroes o f o ld tim es Britain Roman , , ,

S axon D ane
, forefathers o f hi s own perhaps am ong them , ,
.
.

Ay— that was the p lace for a hero to sleep in N o t choked in a .

minster charnel house amid green damp and droning m onk s :

-
,

but o u t under the free sky w ith his weapons round him hi s , ,

horse his d o g the antlers o f his game where he might c ome up

, ,

out of hi s barrow o n moonlight nights and s t are at the flying ,

clouds and scent the rushing breeze

, Ah that he could be .
,

buried there but then T o rfrid a— h e should like to lie by her .

He wa s at the Rech —dyke n ow : and warily he looked east

ward as he led the mare up the steep bank for French s couts
, ,

b etween him and the fen s but none were within sight .

He pau sed upon the top o f that great ear t hwork D an .

gerons as it was to stop in t hat expo s ed height making himself ,

a beacon against t he S ky he could n ot but look down and back , , ,

at all which remained o f free E nglish soil .

He looked down over S w afi h am Quy and Waterbeach and

’

, , ,

the rest of t he tree —embowered hamlets which fringed the fen ,

green k nolls o n the shore o f a boundless sea Of pale —blue mis t and
above t hat sea to the far north a line o f darker blue which was
, , ,

the sacred isle As the s un sank lower higher rose the mist and
.
,

t he isle grew more and m ore faint vaporous dreamy a s fen dis , , ,
-

tances are wont to be Was it not about to fade away in reality.

t o becom e a vapour and a dream an d leave him alon e and free ?

, ,

E arls knights h o u se c arle s m onk s

, ,
seem ed all becoming , ,

p hantom s fading with their fading cause

,
Was it worth while .

to fight to die f o r them for anything ? What was William to

, , ,

him ? What was E ngland ? Why play o u t the lost game to the
last ? Why not leave all behind and ride down south — to the ,

sea — the free sea and the wild j oys o f the Viking s life ? And
,
’

he led the mare down the Rech —dyke an d up again o n to the ,

down faltering stopping hi s head s unken o n his breast hi s

, , , ,

heart sunken within .

But T o rfrid a— T o rfrida an d the little girl T hey at least .

were not phantom s T hey could not vanish could n o t even

.
,

die— to him His they were fo r ever What fiend had been
. .

’
putting boy s dreams into his head ?
An d he sprang hastily into the saddle as o n e that flees from ,

a tempta t ion Home mare Home to prison again

.
‘
We have,
’
been out far too long Old lass t o o long ,
.

He held o n over the Fleam dyke : but he feared to turn -

downwards into the C ambridge flats and kept hi s vantage ,

XXX HOW HE RE WARD PL AY E D T HE P OT T E R 27 1

ground upon the downs ; till o n the t o p O f the Gogmagog he , ,

struck the O ld Roman road which m en call Wor t s C auseway ,

’

at this day D own that he turned sh ort to the right toward

.
, ,

the green meadows and the long line o f mighty elms and the
, ,

little village which clus t ered unconsciou s o f i t s coming glories

, ,

beneath the new French keep beside t he Rom an bridge , .

T h e setting sun gilded the white fl in t s o f the keep and

Hereward looked o n them with a curse But it gilded t oo the .
, ,

tree top s Of the great forest beyond and Hereward uttered

something like a prayer to S t E t h e ld re d a and her ladies three . .

For if h e could b u t reach that fores t he was safe , .

T h e Wak e was o f course too wise to go through C ambridge

, ,

street under the eyes of t he French garrison B ut h e saw t hat

, .

t h e Roman road led straight to a hamlet som e mile above the

town and at t he road end he guessed there must be either a , ,

bridge O I a ford T here he could cross the Cam And he rode

I
. .

slowly do w nward longing for it to gro w d ark an d saving t h e

, ,

mare in case she S hould be needed for a sudden rush

, .

An d a rush wa s soon n eeded For o n the hill behind him he .

saw armour glitter in the red light ; and a brace o f knights .

T hey paused for a moment and then espied him O n e galloped .

down the road toward him t h e other spurred to the right ,

straight for C ambridge .

I shall have the whole pack o f wolves o u t and o n me in half , ,

an hour thought Hereward and struck spu rs into the mare

,
’
.

Into the ford ~—b y C haucer s af t er fam ous mill h e dashed ’

- -
,

making m ore s p lash than ever did geese in S helford Fen and
o u t again and o n to t he clay wold an d a w ay for C oton and
, ,

Madingley rise and the black wall o f o ak and ash and elm
, , .

An d as he en t ered the forest at Madingley he rose in his ,

stirrups wi th a shout O f A Wake A Wake which was heard

, ,

for aught he cared in C ambridge castle : and t hen rode o n

,

leisurely toward the D rayt o n s and the ferry Over the O use at ,

Holywell for well he knew that they who could n o t catch T h e

Wake in the field were still less like t o catch him in the wood
, .

An d so through the forest by a clear m oonlight ( says the ,

ch ronicler ) he came in the early m orning to the Isle S omersham

, ,

which was then all deep wood (as the names o f Woodhu rst and
S omersham Parks still testify) and was ferried over at Ea rith ,

by o n e o f his many friends in t o the isle O f E ly .

And of all those knights that followed him none ever saw o r ,
heard S ign Of him save o n e : and his h orse came to a s tand
,

still in t he aforesaid wood and he rolled o ff an d lay breathles s

under a tree looking up a t hi s horse s heaving flank s and wagging
,
’

tail and wondering how he should get o u t o f that place before

,

the E nglish found him and made an end o f him .

T hen t here cam e up to him a ragged chu rl and asked him ,

who he was and O ff ered t o help him

, .

’
‘
For the sake o f God and courte s y q uoth he his French , ,
272 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

pride being well n igh beat o u t o f him if thou hast seen o r

-
,
‘

heard any t hing o f Here w ard the Wak e good fello w tell me , , ,
’
and I will re p ay thee well .

‘
As thou hast ask ed m e for the sak e Of God and o f courtesy ,

sir knight I will tell thee I am T h e Wake And in tok en

, . .

thereof tho u shalt give me thy lance and s word and take
, ,

instead thi s sword which I carried O ff from the king s court at ’

Brandon and p romise me o n the faith o f a k night to bear it , ,

ba c k to K ing William ; and tell him that Hereward and he ,

have met at last and that he had best beware o f the day when
’
they shall meet again .

S O that knight not having recovered hi s w ind wa s fain to

, ,

submit and go home a sadder and a wiser man

,
And K ing .

William laughed a royal laugh and commanded his k nights tha t ,

they should in n o wise harm T h e Wak e but take him alive and , ,

bring him in and they should have great re w ards

, .

Which s eemed to them more easily said than done .

C HA P T E R XXX I
HOW T HE Y O U G HT
F A GA N I AT A L D RE T H

HE RE W A RD came back in fear and trembling after all He .

believed in the magic powers o f th e wit c h Of Bran d on an d he

asked T o rfrid a in hi s sim p licity whether she was n o t cunning
, ,

enough to defeat her spells by counter spells .

T o rf rid a smiled and shook her head

My knight I have long since given up such vanities L e t u s
, .

n o t fight evil wi t h evil bu t rather wi t h good ,Better are prayers .

t han charms for the former are heard in heaven above and ,

the latter only in the pit below L e t me and all the women o f .

Ely go rather in procession to S t E t h e ld re d a s well there above

’
.
,

the fort at Ald re t h and p ray S t E t h e ld re d a to be with u s when

,
.

the day shall come and defen d her o w n isle and the honour o f ,
’
u s women who have tak en refuge in her holy arm s .

S O all the w omen Of E ly walked o u t barefoot to S t E t hel .

’
d reda s well wi t h T o rf rida at their head clothed in sackcloth
, , ,

and with fet t ers o n her wrists and waist and ankles ; which , ,

she vowed after the stra n ge sudden earnes t fashion O f those

, , ,

t imes never to tak e o ff again till she saw the French host flee
,

from Ald re t h before the face o f S t E t h e ld re d a S O they prayed . .

,

while Hereward and his men worked at the for t s belo w And .

when they cam e back and T o rfrid a was washing her feet s ore
, ,

and bleeding from her pilgrimage Hereward cam e in ,

.

Yo u have m urdered you r poor soft feet and t aken nothing ,

’
thereby I fear , .

I have If I h ad w alked on sharp razors all t he way I

.
,

would have done it gladly, to know what I know n o w As I .

274 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

host with her virgin palm branch S h e uttered wild p ro ph e -

.

cies o f ruin and defeat to the French ; and then when her ,

frenzy collapsed m oaned secretly of ruin and defeat hereaf t er

,
to themsel ves But she would be bold ; she would play her
.

p art she would encourage the heroes who looked to her as o n e

ins p ired wiser and lof t ier than themselves
,
.

And S O it befell that when the m e n marched down to

,

Haddenham that afternoon T o rf rid a rode at their head o n a ,

white charger ro b ed from throat to ankle in sackcloth her

, ,

fetter s clanking o n her limb s But she called on the E nglish to .

see in her the emblem o f E ngland captive yet uncon q uered ;

and to break her fetters and the w orse fet t ers o f every woman ,

in E ngland wh o was the toy and slave o f th e brutal invaders

and so fierce a triumph sparkled from her wild hawk eyes tha t -

t he E nglishmen looked up to her weird beau t y as t o that o f an

inspired saint ; and when the French cam e o n to the assault
there stood o n the grassy mound behind the E nglish fort a
figure clothed in sackcloth barefooted and bareheaded with , ,

fe t ters shinin g on w aist and wrist and ankle — her long black , ,

locks streaming in th e wind her long white arms stretched ,

cross wise toward heaven in imi t ation o f Moses o f o ld above

-
,

t he battle with Amalek ; in voking S t E t h e ld re d a and all the .

powers o f heaven and chantin g doom and defiance to the

,

invader s .

And the E nglish looked o n her and cried Sh e i s a , ,

‘

p rophetess ! We will surely do some great deed this day o r ,

die around her feet like heroes

And Opposite to her u p on the French tower the o ld hag of , ,

Brandon howled and gibbered with filthy gestures calling for ,

the thunderstorm which did not come ; fo r all above the sky
was cloudless blu e .

And the E nglish saw and felt though they could not S peak ,

it dumb n ation as they were the contrast between the s p irit o f

, ,

cruel t y and darkness and the s p irit o f freedom and light

, .

S o strong was the new bridge t hat William t rusted himself ,

upon it o n horseba c k with Ivo T aillebois at his side , .

William doubted t h e power s of the witch and felt rather ,

ashamed o f his n e w helpma t e but he was confident in his

b ridge and in the heavy artillery which he had placed in h is
,

four towers .

Ivo T ailleboi s wa s utterly confident in his witch and in the ,

bridge likewise .

William waited for the rising Of the tide and when the tide
was n ear its height he commanded the ar tillery to o p en and
, ,

c lear t he fort opposi t e Of the E nglish T hen with crash and .

,

t wan g t he b alis t as and c a t ap ults went O H; and great stones and

,

heavy lances hur tled t hrough the air .

‘
Back sh outed T o rf rid a raised almost to madness by fast ,

ing self t orture and religious frenzy

,
-
, O u t o f yo n fort every .
,
XXX I HOW T HEY FO U G HT A GAI N AT AL D RET H 2 75

man Why waste your lives under that artillery ? S tand s t ill
.

this day and see h o w the saints Of heaven shall fight for
,

y ou .
’

S o utter was t he reveren c e w hich she commanded for the

momen t t hat every man drew back and crowded roun d her
, ,

feet outside t he for t .

‘
T h e cowards are fleeing already L e t your men go si r
‘

.
,

king shouted T aillebois .

O n to the assault ! S trike for N ormandy shou ted

William .

I fear m u c h said he to himself t hat t his is som e stratagem

,
’
,
‘

’
o f that Wake s But conquered they must be ’
. .

T h e evening breeze curled u p t he reach T h e great pike .

splashed o u t from the weedy shores sending the W hi t efish fl y ,

ing in shoals in t o the low glare o f the se t ting sun and heede d
n o t stu p id things the barges p acked with m ailed m en which
, , ,

swarm ed in t he reeds o n either side the brid ge and began t o ,

push out into the river .

T h e s t arlings sw ung in thousands round t he reed ronds look -

,

ing to settle in their w onted place bu t dare no t and rose and

swung round again t elling ea c h other in t heir manifold , ,

p i p ings how all t he reed ronds teemed with mailed m en And -

, .

all above the S k y was cloudless blue

,
.

And then cam e a trample a roll o f m any feet on t h e sof t ,

spongy pea t a low murmur whi c h rose into wild shou t s Of D e x

,
‘

Aie as a h uman tide p oured along the causeway and past t h e ,

witch o f Brandon Hea t h .

’
D e x Aie ? quoth William with a sneer D e b b le s Aie !
‘ ‘
, .

would fi t better .
’

‘
If sire t he powers above would h ave h e l ed us we should
, , ,

have been happ y en o u gh t o— B u t if t hey wil n o t it is n ot our ,

’
faul t if we t ry below said Ivo T aillebois , .

‘
William laughed I t is well to have two strings to one s
.

’
bow sir Forward m en ! forward ! shouted he riding out t o
,
.
, ,

t he b ridge end under t he t ower

-
, .

‘
Forwar d shou t ed I v o T aillebois .

‘
‘
Forward shouted the hideous hag overhead T h e spirit .

o f t he well figh t s for you

’
.

’
Figh t for yourselves said William ,
.

T here were fifty yards of dee p clear water between French

man and E nglishman O nly fif t y yards N o t only the arrows . .

and arblast quarrels b u t heavy hand j avelins flew across every ,

-

m omen t ; every now and then a man to pp led forward and ,

p lunged into the blue de p t h among t he e e ls and pike to find h is ,

com rades o f the summer before and then the s t ream was still
once m ore T h e coo t s and wa t erhen s swam in a n d o u t o f t he
.

ree d s and wondered what it was all about T h e water lilies

,
.
-

fl a p pe d upon the ri p p le as lonely as in the loneliest m ere But , .

their floa t s were soon broken their white cups stained with ,
276 HEREWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

human gore Fifty yards of deep clear water And treasure

. .

ines t imable to win by crossing it .

T hey t hrust out balks canoes p ontoons they crawled upon , ,

them like an t s and t hrust out more yet beyond heedless o f

, ,

their comrades who slipped and splashed and sank holding

, , , ,

o u t vain hands to hands too busy to seize them And always .

th e Old witch j abbered overhead with her cantri p s pointing , ,

mumming praying for the stor m while all abo v e the S k y wa s

, ,

cloudless blue .

And al w ays o n the m ou n d opposite while darts and quarrels ,

whistled round her head stood T o rfrid a pointing with o u t , ,

stretched scornful finger at the s t rugglers in the river and ,

chanting loudly what the Fren c hmen could not tell : but it
made their hearts a s it was meant to do melt like wax within , ,

them .

T hey have a counter wi t ch to yours I v o it seem s ; and a

‘
, ,

fairer o n e I am afraid the devils especially if Asmodeu s be at

.
,

hand are m ore likely to listen to her than to that Old broom
,
’
stick rider aloft
-
.

’
Fair is t ha t fair cause has sir king
, , .

A good argument for honest men but none for fiends

‘
, .

’
What i s the fair fiend p ointing at so earnes t ly t here ?
S omewhat am ong the reeds
‘
Hark to her now ! S h e is .

inging somewhat m ore like an angel than a fiend I will say

p
, ,
’
or her .

’
And T o rfrid a s song coming clear and sweet across the ,

water rose louder and shriller till it almost d rowned the

,

j abbering of th e wit c h .

’
S h e sees m ore than we do .

But I see cried William smiting his hand upon his thigh ,
.

‘
Par le splendeur D e x S h e has been showing them where to
fire the reeds and they have done it
A p u ff Of smok e ; a wisp o f flame ; and then another and
another ; and a canoe shot o u t from the reeds o n t he French
S hore and glided into the reeds o f the island
,
.

T h e reeds are o n fire men Have a care shouted I v o , ,

’
.

S ilen c e fool ! Frigh t en them once and they will lea p lik e
‘
, ,

shee p into t ha t gulf Men right abou t dra w O ff —S lowly and .

in order We will attack again to morrow

.
-
.

T h e cool voi c e o f the great ca p tain arose too late A line o f .

flame was lea p ing above the reed bed crackling and howling ,

b efore the evening breeze T h e column o n the causeway had .

seen t heir danger but too soon and fled but whither , ,

A S hower O f arrows quarrels j avelins fell u p on the head o f , , ,

the colum n as it tried to face about and retreat confusing it ,

m ore and more O n e arro w shot by n o common arm wen t .

, ,

clean through William s S hield and pinned it t o t he mailed ’

,

flesh He c ould n o t stifle a cry o f p ain

. .

Y o u are wounded sire

‘
Ride for you r life ! I t is worth , .
2 78 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

C HA P T E R XXX II
HO W K I NG I
W LL AM T I OO K C OUN SEL OF A C HU R CHM AN

IF T w a s exhau sted s o was Hereward likewise

o rf rid a He , .

knew well that a repulse was n o t a defeat He knew well the .

indomi t able persis t ence the boundless resources o f the master , ,

m ind whom h e defied ; and he k new well t hat ano t her at t em p t

would be made and then another till tho u gh it took seven
, , ,

year s in the doin g— E ly would be won a t last T o hold ou t .

doggedly as he could was his p lan to obtain the best term s he .

could for his com ra d es And h e migh t Obtain good terms at .

last Wi lliam migh t be glad t o p ay a fair pri c e in order to

.

escape such a thorn I n his side as the camp Of refuge and migh t ,

deal o r at least promise to d e al m e rc if u lly and generously

-
, ,
m

with th e last remnant of the E nglish gent ry Fo r himself yield .

,

he would n o t : when all wa s over h e would flee to the sea with , ,

T o rf rid a and his own h o u se c a rle s and turn Viking ; o r go to ,

S weyn U lfsso n in D enmark and die a free m an , .

T h e E nglish did not foresee these thing S T h eir h earts were .

lifted u p wi t h their victory and th ey laughed at William and ,

’
his French and drank T o rfrid a s heal t h much t o o often fo r their
,

o w n go od Here w ard did n o t care to undeceive them But h e

. .

’
c ould n o t help speaking his m ind in t h e abbot s chamber t o
T hurstan E ge lw in and his nephews and to S igt ryg Ran ald sso n
, , , ,

wh o was still in E ly n o t only because he h ad promised to stay

,

t here bu t because he could n o t ge t o u t if he would

,
.

B lock aded t hey w ere u tt erly by land and w ater T h e isle , .

fu rnish ed a fair supply o f food ; and what was wanti n g g t hey

Ob t ained by foragin g Bu t they had laid t he land was t e f o r so
.

m an y m iles ro u nd t h at t heir plun dering raids bro u g ht th em I n

,

less than o f O ld ; and if t hey wen t far they fell i n with the ,

Fren ch and l ost good m e n even though th ey were generally

, ,

su ccessfu l S o prov i sions were ru n m ng somewhat short and

.
,

would run shorter still .

M oreover th ere was a great cause Of anxiety Bis h o p E gel

, .

win A bbot T h urstan an d t he monk s O f E ly were i n rebellion

, , ,

not only against K i n g William b u t m ore o r less against the ,

P ope o f Ro m e T h ey m ight be ex c om municated

. T h e minster .

lan ds might be tak en away .

Bishop p E ge lw in set his face lik e a flint He expected n o .

mer c y All he h ad ever don e f o r the French was to warn

Robert C o m yn th at if he s t ayed i n D urham evil w ould befall ,

h im B u t that was as li tt le wor t h to him as it was t o t he said

.

Rober t An d n o m ercy he craved T h e less a m an had the

.
,

m ore fit h e w as for heaven He could bu t die ; and t ha t he had .

k nown e ver S ince h e wa s a c hanter boy Whether h e died I n .

XXX II HOW K IN G W ILLIAM T OO K CO U N S E L 279

E ly o r in prison m at t ered little to him provided they did n o t ,

ref u se him t he sacraments and that they w ould hardly d o .

But call the D uke o f N ormandy his righ t ful sovereign he would
not beca u se he was not — nor a n ybody else j ust now as far as
, ,

he c ould see .

Valiant likewise was Abbot T hu rstan for himself But he , .

had — unlike Bishop E ge lw in whose diocese had been given to a ,

Frenchman — a n abbey monks and broad land s whereof he was , , ,

fa t her and steward And he must do what was best for the .

abbey and also what the monks would let him do Fo r severe
,
.

as was the disci p line o f a mins t er in tim e o f peace yet in t ime ,

o f war when life and death were i n question m onks had ere
, ,

now turned valiant from v ery fear like Cato s mouse an d ,

’
,

m utinied and so might the m onk s of E ly .

And E dwin and Morcar ?

N o man knows what t hey said or thou ght perhaps n o man
cared much even in t heir o w n days N o hin t does any ch ronicler
, .

give o f what manner o f men they were o r wha t manner o f d eeds ,

they did Fair gentle noble beloved even by William they

.
, , , ,

are mere names and n othing m ore in h isto ry an d it is to be

, ,

su p posed therefore that they were nothing more in fa c t T h e

, , .

race o f L eofric and Godiva had worn i t self ou t .

O n e night the confedera t es had sat late talki n g o v er the ,

f u ture m ore earnestly than u sual E dwin usually sad eno u gh .

, ,

was especially sad that n ight .

Hereward j ested with him tried to cheer him : but he wa s ,

silent would not drink and went away b efore the rest
, ,
.

T h e next morning he was gone and with him half a d ozen o f ,

his p rivate h o u se c arle s .

Hereward was terrified If defections once began th ey would .

,

be endless T h e cam p would fall to p ieces and every man

.
,

am ong t hem would be hange d mu t ila t ed o r imprisoned o n e by , , ,

o n e hel p lessly
,
T hey m us t stand o r fall together
. .

He wen t raging to M orcar Morcar knew n ought o f it O n . .

t he fai t h and honou r o f a knigh t he knew n ou ght O nly his ,

.

bro t her had said to him a day o r t wo before that he mu s t see

his betrothed before h e died .

He is gone t o William then ? D oes h e think to win h e r

‘
,

n ow — an outcast and a beg g ar — when he was refu sed her with

broad lands a n d a t housand men at his ba c k ? Fool I S e e tha t
th ou play no t t he fool likewise ne phew o r , ,

O r what said Morcar defian t ly

‘
.

O r thou wilt go whither E dwin is gone to betrayal an d

‘
-
,
,
.

ru m .

Why so ? He has been k ind enough to W alt h e o f and Gos

‘

patric why n o t to E dwin ,

Because la u ghed Hereward he wan t ed W alt h e o f and he

‘
,
’
,
‘
,

d oes n o t wan t you an d E dwin He c an kee p Mercia q u iet .

without you r help N orthumbria and the fens he canno t .

2 80 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

without W alt h e o f s T hey are a rougher set as you go east and

’
.

nor t h as yo u should know already and must have o n e o f

,

themselve s over them to keep them in good hum ou r for a while .

When he has used W alt h e o f as hi s stalking —h orse long enough

to build a castle every ten miles he will throw him away like a ,

worn bows t ring E arl Morcar nephew mine

, ,
.
’

Morcar shook his head .

In a week more he wa s gone likewi s e He came to William .

at B randon .

‘
You are come in at last young earl said William sternly , .

’
Yo u are come too late .

’
‘
I throw myself o n your knightly faith said Morcar But ,
.

he had c ome in an angry and unlucky hour .

Ho w w ell have you kept your own twice a rebel that you , ,
’
sh ould appea l to mine ? T ake him away .

‘
And hang him l asked Ivo T aillebois ‘
. .

Pish ! N o — thou o ld butcher

‘
Pu t him in irons and send .
,

him in t o N ormandy ’
.

S end him to Roger de Beaumont sire Roger s son i s safe

‘ ’
,
.

in Mo rc ar s castle a t Warwick so it is but fair that Morcar

’

S hould be safe in Roger s

’ ’
.

And to Roger de Beaumont he was sent while young Roger ,

was L ord o f Warwick and all around that on c e was L eofric ,

and Godiva s ’
.

’
M orcar lay in a N orman kee p ti ll the day o f William s death .

O n his dea t hbed t h e tyrant s hear t sm ote him and he sent

’

orders to release him Fo r a few short days o r h ou rs he .

, ,

breathed free air again T hen Rufus S hut him up once m ore .
,

and for ever .

And that was the end o f E arl Morcar .

A f e w weeks af t er three men came to the cam p a t Brandon

, ,

and they brought a head to t h e king And when William .

looked u pon it it was t he head o f E dwin

, .

T h e human heart must have b urst up again in the tyrant as

he looked o n t he fair face of him he had so loved and so ,

w ronged for they say he wept .

T h e knights and earls stood rou n d ; amazed and awed as ‘

they sa w iron tears run do w n P luto s c heek ’

.

‘
Ho w came this here knaves 3 th u ndered he at las t ,
‘
.

T hey told a rambling story h ow E dwin always w ould need s ,

go t o Win c hester t o see the queen for she would stand his ,

friend and do him right

,
And h ow they could n o t get t o .

W in c hes t er for fear of t he French and wandered in woods and ,

w olds ; and h ow they were se t upon and hunted ; and h ow ,

E dwin still was mad to go to Winchester : bu t when he could

not he wo u ld go to Ble t h w allo n and his Welsh and h o w E arl
,

Randal o f C hes t er set u pon t hem ; and how t hey got between
a s t ream and the tide way o f t he D e e and were cut o ff And -
, .

how E dwin would n o t yield And how t hen t hey slew him in .
2 82 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

written — He p oureth contempt upon princes and l e tteth

1
,

them wander o u t o f t he way in the wilderness o r fens — for ,

the L atin word and I doubt not the Hebrew has both , ,

m e an I n gs
’
.

S p lendeur D e x cried William bitterly t hat hath he done

‘

with a vengeance T hou art righ t so far clerk ,

‘
Yet helpeth He the poor videlicet hi s church and the , ,

religious who are vowed t o holy poverty out of misery v ide

, , ,

licet the op p ression o f barbarou s customs and maketh them

,
’
households like a flock o f sheep .

’
T h ey do that for t hemselves already here in E ngland said , ,

William with a sneer at the fancied moral s o f the E nglish

,

m onks and clergy 2 .

But Heaven and the C hurch do it for t he true poor whom ,

’
your maj esty is bringing in t o your endless glory , .

But what has all t his to do with taking E ly (1 asked William

’
impatiently I asked thee for reason and n o t sermons
.
,
.

T his T hat it is in the power o f t he Holy Father —an d that

.

p o w er he w ould doubtless allo w you as his dear son and m ost ,

faithful servant to employ for yourself without sending to

, ,

Rome which might cause p ainful delays —to

,

It might seem stra n ge that William T aillebois Picot G u ad e r , , , ,

Warrenne short spoken hard headed h a rd swearing warriors

,
-
,
-
,
-
,

could allow complacently a smooth chu rchm an to dawdle o n

thus coun t ing his periods o n his finger s and seemingly ne v er
, ,

coming to the poin t .

B u t they kne w wel l that the ch urchm an wa s a far cunninger ,

a s well as a more learned man than them selves T hey kne w ,

.

well t ha t they could not h urry him and that they need n ot ;
t ha t he would mak e his point at l ast hunti n g it o u t s t ep by , ,

step and lettin g t hem see how he got thi t her like a prac t ised
, ,

hound T hey k ne w tha t if he s p oke he had thought long and

.
,

craftily t ill he had made u p his mind ; and that therefore he

,

wo u ld very probably m ak e up their m inds likewise It was th e .

c onques t — n o t of a h eavenly sp iri t t hough it boasted i t self such ,

but o f a cultivated mind over brute flesh .

T hey migh t have said all this aloud and yet the churchman ,

I do n o t la at Ho ly S ri p ughre m y se l , I o n ly i n se r is as a
c tu f t th
1

spe im e n o f t h e
c s al m e i a eval
‘
uu
an —a n am e an d a pra i e w i
d c t ct c h ch
are b o e riv e , n o t
th d ro m P ri an s, b u t ro m m o n s
d f u t f k .

2
T h e all e e pro fl igacy an d sen s ali y o f t h e E n li s C
g d r b e o re u t g h hu ch f
t h e C o n q e s , re s s m e re ly o n a fe w vi o l e n
u t t an d v a e e pre ssi o n s o f t gu x
t h e N o rm an m o n s w h o k ispla e em d c d th
N o a s, as far as I c an fi n d , f ct .

h ave e ve r b e e n al le e An d wi o gd a s on th e o
. e r si e th ut f ct
an im th d ,

par i al m an will o l b y t h e o n e a w i
t h d is e r ai n , a the Cf ct h ch c t
r of th t hu ch
E n l an , po pi s as i w as, w as, n o r n a e l y fo r i , n o t po pis e n o
g d h t u f tu t t h ugh
an d , ro m it s in s l ar re e o m , o b n o i o s t o t h e C
f u f d r x u
o f Ro m e an d t h e hu ch
utl ram o n an e t c g
le r y o f N o rm an y ; an d w as e re o re t o b e b e li e v e
d th f d
c apab l e — an d e re o re ag ai n a se —o f an y an d e ve ry ri m e
th f ccu d c .
X XX II HOW K IN G WILLIAM T OO K CO U N SE L 28 3

would have gone o n as he did where he left o ff with un altered , , ,

blandness o f t one .

T o c onver t to other u ses t he goo d s o f the Ch u rch T 0 con

‘
.

vert t hem to profan e uses w ould I need n o t say be a sa c rilege , ,

as horrible to heaven as im p ossible t o so piou s a m onarch ,

Ivo T aillebois w inced He had j us t s t olen a m an or from the .

m onk s o f C rowland and m eant to keep i t , .

T o c onvert I say chu r c h lan d s bel ongi n g to abbeys o r sees

, , .

whose abbots o r bishops are contum acio u sly d isobe d ient t o t he

Holy S e e o r t o t heir lawful m onarch h e bein g in t he c o m
, ,

munion of the C hurch and at peace with t h e said Holy S e e If .

,

therefore to com e to that p oin t a t which my in ca p acity t h ro u gh

, ,

t he devious windings of m y sim p licity has been ten d in g b u t , ,

with halting steps from the m omen t that your m aj esty deigned ,

t o hear
‘
P u t in the spur man said Ivo tired at last an d run th e , , ,
‘

deer to soil .
’

‘
Hurry no m an s cattle especially thine o w n answered t h e ’
, ,
’

churchman wi t h so shrewd a wink and so cheery a voice t hat

, , ,

Ivo when he recovered from his s u rp rise cried

, ,
‘
Why thou art a good huntsman thyself I be lieve n ow
,
’
,
.

‘
All things to all m en if by any m eans B ut to return ,
.

If your maj esty should t hink fit to pro c laim to th e recalcitrants

o f E ly that unless they submit t h em sel ves to you r royal grace
,

and to t hat o f cou rse o f His Holin ess o u r Fa t her— w ithin a

, ,

c ertain day you will convert t o other u ses— prem isi n g to avoid
, ,

scandal tha t those u ses shall be for the benefi t o f Holy C hu rch
,
— all lan d s a n d manors o f theirs lying with ou t the precin c t s o f
th e isl e of E ly— those lands bei n g as is k n own large and o f , ,

great valu e— Quid plu ra ? Wh y bur d en your exal t ed intellec t

by d etai ling to yo u c onseq u ences w hich it h as lon g ere now
’
foreseen ?
qu o t h William w h o wa s n early as s h ar p as the Italian , ,

and h ad seen it all I will mak e th ee a bish op .

’
S pare t o burden m y w eakness said the chaplain an d s li p t
‘
,

away into t h e shade .

’
Y o u will tak e his advice ? asked Ivo
‘
.

I will
‘
.
’

T hen I shall see t h at T o rf rid a burn a t las t

’
.

Burn h e r and Will iam swore

‘
.

‘
I promised m y sol d iers t o burn the wi tc h wi t h reeds o u t of
Haddenham fe n as she had burned t hem and I mu st keep m y ,
’
kni gh tly word .

VVilliam swore yet m ore Ivo T aillebois was a butcher and a .

c h u rl .

Call m e n o t ch u rl and bu tc h er too often l ord ki n g ere th ou

‘
, ,

h ast found w h e t her t hou needest m e or not Rou gh I may be .

,
’
false was I n ever .

T hat t ho u wert n o t said William wh o needed T aillebois

‘ ’

, ,
284 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

m uc h and feared him somewhat and remarked something

,

meaning in his v oice which made him calm himself diplomat , ,

’
as he was instan tly ,
But burn T o rf rid a thou shalt n o t
. .

‘
Well I care no t I have seen a woman burnt ere now and
,
.
,
had n o fancy f o r t he screeching Besides they say she is a very ,

fair dame and ha s a fair daughter too coming o n — and she

.

-
, ,
’
may very well make a wife fo r a Frenchman .

’
Marry her thyself .

‘
I shall have to kill this Wake fi rst .
’

’
T hen do it and I will give t hee his lands
, .

‘ ’
I may have to kill others before T h e Wake .

’
Y o u may ?
And so the matter drop p ed B u t William caught Ivo alone .

after an h our and asked him what he meant

, .

N 0 pay no play , L ord king I have s erved thee well rough

.
, ,
’
and smoo t h .

T hou hast and hast been well paid But if I h ave said .

aught has t y
Pish king , I am a plain spok en m an and lik e a plain
.
-
,

spok en mas t er But instead o f marrying T o rf rid a o r her

.

daughter I have m ore mind to her niece who is younger and

, , ,

has no Hereward to be killed fi rst .

’

‘
He r niece ? Wh o ? ’

L u cia as we call her E dwin and Mo rc ar s sister Hereward s

’ ’
, , ,
niece T o rf rida s niece
,
’
.
’

N o pay no play saidst thou — so say I

, ,
What m eant you .

b y having to kill o t hers before Hereward

Be w are o f W alt h e o f said Ivo ,
’
.

W alt h e o f ? P ish T his i s one o f thy inventions for making

.

m e hunt every E nglishman to d eath that thou m ayest gnaw ,

their bone s .
’

F3
Beware o f Ralph G u ad e r ’

: I si
ii 1 T hen this I say more
,
. .

’
Pish o n lord king
‘
,
E tiquette was n ot yet discovered by.

N orman barons and earls who thought themselve s all but as ,

good as their king ; gave him their ad vice when they thought
fit and if he did not tak e it a t tacked him with all their m einie ,
.

P ish o n but lis t en Beware o f Roger ’

‘

, . .

And what m ore ? ’

‘ ’
And give m e L u cia I want h e r I will have her . . .

William laughed T hou o f all men ? T o mix that ditch

.
‘

w ater with that wine ?

’

‘
T hey were mixed in thy blood lord king and thou art the ,

bet t er man for it so says the world O ld wine and o ld blood

,
.

throw any lees to the bo tt om o f the cask and we shall have a

son worthy to ride behind
T ake care quoth William .

’
T h e greates t c a p t ain u p on ear t h .

W illiam laughed again like O d in s sc lf ,

’
.
2 86 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

’ ‘
‘
S ir
Ascelin s aid William a s Ascelin came in yo u kno w
, , ,
Here w ard
Asceli n bo w ed assent .

‘
Are these thin g s true which Ivo alleges
‘
T h e L ord T aillebois may know best what mann er o f m an
S ir Here w ard has be c ome sin c e he himse lf cam e into this
’
E nglish air which changes some folks mightily with a hardly
, ,

disguised sneer at Ivo but in Flanders he was a very perfect

k night belo ved and h onoured o f all men and e s pecially o f your
, ,
’
father in la w the great marquis
- -
, .

‘
He is a friend o f yours then ? ’
,

N o m an less I owe him more than o n e grudge though all

.
,

i n fair quarrel and o n e at lea s t which can only be wiped o u t ,

’
in blood .

‘ ’
Eh What ?
Ascelin hesi t ated .

‘
T ell m e sir thundered William unle s s you have aught to
, ,
‘

’
be ashamed of .

It is no shame as far as I k n ow to confess that I was once

, ,

a suitor as were all knigh t s for miles round for the hand o f the
, ,

o n ce peerles s T o rf rid a An d no shame to confess that when .

,

Hereward knew thereof he sought me o u t at a tournament and , ,

served me as h e has served many a bet t er man before and sin ce .

’

’
O ver thy horse s croup eh ? said William
’
, .

‘
I am not a bad horseman as all know L or d K ing B ut , ,
.

heaven save me and all I love from that Hereward T hey say
, ,
.

’
h h as se v e n men s s trength and I verily can testify to the truth
t }?
,

e re o f
’
T hat may be by enchantment interposed t h e Italian ,
.

‘
T rue sir priest
, T his I know tha t he wears enchanted .
,
’
armou r which T o rfrid a gave him before she married him
, .

’
E nchantments again said the secre t ary , .

’
T ell me now about T o rf rid a said William , .

Ascelin told him all about her n o t forgetting t o say— what , ,

according to the chroni c ler was a common rep ort— tha t she had ,

c ompassed Hereward s love by magic arts S h e u sed to practise ’

.

sorcery he said with her sorceress mistress Ric h ild a o f Hainault

, , ,
.

All men knew it Arnoul Ric h ild a s son was as a bro t her t o
.
,
’
,

her And after o ld Baldwin died and Baldwin o f Mons and

.
,

Ric h ild a came to Bruges T o rfrid a w as alway s with her while , _

,

Hereward was at the war s .

T h e woman is a manifest and notorious witch said the

‘ ’
,

secre t ary .

It seems so indeed said William with some t hing like a sigh ,

. .

And so w ere T o rf rid a 5 early follies visi t ed o n her as all early

f o llie s are But Hereward yo u say is a good knight and
.
‘
, ,

t rue q
E ven when he commi t ted tha t great c rime at
‘
D o u b lt e ss .

Peterborough
x xe HOW K IN G WIL L IAM T OO K COU N S E L 2 87

For w hich he and all his are duly excommunicated by the

‘

bishop said the secretary

,
’
.

He did a very courteous and honourable thin g And Ascelin

‘ ’
.

told h o w he had saved Alft ru d a and ins t ead o f put t ing her to ,

ransom had sent her safe to Gilbert

,
.

A very knightly deed He should be rewarded for it . .

’

Wh y no t burn t he witch and re w ard him with Alf t ru d a

‘
,
’
instead since your maj esty is in so gracious a humour ? said
,

Iv o .

Alf t ru d a ? W h o
’
‘
is she ? Ay I recollect her Young D o lfin s ,
.

’
wife Why she has a husband already
.
,
.

Ay bu t his Holiness a t Rome can set that right What is

‘
.
,

there that he cannot do ? ’

T here are limits I fear even to his p ower E h p riest ?

’
.
, , ,

Wha t his Holiness powers as the V iceroy of D ivini t y o n

‘ ’

earth might be did he so choose it were irreverent to in quire

, , .

B ut as h e condescends to u se that power only for the good of

mankind he condescends like D ivini t y to be bound by t he very
, , ,

laws which he has promulgated for th e benefit o f his s u bj ects

and to make himself only a life giving su n when he might be a -
,
’
des t ruc t ive thunderbolt .

He i s very kind and we all owe him thanks said I vo who

’
, , ,

had a confused notion that t he P ope m ight strik e him dead with
lightning but was good na t u red enough not to do so
, S till he -
.
,

might t hink o f t his plan for they say that the lady is an old
friend o f Hereward s and not over fond o f her S cotch husband ’
, .
’

’
T hat I kn ow well said William
‘
.
,

1 n d be ide s — if aught untoward should h appen to D o lfi n and

1u s l In 3 s
‘
She might with her broad lands be a fine bait for Here
, ,

ward I see N o w do this by my command S end a trusty

. .
, ,
.

m onk into E ly L e t him tell t he m onks that we have de t er

.

mined t o seize all their outlying lands unless they surrender ,

wi t hin the week And let h im tell Hereward by t he faith and

.
,

oath of William o f N ormandy th a t if he will surrender him self ,

t o my grace he shall have his lands in Bourne and a free pardon

,
’
,

for himself and all his comrades .

T h e men assented much against their will and went out on , ,

their errand .

‘ ’
You have played me a sc u rvy trick sir said Ascelin to Ivo , , ,
‘
in advising the king to give the L ady Alf t ru d a to Hereward .
’

What D id yo u want her yourself ? O n m y honour I knew

‘

n o t o f it Bu t have p atience Yo u shall have her ye t and all

. .
,

her lands if you will hear m y counsel and keep it

, , .
’

Bu t you would give her to Hereward

‘
And to you t oo I t is a p oor bait say these frogs o f fen m e n
.
,
-
,

t hat will no t t ake two pike running L isten t o me I mus t . .

kill this ac c u rsed fox of a Wake I hate him I cannot eat my . .

’
mea t for thinking o f him K ill him I mus t . .
2 88 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P
‘
And so must I .
’

‘
T hen we are bo t h agreed L e t us work together an d never .
,
’
mind if one s blood be old and the other s new I am neither
’

’
fool n o r weakly as thou knowest , .

Ascelin could not but assent .

T hen here We m ust s end the king s message But we must

’
. .

’
add to it .

’
T hat is dangerous .

‘
S o is war so is eating drinking so is everything But we , .

In ust not let T h e Wake come in We m ust drive him t o despair . .

Make the m essenge r add but o n e w ord — that t he king exempts

from the amnesty T o rf rid a o n account o f — Yo u can put it ,
’
into m ore scholarly shap e t han I can .

O n account o f her abominable and notorious sorceries and

demand s that she shall be given up forthwith to be j udged as ,

she deserve s .
’

‘
Just so And then for a load o f reeds out o f Haddenha m
.

f en
Hea v en forbid said Ascelin who had loved her once , .

‘
Would n o t perpetual imprisonment su fli c e
What care I ? T hat is the kin g s affair n o t ours But I fear ’
, .

we shall n o t get her E ven so Hereward will flee with her .

maybe escape to Flanders o r D enmark He can escape through .

a rat s hole if he will However then we are at peace I had

’
.
,
,

s ooner kill him and have done with it : but o u t o f the way h e
’
must be p ut .

S o they sent a m onk in with the message and commanded

him to tell the article abou t the L ady T o rf rid a n o t only t o ,

Hereward but to the abbot and all t he m onks

, .

A curt and fierce an swer came back not from Hereward but , ,

from T o rf rid a herself— tha t William of N ormandy wa s n o knight

himself o r he would not o ffer a knight his life o n condi t ion o f
, ,

burning his lady .

William swore h orribly What is all this about ? T hey .

‘ ’

told him as much as they ch ose to tell him He was very

-
.

wroth .Who was Ivo T aillebois to add to his m essage ? He

‘
,
’
had said that T o rf rid a should not burn T aillebois was stout .

for he had w o n the secretary over to his side meanwhile He .

had said nothing about bu rning He had merely supplied an .

oversight o f the king s T h e woman as the se c retary knew ’

.
, ,

could n o t with all deferen c e to his maj esty be in c luded in an

, ,

amnesty S h e was liable t o ecclesias t i c al censure and the

.
,

ecclesiastical cou r t s .

‘
E cclesiasti c al courts ? What is this new doctrine church ,
’
man ? asked William .

T h e su p ers t ition of sorcery my l ord king is neither m ore

‘
, ,

nor less than that o f heresy itself seeing that the demons
whom it invokes are none other than the o ld Pagan gods and
as heresy
2 90 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

C HA P T E R XXX III
HOW T HE M O N KS O F E LY D I D A FT E R T HE I R I
K ND

’
W I L L I A M S bolt or rather inextinguishable Greek fire could n o t
, ,

have fallen in t o E ly at a more pro p i t ious moment .

Hereward was away with a large body o f men and m any ,

shi p s foraging in the north —eastern fen s He might not be

,
.

back for a week .

Abbot T h u rst an f o r what cause is not said had lost heart

fl -

a lit t le while before and fled to An ge rh ale taking with him ,

‘
,
’
the ornaments and treasure o f the church .

Hereward had discovered his flight with deadly fear : but

provisions he mu st have and forth he must go leaving E ly in , ,

charge o f half a dozen inde p endent E nglish gentlemen each o f ,

whom would needs have his o w n way j u s t because it was his ,

ow n .

O nly T he took and put her han d into th e hand o f

o rf rid a ,

S igt ryg Ran ald sso n and s aid T hou true c omrade and perfect
, ,

knight as I did by thy wife do thou by mine if augh t befall

, , ,
.
’

And S igt rygs wore first by the white C hrist and then by th e ,
’
h ead o f S le ipn I r O din s h orse that he would s tand by T o rfrida
, ,

till the last and then if need was slay her , , .

’
Yo u will n ot need K ing S igt ryg I can slay my s elf said
‘
.
, ,

she as S h e took the O st —D ane s hard honest hand

,
’
.

And Hereward went seemingly by Mepal o r S utton T hen , .

came th e message and all men in E ly knew it .

T o rfrid a s t ormed down to the m onks in honest indignation , ,

to demand that the should send to William and purge her o f ,

th e calumny S h e c und the chapter door barred and bolted

.
-
.

T hey were all gabbling inside like starlings o n a foggy morning , ,

and would not let her in S h e hurried back to S igt ryg fearing .
,

treason and foreseeing the effect o f the message upon the

,

m onk s .

B ut what could S igt ryg do ? T o find o u t their counsels was

impossible for him or any man in E ly For the monks could , .

talk L atin and the men could not T o rfrida alone knew the
,
.

s acred tongue .

If T o rfrid a co u ld but lis t en at the ke yhole Well— all was .

fair in war And to the chapter house door she went guarded
.
-
,

by S igt ryg and some o f his h o u se ca rle s ; and listened wi t h a ,

beating heart S h e heard word s n o w incomprehensible T ha t

. .

men wh o m ost o f them lived n o better than their o w n s erfs ;

who could have n o amount o f wealth n o t even the hope o f leav ,

ing tha t wealth to their children — that su ch men should cling

to weal t h ; struggle forge lie do anything for wealth , t o be, , ,

u sed almost entirely no t for them s elves but for the honou r and ,
XXX III HOW T HE MO N K S D ID A FT E R T HE IR K IND 291

glory o f the con vent — indicates an intensity o f corporate feeling

unknown in the outer world then or now .

T h e m onastery would be ruined Without thi s man or .

,

without that woo d without that stone q uarry that fi sh e ry , ,

what would become of them

B ut mingled wi t h those words were other words u n f o r ,

t u n at e ly m ore intelligible to this day — t h ose o f supersti t ion .

What w ould S t E t h e ld re d a say ? Wha t S t S e x b u rga S t

. .
, .

W it h b u rga S t E rm e n ild a ? Ho w dare t hey provok e their

, .

w ra t h ? W ould they submit to lose t heir lands ? T hey might

do —what might they n ot do ? T heir bones w ould refuse ever
to work a miracle again T hey had been but t o o slack in .

miracle working for many years T hey migh t strik e the isle .

w ith barrenness the mins t er with lightning ,

T hey might send .

a fl o o d up the fens T hey might .

William the N orman to do t hem j ustice tho s e valiant m onk s , ,

feared not ; for he was man and could but kill the body But , .

S t E t h e ld re d a a v i rgi n goddess with her three maidens and

.
, , ,

indeed all the host of heaven to back her — might she n o t b y

, ,

in t ercession with powers still higher than her o w n destroy both ,

body and soul I n hell ?

We are betrayed T hey are going to send f o r the abbot
‘
.

from An ge rh ale said T o rfrid a at last reeli ng from the door

,
’
, .

All Is lost .
’

’
S hall we bur s t open the door and kill them all ? ask ed
‘

S igt ryg simply .

N o king — no
’
, T hey are God s men and we hav e blood ,
enough upon o u r souls .
’

i
We can keep the ga t es lest any go o u t to the k ing ,

Impossible T hey know the isle better than we a r d have a

.
,

thousand ar t s .

S o all they co u ld do wa s to wait i n fear and trembling for

Hereward s return and send Martin L ightfoo t o ff to warn him
’
, ,

wherever he might be .

T h e monks remained p erfectly quiet T h e organ d i o n e d the .

,

chants wailed a s usual no t hing interrupted the s t ated order o f ,

t he serv i ces and I n the hall each day t hey met the knights as
, , ,

cheerfully as ever Greed and supers t iti o n had made cowards .

o f t hem — and now traitors .

I t was whi s pered that Abbot T hurstan had retu rned to the
minster : but n o man saw him : and so three or fo u r days
went o n .

Mar t in found Hereward after incredible labours and told ,

’
him all c learly and shrewdly T h e man s manifest insanity
, .

only seemed to quicken his ywit and increase his powers o f ,

bodily endurance .

Hereward was already o n his way hom e ; and never did he

and his good men row harder than they rowed tha t day ba c k to
S utton . He landed and hurried o n with half hi s men leavin g , ,
292 HBREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

the re s t to disembark the booty He wa s anxiou s a s to the .

t emper of the monks He foresaw all that T o rf rid a had fore .

seen And a s for T o rf rid a herself he was half mad Ivo T ail
.
,
.

le b o is addition to William s m essage had had its due effect He

’ ’
.

vowed even de adlier hate against the Frenchman than he had

ever felt befo re He ascended the heights to S utton It was
. .

his shortest way to E ly He could not see Ald re t h from thence : .

’
but he could s ee Willingham field and Be lsar s hill s round the ,

corner o f Haddenham Hill .

T h e sun was setting long before they reached Ely but j ust
a s he sank into the western fen Winter stopped pointin g — Was , ,

that the flash of arms ? T here far away j ust below Willing , ,

ham town O r wa s it the setti n g sun upon the ripple o f some

.

long water ?
’
T here is n o t wind en ough f o r s uch a ripple said on e But ,
.

ere they could s atisfy them sel v es the sun wa s down and all the , ,

fen wa s gray .

Here w ard was still more unea s y If that had been the flash .

of arm s it m ust have com e o ff a very large body o f men m oving

, ,

i n column o n the road between C ambridge and E ly

,
He .

hastened o n his men But ere they were within sight o f the .

minster tower they were aware of a h orse galloping violently

-
,

towards them th rough the dusk Hereward c alled a halt He . .

heard his own heart beat as he stopped T h e horse was pulled .

u p short am ong them O n its back wa s a lad with a smaller .

,
boy behind him clasping hi s waist ,
.

Hereward ? T hank God I am in time ! And the child i s

‘
,

safe too T hank s thank s

. dear s aints a voice sobbed
, ,

ou t .

It was the voice of T o rf rid a .

‘
T reason I she gasped .

’
I knew it
‘
.

‘
T h e French are in the island T hey have got Ald re t h T h e . .

whole army is marchi n g from C ambridge T h e whole fleet is .

coming up from S outhrey And you have time .

T o burn E ly over the monks head s

‘ ’
Men ! Get bogwood .

’
o u t of yon cottage mak e yourselve s torches an d onward I
‘

, ,

T hen rose a babel o f question s which T o rfrid a a nswered as ,

’ ’
sh e could But she had nothing to tell C lerks cunning she
‘
.
,
.

’ ’
said bitterly was an o vermatch f o r woman s wit S h e had
,
‘
.

sent o u t a spy : but he had not returned till an hour S ince .

T hen he came back breathless with the news that the Fre n ch ,

army was o n the march from C ambridge and that as he came , ,

over the water at Ald re t h he found a p arty o f Fren c h knights ,

in t he fort o n the E ly side talking peaceably with the monk s ,

o n g uard .

S h e had run u p to th e borough hill— which men call C herry

Hill at this d ay— and o n e look to t he nor t h eas t had shown her -

’
the river swarming w ith ships S h e had rushed home put boys .
,
29 4 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Whichford at thi s m oment with all his army h alf a mile o ff I , .

Right across the road to E ly I ’

Hereward grew Berserk O n ! m en I shouted he we shall .

‘
.
’
,
‘

’
kill a few Frenchmen a p i ece before we die I .

‘
Hereward cried T o rf rid a you shall n o t go o n ! If you go
,
’
,
‘
,

I shall be taken And if I am taken I shall be burned And I

.
,

cannot burn — I cannot ! I shall g o mad with terror before I

.

come to the s take I cannot go stri p t to my smock before those

.

Frenchmen I cannot be roasted piecemeal ! Hereward tak e

.
,
me away ! T ake me away ! o r kill me n o w and here ! ,

He paused He h ad never seen T o rfrid a thus overcom e .

L e t u s flee I T h e stars are against u s G o d is against u s I

‘
. .

L e t u s hide — escape abroad : beg o u r bread go o n pilgrimage to ,

Jerusalem together — for together it must be alway s : but tak e

’
me away I
‘
We will go back to the boat s m e n said Hereward
’
, , .

But they did n ot go T hey stood there irre s olute lookin g .

, ,

toward s E ly .

T h e skyywas pitchy dark T h e min s ter roof s lyi n g north .

,

east were ut t erly invisible against the blackness

, .

We may at least save some who esca p e out said Hereward

’
, .

March o n quickly to the left under the h ill t o the plough fi e ld ,

-
.
’

T hey did so .

‘
L ie d own men T here are th e French close o n o u r right
,
.
, .

’
D own am ong t h e bushes .

Al l d theygheard the heavy tramp o f men within a q uarter o f

a m i le .

’ ’
C over the mare s eyes and hold her mouth lest she neigh
‘
, ,

said Winter .

Hereward and T o rfrid a lay side by side upon the heath S h e .

was shivering wi t h cold and h orror He laid his cloak over .

her put hi s arm round her

,
.

‘
Your stars did not foretell yo u thi s T o rfrid a He spok e ,
.
’

n o t bitterly but I n utter sadness

,
.

S h e burst into an agony of weepi n g .

‘
My stars at least foretold m e nothi n g but w o e S ince first I ,
’
saw your face .

’
‘
Why did you m arry m e then ? asked he h alf angrily , .

’
Because I loved you Because I love yo u still . .

T hen you do n o t regret ?

’

N ever never never ! I am quite happy

, ,
q uite happy .

’
Why not ?
A low m urmur from the men made them look u p T hey .

were near enough to the town to hear — only too much T h eg .

heard the tram p o f m en shouts and yel ls T hen the shrill c ri e s ,

.

o f women All dull and muffled the sounds c ame to them

.

through the still nig ht ; an d t hey lay there s p ell bound as i n a ,

nightmare as men assisting at some horrible tragedy whi c h

, ,

they had no power t o p revent T hen there wa s a glare and a .

,
x xx u r HOW T HE MON K S D ID AFT ER T HEIR K IN D 2 95

wisp o f sm oke against t h e black sky and then a house began ,

burnin g brightly and then another ,

.

T his is the Frenchman s faith I

’

And all the while as the sack raged in the town below the , ,
m ins t er stood above glaring in the fi re ligh t silent and safe , , .

T h e ch urch had provided for herself by sacrificing the children

ben eath her fostering shadow
T hey waited nearly an hour but no fugitives came o u t , .

C ome men said Hereward wearily we may as well to the

’
, , ,
’
b oats .

An d so they went walking o n lik e men in a dream as yet , ,

t o o s tunned to realise to themselves the h opeles s horror o f their

S ituation O nly Hereward and T o rfrida s aw it all looking back
.
,

o n th e s plendid past — the splendid hopes for the future : glory ,

h onou r an earldom a free D anish E ngland — and this w as all

, ,

that was left

‘
N o it is not ,
cried T o rf rida suddenly as if answering her ,

L ove i s stil l left

‘
o w n un s pok en thoughts and hi s ,
T h e gal . .

’
low s and the s t ak e cannot take that away And S h e clung .

’
closer to her hu sband s side and he again to hers , .

T hey reached the shore and told their tale to their comrades , .

Whither now
‘
T o Well T o the wide m ere
. said Hereward , .

’
B ut their ships will hunt us o u t there .

‘
We shall need n o hunting We must pick up the men at .

Cissh am Yo u would n o t leave them to be m urdered too as we

.
, ,

have left the E ly m en ? ’

No T hey w ould go to Well

. And then ? .

T h e B ru n e sw o ld and the merry greenwood said Hereward

’
, , .

‘
He y f o r the merry greenwood I shouted L eofric the deacon .

And the m en in the sudden delight o f finding any place any

, ,

p urpose ans w ered with a lusty cheer

,
.

Brave hearts said Hereward We w ill live and die .

’
toge t her lik e E nglishmen .

’
‘
We will we will Viking , , .

W here s h all we stow the mare asked Gery the boat s are
‘ ’ ‘
, ,
’
full already .

L eave her to me O n board T o rf rid a

’
.
,
.

He go t o n board last leading the mare by the bridle ,

.

S w im good lass I said h e as they pushed o ff and the good

’
, ,

lass who had don e it m any a time before w aded in and was
, , ,

soon swimming behind Hereward tur n ed and bent over the .

,

1
P ro b ab ly n c ar U pwe ll an d O utwe ll in t h e d i re cti on o f W isb e ach , .

T h e re t h e o ld N e n e an d t h e o ld Wel n ey Rive rs j o i n i n g fo rm e d v ast m o r ,

a sse s n o w l ai d d ry b y t h e Mi dd l e L e ve l an d Marsh l an d Drai n s

,
T he .

b u rsti n g o f t h e Mi dd l e L e v e l S l u ic e in t h e ye ar 1 8 6 1 re sto re d fo r a wh il e a
vast tract in th e se fen s t o it s prim e val state o f t h e Wi d e Me re Fro m ‘
.
’

th is po in t He reward co u l d e scape n o rth in to Lin co l n sh ire e ith e r b y W is ,

b e ach an d t h e Wash o r b y Crowl an d an d B o u rn e ,

.
29 6 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

side in the dark ness T here was a strange gurgle a splash and
.
, ,

a swirl He turned round and sat u pright again T hey rowed

.
,
.

’
T hat mare will never swim all the way to Well , said o n e .

S h e will n o t need it , said Hereward

’
.
.

’
‘
Why ? said T o rf rid a, feeling in the dark n ess , she i s loose
‘
.

’
What is this in you r hand ? Your dagger ? and wet ?
‘
Mare S wallow is at the bottom o f the reach We could .

’
never have go t her to Well .

‘
An d you have cried a d ozen voices .

‘
Do you think that I would let a cursed Frenchman — ay ,

even VVilliam s self — S ay that he had bestridden Hereward s

’ ’

mare ?
N on e answered but T o rfrid a as she laid her head upon her ,
’
h usband s bo s om felt the great tears running d ow n from his
,

cheek on to her own .

N o n e s p oke a word T h e men were awe strick en T here was .

-
.

something despairing and ill omened in the deed And ye t there -

.

was a savage grandeu r in it which bound their savage hearts ,

still closer t o their chief .

’
And so mare S wallo w s bones lie somewhere in the peat unto
this day .

T hey got to Well ; t hey sent o u t spies to find th e m en who

“

‘
had been wasting Cissh a m with fire and sword and at last
brought them in Ill news as usual had travelled fast T hey
.
, , .

had heard o f the fall o f E ly and hidden themselves in a certain ,

‘

’
very small island which is called S t im t e n c h w here thinking , ,

that t he friends in search o f t hem were Frenchmen in pursui t ,

they hid themselves am ongst the high reeds T here two o f the m .

— o n e S t ark w u lf by name the other B roher — hiding near each

,

other thought that as they were m onk s it might conduce to

, , ,

their safety if they had shaven crowns and set to w ork with
’
t heir s word s to shave each other s heads as well as they could .

B ut at last by t heir war —cries and t heir S peech recognising

, ,

each other they left o ff fighting and went af t er Hereward

, ,
’
.

S o j ok es grimly enough the o ld chronicler wh o may have

, , ,

seen them com e in the n ext m orning with bleeding coxco m bs ,

and could laugh over the t hing in after years But he was in .

n o h umour for j es t ing in the day s in wh ich they lay at Well .

N o r-was he in j esting humou r when a week afterwards hunted , ,

by the F rench from Well and forced to take to m eres and ,

waterways know n only to them and t o o S hallow and narrow ,

for the French shi p s t hey found their way across in t o the o ld
,

N e n and so o n toward C ro w land leaving P e t erborough far o n

, ,

t he lef t Fo r as they n eared C rowland they saw before them

.
, ,

rowi n g slowly a barge full o f m en And as they neared that

,
.

barge behold all t hey wh o rowed were blind o f both t heir eyes
, ,

and all they wh o sat and guided them were maimed of bo t h ,

t heir hands And as they cam e alongside there was not a man
.
,
298 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

with her child sitting o n a thron e w rought w ith wondrous

, ,

skill which E lf sy the abbot had made o f gold and S ilver was
, ,

broken up and the image s o f the guar d ian virgin s stripped o f

their precious ornaments After which the royal commissioners .

came plundered the a b bey o f all that was left o f those treasure s
, ,

which had been brought from every quarter into the camp o f
refuge of which a curious in ventory remains to this day
, .

T h u rston the traitor abbot died in a few m onth s

, E ge lw in ,
.
,

the Bishop o f D u rham was taken in the abbey He was a , .

bishop and they dared n o t kill him But he wa s a patriot and

, .
,

m ust have no m ercy T hey accused him o f stealing the treasures

.

o f D urham w hich he had brought to Ely for the service o f his

, ,

country and shut him up in Abingdon A few m onths after the .

,
‘
brave man was found s tarved and dead whe t her o f his o w n ,

will o r enforced and so ended another patriot prelate But

, .

we do not read that t he N ormans gave back the treasures to

D urham And so yielding an im mense mass o f booty and
.
, ,
’
many a fair woman as the N orman s prey ended th e cam p o f
, ,

refuge and the glory o f the isle o f E ly

,
.

B ut n o t th e wrath o f S t E t h e ld re da Whatever s he might . .

have done when o n earth she wa s n o t inclined as patroness o f , ,

E ly to obey the apostolic inj u nction and tak e j oyfully the

‘
, ,

spoiling o f her goods and she fell upon those who had robbed
her o f h er gay garments and rich manors and left her to go in ,

ru s set for many a year with such strokes as pro ved that the ,

m onk s had chosen the less o f two evils when they preferred ,

falling into the hands o f an angry king to falling into those o f

an angry saint T errible was the fate o f Roger P icot s man
.
’

Gervase wh o dared to harry and bind S t E t h e ld re d a s men ; w ho

, .
’

even brought an action at law against the abbot him s elf T h e .

very night before the trial S t E t h e ld re d a and her two sister s ,

.
,

S t W it h b u rga and S e x b u rga stabbed him to th e heart with th e

.
,

spikes o f their pastoral staves an d h e died to the terror o f all , ,

bys t ander s .

Worse even was the fate o f Roger Picot him s elf the hungry
, , ,

lion the prowling wolf t he craf t y fox the filthy swine t he

, , , ,
’ ‘
shameless dog wh o had said Wh o is this E t h e ld re d a w hose
, , ,

lands ye say that I have tak en ? I know n o t E t h e ld re d a and I ,

will n o t give up her lands .

’

L isten ye isles and attend ye people from afar o ff what her

, , , ,

spouse hath done for the L ady o f E ly His sin saith S cripture .
, ,

is sought and shall not be found By whom i s it sought

,
By .

Him from wh om nothing is hidden By whom shall it be .

found ? By no man since none know His day Whither he is ,

.

gone why he fled o r how he has died ; wheth er he has descended

, ,

alive in t o th e pit with D athan and Ab yro m o r become a beas t ,

wi t h N ab u c h a d o n o sso r hath vanished utterly o r by any o t her ,

m ode hath perished to be d amned without end B u t o n e thing

,
.

w e k now for certain that in o u r bounds he ha s appeared n o ,

x x x rv HOW HEREWARD WEN T T O T HE G REE N WOOD
m ore but ha s disappeared f o r ever to day Glory to Him w h o
,
-
.

has given u s the victory over o u r enem y .

’

Worse again (according to those o f E ly) was th e fate of E arl

William de Warrenne who violently withheld some farm s from ,

S t E t h e ld re da Fo r o n the n ight o n w hich he die d t he then

. .
,

abbot heard his soul carried o ff by dem ons cryi n g in vain to ,

h eaven for mercy T herefore when his lady G u n d re d a ( William

.
,

the C onqueror s stepdaughter ) a few days af t er sent a hundred

’
, ,

shillings for his soul to the min ster a t E ly the abbot and his ,

monks sent them back n ei t her deigning n o r d ari n g t o take t he

,

m oney o f a damned man S o t here is n o h ope for E arl .

W arrenne were it n o t that the C luniac m onks whom he had

, ,

established at L ewes holding naturally a different opinion o f,

him and his deeds buried h im there in splendour and put up

, ,

over his tomb a white marble slab o n which were set for t h his ,

virtues and the present protection and future rewards which

,

S t Pancras wa s to procure for him in return for the mi n ster

.

which he had raised in honou r o f that mighty avenger o f

perj u ry 1 .

After which — whether S t P ancras did o r did n o t deliver E arl .

Wil liam from the wrath o f S t E t h e ld re d a —the L ady o f Ely wa s .

ap p eased and when almost all the m onks were ei t her si c k o r

dying ( possibly from o n e o f t hose fevers which so often devastated
t he fens) she was seen after lon g fastings and vigils by a holy
, , ,

m an named G o d e ric staying the hand o f some migh t y bei n g

, ,

who was in act to sh oot an arrow from heaven against th e

doomed borough After which watch ing and praying s till
.
,

m ore fervently he beheld S t E t h e ld re d a and her maidens rise

, .

from their tombs by night and walk m aj estic th rough choir and ,

cloister and so to the sick —house and the dyi n g m onks And
, .

there the L ady o f E ly went rou n d to every bed and laid her pure ,

hand u pon the throbbing forehead and wiped the typhus gore -

from the faded lips with her sacred sleeve and gave the sufferers ,

sudden health and streng t h and signified to G o de ric wh o had ,

foll owed her tremblin g afar o ff that all was forgiven and ,

forgotten 2 .

C HA P T E R XXX IV
HOW HE RE W A RD W E N T T O T HE G RE E N W O OD

AN D now is Hereward to the greenwood gone to be a bold o u t ,

law and not only an outlaw him self bu t t he father o f all o u t ,

laws who held those fores t s for two hundred year s from the
, ,

fens to the S cottish border U t lage s forestiers latrunculi .

, , ,
1
Ord eri cu s Vi ta lis b o o k viii c 9 , . . .

2
Fo r all th ese tale s ( t h e l ast is t o l d with m uch path o s) se e t h e L i ber ,

E li en si s b o o k ii
, 1 1 9 -1 3 3
. .
3 00 HEREWARD T HE IVA KE C HA P .

S icarii sauvages wh o prided themselves u pon s leeping o n the

, ,

bare ground — t hey were accursed by the conquerors and beloved ,

by the con quered T h e N orman V iscount or sheriff commanded

.

t o h unt them from h und red to hundred with hue and cry h orse ,

and bloodhound T h e E nglish yeomen left f o r them a k eg o f

.

ale or a basket o f loaves beneath t he hollin s green a s s auce

, , ,
‘ ’
for their m eal o f n omble s of the dere .

Fo r h art an d h i n d an d d o e an d ro e , ,

We re in th at fo rest gre at ple n t ie ,

’

S w an n es an d fe sau n t es e y h ad u ll th f d
‘
go o ,

An d o l e s o f t h e rive re
fu .

T e re fayle d n e v er so ly el l a b yrde ,
h t
T a eve r w as b re o n b rere
h t d
’
.

W ith th e same friendly yeoman that was a good f e law e ‘

,
’

they would lodge by t w os and three s du ring the sharp frosts o f

’
mid winter in the lonely farmh ouse which stood in the field
-
,

o r forest clearing : but for the greater part o f the year their
-

‘
lodging was o n the cold ground in the h olly thick ets o r under ,

the hanging rock o r in a lodge o f bo u gh s

, .

And th en after a while the life which began in terror and

, , ,

despair and poverty an d loss of land and kin became no t only

, , ,

tolerable but pleasant Bold men and hardy t hey cared less
, .
,
and le ss f o r
T h e th o rn i e w aye s t h e d e e p v all eys , ,

T h e sn o we t h e fro st t h e rayn e , , ,

T h e co ld e t h e h e te ; fo r d ry o r we te
,

W e m u st l o d ge o n t h e pl ain e ,

An d u s ab o v e n o n e o th e r ro o fe ,

Bu t a b ra k e b u sh e ,
or t w ayn e .
’

And they found fair lassies too in time who like T o rf rid a , , ,

and Maid Marian wou ld answer w ith the nut brown maid to
,
-
,

their warnings against the outlaw life that ,

Am o n ge t h e wil d d e re s uch an arch ere ,

th at ye b e
A s m en say ,

He m ay n o t fayle o f go o d v it ayle ,

Wh e re is so gre at pl e n te
A n d wate r cl e re o f t h e rive re ,

S h all b e fu ll swe te t o m e ,

W ith wh ich in h e l e I sh al l right we l e , ,

E n du re as ye m ay see
’
.
,

‘
hen called they them selves m erry m en ; and the forest
T
’

the merry greenwood

‘
and san g with Robin Hood , ,

A m e rri e r m an th an I b e lyv e
‘
,

T h ere l iv es n o t in Ch rist e n t ie
’
.

They w ere coaxed back at times to civilised life ; they got , ,

’
thei r grace o f the king and entered the king s service ; bu t
, .
3 02 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

’
Frenchman o r Italian who had expelled the outlaw s E nglish
,

cousins from their conven t s scou rged and imprisoned them as ,

the blessed Archbish op L anfranc did at C anterbury because ,

they would not own allegiance t o a French ab bo t o r murdered

them at t he high al t ar as did the new abbot o f Glastonbury
, ,

because they would not change their o ld Gregorian chant for

tha t o f William of F ecamp 1 .

O n these mitred tyrants the outla w had n o mercy as far as ,

their purses were con c erned T heir person s as consecrated .

, ,

were even to him sacred and inviolable — at leas t from wounds ,

and dea t h ; and o n e may su p pose Hereward himself to have

been the first author o f the law s af t erward attributed to Robin
Hood As for robbing and re v in g beting and b yn din g free
.
‘
, ,
’

warren wa s allowed against the N orman .

T h e re o f n o fo rs sai d Ro b yn , ,

W e sh al l d o we l l en ow .

B u t l o o k ye d o n o h o u seb o n d e h arm e ,

T h at t yllet h w yt h h is pl o ugh .

N m o re ye sh al l n o g o o d ye m an
‘

o ,

T h at walk e th b y g re e wo o d sh awe n

N e n o k n ygh t , n e n o sq u ye r,
T a wil l b e
h t g o o d felaw e .

T h e se b yssh o ppes an d th e se arch b ysh o ppe s, ,

Y e sh al l th e m b e t e an d b i d e n

T h e h ye sh e ryff o f N o tti n gh am
Hym h o l d e in yo ur m yn d e

Ro b yn l o ve d ou r d e ar Lad ye ,

Fo r d o u b t o f d e d e ly syn n e ,

Wo l d e h e n e ve r d o co m pan y h arm
T h at an y wo m an w as yn n e
’
.

And even so it wa s with T h e Wak e when he wa s in the

B ru n e sw o ld if t he o ld chroniclers are to be believed
,
.

And n o w T o rf rid a was astonished S h e had given way utterly .

’
at E ly from woman s fear and woman s disappointment All
,
’
.

was o v er All was lost What was left save to die ?

. .
,

But— and it was a new and u nexpected fact to o n e o f her

excitable sou t hern blood easily raised and easily dep ressed , ,

she dis c overed that neither her husband nor Winter nor , ,

Gery nor W e n o c h nor Ran ald o f Ramsey n o r even the ro m an c

, , ,

ing har p ing L eofric thought that all wa s lost S h e argued it

,
.

wi t h t hem not to persuade them into ba s e submission but t o

, ,

satisfy her o w n surprise .

B ut what will you do ?

’
L ive in the greenwood .

‘ ’
And w hat then ?
1
S e e t h e An gl o Sa
- x o n Ch ro n icl e .
xxx1 v HOW HEREWARD WE N T T O T HE G REE NWOOD 3 03

‘
Burn every town which a Frenchman hold s and kill every ,
’
Frenchm an we meet .

But what plan have yo u ?

Who wants a plan as you call it while he ha s the green , ,

hollies overhead the dun deer o n the lawn bow i n hi s hand

, , ,

and sword by his side ? ’

’
But wha t will b e the end o f it all ?
’
‘
We shall live till we die .

Bu t William is master o f all E ngland .

’

What is that to u s ? He is n o t o u r master ’

.

Bu t he mus t be some day Yo u will grow fewer and fewer . .

His government will grow s t ronger and s t ronger ’

.

‘
Wha t is that to us ? When w e are dead t here w ill be ,

brave yeomen in plenty to take o u r p lace Y o u would n o t turn .

’
traitor ?
‘
I ? never ! never ! I will live a n d die with you in you r
greenwood as yo u call it O nly— I did n o t understand yo u
, .

’
E nglish .

T o rf rida did not S h e was discoverin g the fact which her

.
,

nation have m ore than once discovered s i nce that the stupid ,

valour o f the E nglishman ne ver know s when it is beaten and ,

som e t imes by t hat s elf s atisfied I gnorance succeeds m not being

, ,

beaten af t er all .

S o T h e Wake— if the ch roniclers speak truth — assembled a

formidable force well nigh at las t four hundred m en Wi n ter
, , ,
.
,

Gery W e n o c h Grogan o n e o f t he Az e rs o f L incoln were still

with him Ra mald the seneschal still carried his st aiI da rd O f
, , , ,

. .

D uti and O u t i the fam ous bro t hers no m ore i s heard A valiant
.

.
, ,

Mat e lga r takes their place Alfric and S e x w o ld and many an ,

other gallan t fugitive cast up like scattered hounds at the , ,

’
sound o f T h e Wake s war h orn T here were those among them
‘ ’
-
.

( says Gaim ar) who scorned to fight g S ingle handed les s than three
Frenchmen A s for T h e Wake h e w ould fight s even
.
, ,

L e s q a re o sc ist , les re is
u t iren t fu t
N affre z , san lan , il s e n par ire n
g t c t t
’

E n plu su rs li s i ssi av in t , u
K e n co n t re se i res b ie n se i tt tu t
’
.

D e se i o m m e s av ai
th ve r , t tu
U n pl s ar i n e f u v e n
u h d ’
.

T
hey ra n ged u p the B ru n e sw o ld dashing o u t to the war c ry
A Wak e ! A Wak e ! and layiiI g all waste with fire and
,
’
of
‘

sword that I s such town s as were I n th e hands o f Frenchmen

, , .

A noble range they must have had f o r gallant sportsmen ,

.

Away sou t h between the N ene and Welland stretched from

, ,

S tamford and P eterborough the still vast forests o f Ro c kingham ,

n i gh t wenty m iles i n leng gt h as the crow flies down beyond ,

Rockingham
g tow n and G e d d in gt on C hase T o the west they
, .
,
’
had t h e range o f the hunting counties dotted still in the more , ,
3 04 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

eastern part with innumerable c opses and shaughs the remnan ts

, ,

o f the great forest o u t o f which a s o u t o f Ro c km gh am sh ire

, , ,

have been cut tho s e fair parks and

Han d so m e
h o u se s ,

Wh e re t h e we alth y n o b le s dwell

past which the L ord o f Burg b ley led his Welsh bride to that
Burgh le y House by S tamford t own well nigh the noble s t o f ,

them all which was in Hereward s time deep wood and f ree
,
’

stone do w n Round E xton and N orman t on and that other

.
, ,

Burley o n the Hill ; o n th rough those Mo rke ry w ood s which ,

still retain the name of Hereward s ill fated nephew ; north by ’

Irnham and C orby on to Belton and S yston ( par n obile ) an d

, ,

sou t h west again to those s till wooded height s whence all but ,

royal Bel voir look s out over the rich green vale belo w did ,

Hereward and his men range far and wide harrying the French ,

man and hunting the d un deer S tags and fallow deer there
,
.

w ere i n plenty T here remain to this day in Grimsthorpe Park

.
,

by Bourne the descendants o f the very deer which E arl L eofric

,

and E arl Algar and after them Hereward the outlaw hunted in
, ,

the B ru n e sw o ld .

D ee p tangled forest filled t h e lower c laylan d s s w arming with ,

pheasant roe badger and more w olves than were needed

, , , .

Broke n park like glade s covered the u p per freestones where

-
,

the red deer came o u t from harbour for their evening graze and ,

the partridges and pl overs whirred up p and the hares loped ,

away innumerable and where hollies and ferns always gave

, ,

dry lying for the n ight What did men need m ore w hose bodies .
,

were as stout a s their hearts

T hey were poachers and robbers — and why n o t ? T h e deer
had once been theirs th e game the land the serfs ; and if , , ,

Godric of C orby y sle w the Irnham deer and burned Irnham hall ,

over the head o f the new F rench lord and thought no harm he , ,

did but what he would with that which hadg been once hi s
ow n .

E asy it was to dash o u t by night and make a raid ; to harry ,

the places which t hey once had owned themsel ve s ; iiI the vale
of Belvoir to the west o r to the east I II the stri p o f fer tile land
,

which sloped down into the fen ; and le v y black mail in Folk
ingham o r Aslackby
,
y o r S leaford o r any other o f th e Vills
, ,
‘ ’

( now thriving villages ) w hich still remain in D omesday book ,

and wri tten aga i nst them t he ugly and sign ifi c an t

‘
In T at e n ai h ab u e ru n t T u rgisle e t S uen IIII c arru c as terrae ,
’

etc. Ho c I vo T aille b o sc ibig habet in dominio —

‘
all that is , ,

that th e wars had left o f them .

T h e said T u rgisle ( T o rkill o r T u rk e t il misspelt by Fre n chmen )

and S weyn and m any a good man m ore— f o r Ivo s posse s s i ons
,
’

were enorm ous — were thorn s I n the s ide s o f I v o an d his men ,

3 06 HE REWARD T HE WAK E I

C HA P .

he going t o j oin young Fitz O sb e rn from Warwick and L e ice s -

ter t o root o u t the last E nglishman 2 Why n ot ? T ha t wo u ld

,

be a deed worthy of the m an wh o m arried Judi t h and believe s ,

’ ’
in the p owers t hat be and eat s dirt daily at William s table , .

T hen he read o n .

Ascelin had been mentioned he remarked t hree o r four , ,

times in t he le t ter whi c h was long as from one lingering over , ,

t he pap er w ishing to say m ore than she dared At the end was
, .

a hint of the reason

O h that having saved m e twice you could save me once
‘
, ,

m ore K no w you that G o sp at ric has been driven from his earl
.

dom o n charge of treason and t hat W alt h e o f has N or t humbria ,

in his p lace as well as the p arts round you ? And that G o s

.
,

patric is fled t o S co t lan d again with his sons — m y man am on g ,

t hem ? And n o w t h e re p ort comes that my m an is slain in ,

battle on the Border ; and that I am to be given away— as I

have been given away twice before— to Ascelin T his I k now .
,

as I kno w all not only from him o f Ghent but from him o f
, ,
’ ’
P eterborough Asc e lin s uncle , .

Hereward laughed a laugh o f cynical triumph — pardonable

enough in a broken man .

G o sp at ric the W ittol I the woodcock lookin g at the

springe and then coolly putti n g his head therein T hrowi n g
, .

the hatchet after the helve selling his soul and never getting ,

the price o f i t I foresaw it foretold it I believe to Alft ru d a , ,

herself— foretold t hat he would n ot k ee p his bought earldom

three year s Wha t a p eo p le w e are we E nglish if G o sp at ric is
.
, ,

— as he is — the sh rewdest man among us w i t h a dash of canny .

,
“
S c ots blood too Among the o n e —eyed the bli n d is king says
.
, ,
”

T o rf rid a o u t o f her wise ancients and blind we a re if he is o u r

, , , ,

bes t N o T here is one better man lef t I trust o n e that will

. .
,
’
n ever be sleep y enough to p u t his head into the wolf s mouth
'

,
’
and trust the Fren chman and that is I T h e Wake , ,
.

And Hereward boasted to himself at G o sp at ric s expense o f ,

’
,

his own superior wisdom till his eye caught a line o r t w o which , ,

finished the letter .

O h that yo u would chan g e your mind much as I honou r

‘
, ,

you for it O h that you would com e in to the king who loves
.
, ,

and tru s t s you hav ing seen your constancy and faith p roved
, ,

by so man y years of a ffliction Grea t things are op en to you .

,

and great j oys —I dare not tell you wha t : but I k now them if ,

you would c ome in You to waste yourself in t he forest an .

, ,

o ut la w and a savage ! O pportunity once lost never retur n s ; ,

t ime flies fast Hereward my friend and we shall all gro w o ld

, ,

I t hink at tim es that I shall soon grow o ld And the j oys of life .

’
will be im p ossibl e and no t hing lef t but vain regrets ,
.

‘
He y ? said Hereward ’
a v ery clerkly le t ter I d id not ,
‘
.

t hink she was so good a scholar Alm ost as good a o n e as .

.

T o rf rid a
’
.
xx xv HOW ABBOT T HORO L D W AS PU T T O RAN SO M 3 07

That was all he said and as for thinking h e had the posse ,

comitatus of seven counties t o think o f But what could t hose .

great fortunes and j oys be which Alf t ru d a did n ot dare to ,

des c ribe
S h e growing old too l Impossible : that wa s woman s vanity
' ’
.
,
.

It was but two years since she w as as fair as a saint in a win

do w .S h e shall not marry Ascelin
‘
I will cut his head o ff . .

’
S h e shall have her own choice fo r on ce poor child ,
.

And Hereward found him self worked u p t o a great height o f

paternal solicitude for Alf t ru d a and righteou s indignation ,

against As c elin He did not confess to himself that he disliked

.

m u c h in his selfish vani t y the no t ion of Alf t ru d a s marrying

, ,
’

any o n e at all He did n o t want t o m arry her himself— o f

.

course not But there is n o d o g in the manger so churlish o n

.

such p oin t s as a vain man T here are those who will not willingly .

let their o w n sisters their own daughters their o w n servants , ,

marry Why should a woman wish t o marry any o n e but them ?

.

But Hereward however vain was n o dreamer o r sluggard

, , .

He se t to work j oyfully cheerfully scenting battle afar o ff like

, , , ,

Job s war horse and pawing for the bat t le He s ent back Alf
’
-
, .

t ruda s messenger wi t h t his an swer

’
,

T ell your lady that I kiss her han ds and feet T hat I cann ot .

wri t e for ou t laws carry n o pen and ink But tha t w hat she
,
.

’
has commanded that will I perform ,
.

I t is notewor t hy t hat when Hereward s howed T o rfrid a ,

(which he did frankly ) Alf t ru da s let t er he did no t tell her the

’
,

exac t words o f his answer and stumbled an d v aried m u c h , ,

vexing her thereby when s he naturally wished to hear them , , ,

word for word .

T hen h e sent o u t spies to the four airts o f heaven An d his .

spies finding a friend and a meal in every hovel brought home

, ,

all t he news he needed .

He wi t hdrew T o rf rid a and his men in t o the hear t of t he

forest — no hin t of the place is given by the ch ro n icler — cu t
dow n trees formed an abattis o f trunk s and branches and
, ,

awaited the enem y .

C HA P T E R X XX V

HOW A BB OT T HO RO L D W A S P U T '

T O RA N S OM
U
T HO G H Hereward had as yet no feud against b yssh o pp e s and
’
‘

a rc h b yssh o pp e s, save E ge lsin of S elsey , who had e x c o m m u n i

'

c at e d h i m , b u t who was a t t he o t her end of E ngland , he had

feu d , as m ay be su pp osed , agains t T horold , Ab b o t of Pe t er

borou g h ; and T horold feud likewise against him W hen .

’
T ho rold had entered t he Golde n Borough , hoping to fatten
‘

himself wi t h a ll i t s t reasu res he h ad found it a smoking ruin , ,

and its treasures gon e to E ly t o pay S weyn and hi s Danes .

3 08 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

And such a sacrilege es p ecially when h e was the loser thereby , ,

was t he unpardonable sin itself in the eyes o f T h orold as he ,

hoped it might be in t h e eyes of S t P eter Jo yfu lly therefore . .

he j oined his friend I vo T aillebois when wi t h his usual po m , ,

‘

’
pous verbosity saith P eter o f Blois writing o n this very
, ,

matter he asked h im to j oin in destroying Hereward

,
.

N evertheless with all the Fren ch chivalry at their back it

, ,

behoved them to move with caution ; for (so say s the chronicler )
‘
Hereward had in these days very many foreigners as w ell as ,

lan d sf o lk who had come to him to practise an d learn w ar and

, ,

fled from t heir master s and friends when they heard o f his
fame som e o f them even the king s courtiers who had come to ’
,

see whether those things which they heard were true whom ,

Hereward neverth eless received cau t iously o n plighted troth ,

’
and oath .

S o I v o T aillebois summ oned all hi s men and all other men s

’
,

men who would j oin him and rode forth through S palding and ,

Bourne having announced to L ucia hi s bride that he was

, , ,

going to slay her o n e remaining relative and when she wept ,

cursed and kicked her as h e did once a week After which he , .

came to T horold o f P eterborough .

S o on the two worthies rode from Peterborough to S tamford ,

and from S tamford into the wilderne s s no man knows whither , .

An d far th
e y ro e b y b s d uh an d s a h ugh ,

An d far b y m o ss an d m ire

but never found a track o f T h e Wake o r his men And I v o .

T aillebois left o ff boas t ing how he would burn T o rfrid a over a

slow fire and confined himself to c ursing ; and Abbot T horold
,

left o ff warbling the song of Roland as if he had been going to

a second battle o f Hastings and wished himself in warm bed at ,

P eterborough .

But at th e last they stru ck u p on a great horse track and fol -

,

lowed it at their best pa c e for several miles and yet no sign of

Hereward .

’
Catch an E nglishman quoth the abbot , .

But that was n o t so easy T h e p oor folk had hidden them .

selves like Israel o f o ld in thickets and dens and caves o f

, , , ,

ro c ks at the far o ff sigh t of the foreign tyrants and not a

,
-

living soul had appeared for twen t y miles At last they caught .

a ragged wretch herding swine and haled him up to I v o , .

Have you s een Hereward villain ? asked he through an in

‘
, ,

t e rp re t e r .

’
N ay
‘
.

You lie T hese are his f resh hor s e track s and

‘
.
-
, yo u m ust
have seen him pass .
’

Eh
T hrust
‘ ’
ou t one o f hi s eyes and he will find his tongue
,
.
3 10 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

ing iron stirru p He tried to blow his nose wi t h his freezing

.

iron hand ; but d ro p t his handkerchief ( an almost unique

luxury in t hose days ) in t o the m u d and his horse trod on i t , .

He tried to warble t he song of Roland but the wor d s exploded

in a cough and a sneeze And so d ragged o n the weary hours .
,

says t he ch ronicler nearly all d ay t ill t he ninth ho u r , Bu t , .

never did they see coming out of t he forest the men who had ,

gone I n
.

A shout from his nephew S ir Ascelin made all tu rn their , ,

heads Behind t hem o n the o p en lawn in the throa t between

.
, ,

the w ood s by which they had entered w ere some forty knight s , ,

gallopin g towards them .

’
‘Ivo ? ’
N o ! almost shrieked the abbot T here i s the Wake
‘ ‘
.

banner It is Hereward . .
’

’
T here is Winter o n his left cried one And there with ‘
, .
,

t he s t andard is th e accursed monk B an ald o f Ramsey

,
’
,
.

And on they came having debo u ched from t he w ood som e ,

’

two hund red yards o fl behind a roll in the lawn j ust far , ,

enough o ff to charge as soon as t hey were in line .

O n t hey cam e two deep with lances high over their sh oulders
, , ,

heads an d heels well down while t he green tuf t s flew behind ,

’
t hem A m oi h ommes d armes I sh outed the abbot But t oo
.
‘
,
.

late T h e French tu rned righ t and lef t T o form was im p o s

. .

sible ere the human w hirlwind would b e upon them

,
.

Another half minu t e and w i t h a shout o f A Wak e ! A ,

‘

Wak e ! they were struck ridden thro u gh hurled over and

’
, , ,

tram p led in th e mud .

I yield Grace ! I yield

‘
cried T h orold struggling from
.
,

under his horse but t here was n o o n e t o whom t o yiel d T h e .

’
knights back s were fif t y yards o ff their right arms high in the ,

air striki n g and stabbing

,
.

T h e battle was at l o u t ran ce T here was n o q uarter given

’
.

that day .

A n d h e th at c am e live o u t th ereo f
W as h e th at ran away
’
.

T h e abbot tried to m ak e for th e wood but ere he could gain

it t he knigh t s had turned and o n e rode straigh t a t him t hrow
, , ,

ing away a broken lance and drawing his s w ord ,

.

Abbo t T horold may no t have been t he coward which P eter

of Blois would h ave h im over and above being t he bully which ,

all men would have him but if so even a worm will t u rn and ,

so did th e abbot : h e dre w sword from thigh got well under ,

his sh ield his lef t foot forward and struck one blow for his
, ,

life a t the right place— his foe s bare knee

,
’
.

But he had t o do wi t h a warier man t han him self T here .

was a qui c k j erk o f the rein ; t he h orse swerved round right

u p on him and k no c ked h im head over heels ; while his blow
,

went into em p ty air .

xxxv HOW AB B OT T HORO LD W AS PUT T O RAN SOM 311

Yield o r die I cried the knight leaping fromhis horse and

, , ,

kneeling o n his head .

’
I am a m an of God an abbot churchm an T h o ro ld , , , .

‘
Man of all the devils and the knight lugged him up and ,

bound his arm s behind him wi t h the abbot s o w n belt ’

.

Ah oi Here I h ave caught a fish I have go t the Golden

Ho w much has S t P eter
.

’
B orough in my p urse ! roared he . .

gained since we borro w ed o f him last abbot ? He will h ave to ,

pay o u t the silver pennies bonnily if h e wishes to get back ,

’
t hee .

’
‘
Blasphem e n ot godless barbarian ! Whereat the knight ,

k icked him .

‘
And you have T h o ro ld the scoun drel Winter ? cried Here
’
,

ward gallo p ing u p A nd we have t hree o r m ore dain t y Fren ch

,
.

knights and a V iscount of I know n o t where am ong them

,
.

’ ’
T his is a good day s work N o w for Ivo and his tail . .

And the abbo t wi t h four o r five m ore p risoners were h oisted

, ,

o n to their o w n h orses tied firml y and led away in t o the , ,

for e st path .

‘ ’
D o n o t leave a wounded m an to die cried a knight wh o lay ,

o n the lawn .

’
N ever we I will come back and put you o u t o f you r pain
.
,

quoth some o n e .

‘
S iward S iward L e Bla n e Are you in this m einie c ried
the knight in Fren ch .

T hat am I Who calls ? ’

.

‘
For God s sak e save him c ried T horold
’
He is my o w n .

nephew and I will p a y ,

You will need all you r m oney for yourself said S iward the ,
’

Whi t e riding back, .

’
Are you S ir Ascelin o f Ghent ?
’
T ha t am I your h ost of o ld , .

‘
I wish I had met yo u in better company But friend s we .

are and friends mu st be

, .
’

And h e dism oun t ed and did his best for th e wounded man , ,

p romisi n g him t o re t urn and fetch him o ff before night or send ,

yeomen to do so .

As h e p u shed o n through the wood the abbot began t o see ,

signs o f a figh t ; riderless horses crashing through t he copse ,

w ounded m en straggling ba c k t o be cut down wi t hou t m ercy ,

’
by the E nglish T h e war had been 61 l o u t ra n c e f o r a l on g while
. , .

N one gave o r asked q u arter T h e knigh t s migh t be kept for .

ransom they had m oney T h e wre t ched m en o f the lower .

c lasses who had none were slain as t hey would have slain the
, ,

E nglish .

S oon th ey heard th e n oise of bat t le and saw h orsemen and

footmen p ell m ell tan gled in an aba tt is from behind w hich
-
, ,

ar c hers and c ross bowm en shot t hem d own in safety -

.

Here w ard dashed forward wi t h a shou t and at that the ,

3 12 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

French taken in the flank fled and were s mitten as they fled
, , , ,

h ip and thigh .

Hereward bade them spare a fugitive and bring him to him ,

.

‘
I give you your life so run and carry my m e s sage T hat , .

’
is T ille b o is banner there forward is it not ?
’

ges .
’
,

T hen go after him and tell him —Hereward has th e Abbot , ,

o f B urgh and half a dozen knights safe by the heels And

, ,
.

unless Ivo clears the wood o f his m e n by nightfall I will hang ,

every o n e o f them up for the crows before m orning .

’

Ivo go t the m essage and having had enough figh t ing for the ,

day drew o ff s ays the chronicler for the sak e o f the abbot and
, , ,

his fellow captives -

.

T w o hours af t er the abbot and the other prisoner s were

sitting unbou nd but unarmed in t he forest encampment wait
, , ,
in g f o r a right good meal with T o rf rid a bus t li n g about them ,

af t er binding up the very few wounded amongst their o w n

men .

E very courtesy was shown them and their heart s were

lifted up a s they beheld approaching am ong the trees great
,

caldrons of good soup fores t salads red deer and roe roasted
o n t he wood em b ers ; spits o f p heasants and partridges lark s
-
,

and buntings thrust o ff one by o n e by fair hands into the

,

burdock leaves which served as platters and last but n o t least ,

j acks o f ale and wine ap p earing mysterio u sly from a cool o ld ,

’
ston e quarry Abbot T horold ate to his heart s content compli
.
,

m e n t e d every o n e vowed h e would for s wear all French cook s

,

and take to the greenwood himself and wa s as gracious and ,

cour t ly a s if he had been a t the new palace at Winches t er .

And all the m ore for this reason — ~that he had intended to
overawe the E nglish barbarians by his polished French manners .

He found those o f Hereward and T o rf rid a at least as polished , ,

as his o w n .

‘
I am glad yo u are co n tent lord abbot said T o rf rid a ; I , ,
’ ‘

t ru t yo u prefer dining with m e to burning m e a s you meant

to éo
,
’
.

‘
I bu rn such peerless beauty ! I inj ure a form made only
for the courts of kings ! Heaven and all saints knighth ood ,

and all c hivalry forbid What T aillebois may have said I

, .
, ,

kn ow not ! I am n o m ore answerable for h is intentions than

for his parentage — o r his su c cess this day L e t churls be
,
.

churls and wood cutters wood cutters I at least thanks to

,
- -
.
,
’
m y ancestors am a gen t lem an ,
.

‘
And as a gentleman will o f course contribute to t he plea
, ,

sure o f your h osts It will surely please you t o gratify us wi t h

.

o n e s t ave at least o f t hat so n g which has made yo u famous

am ong all knights holding o u t a harp ,
’
.

I blush b u t o b ey A har p in the greenwood ? A court in

‘
.

th e w ilderness Wha t j oy
314 HEREWARD T HE WAK E G I I A P:

and Hereward san g and sang again and all his men crowded , ,

round him as the ou t laws o f Jud ac a may have crowded round

D avid in C armel o r Hebron to hear lik e children o ld ditties , , ,

whi c h they loved the be t ter t he oftener they heard them .

N o wonder that yo u can keep t h ese knights toge t her if yo u , ,

can charm them th us with son g Would that I could hear you .

’ ’
singing t hu s in William s hall .

N 0 m ore of that sir abbot T h e only m usic which I have

‘
,
.

for William i s the music of steel o n s t eel .

’

I
.
I e re w ard answered sharply because he was half o f T h o ro ld s ,

min i
’
No w , said T o rf rid a as it grew late we m ust ask o u r
‘ ‘
, ,

noble guest for what h e can give u s as easily and well a s he

can song ~ and that is news We hear nought here in the
-
.

greenwood and m us t throw oneself o n the kindness o f a chance

,

visitor .
’

T h e abbot leapt at the bait and told them new s cour t , ,

gossip bringing in great folk s names and his o w n as often and

,
’
,

as familiarly mingled as h e could .

What o f Ric h ild a

‘
asked T o rfrid a .

E ver since yo u ng Arnoul was killed at C assel

Arnoul killed shriek ed T o rf rid a .

Is it possible that you d o n ot kn ow

Ho w should I kno w sh ut up in Ely f o r years it ,

s eem s .
’

But they fought at C a ss el three month s before you went to

Be it so O nly tell me Arnoul killed . .

T hen the abbot told n o t without feeling a fearful s tory , , .

Rober t the Frison and Ric h ild a had come t o open war and
G e rb o d t he Fleming E arl o f C hester had gon e over from E n g-
, ,
I

land to help Robert William had sent Fitz O sb e rn E arl o f

"

.
,

Hereford t h e scou rge an d tyrant o f t h e Wels h to help Ric h ild a

, , .

Fitz O sb e rn had married her there and then S h e had ask ed ,

.

h elp o f her liege lord the K i n g o f France and he h ad , ,

sent her troops Robert and Ric h ild a had fought o n S t

. .

e t e r s day 1 0 7 1 — nearly two years before at Ba v in c h o v e n by

g
’
, , ,

assel
Ric h ild a had played the heroine and routed Robert s left
’
,

win g taken him p risoner and sent him o ff to S t O mer Men

, , . .
‘

said t hat she had done it by her enchan t ments But her e u
’

c h a n t m e n t s betrayed her nevertheless Fitz O sb e rn her bride .

,

groom fell dead Young Arnoul had two horses killed under
, .

him T hen G e rb o d sm ote h im t o th e ground ; and Ric h ilda

.

a n d her troops fled in horror Ric h ild a was t aken and ex .

,

cha n ged for the Frison ; at which the K ing o f France being ,

e n raged h ad come down and burnt S t O mer T hen Ric h ild a

,
. .
,

u ndaunted had raised fresh troo p s to avenge her son

,
T hen .

Robert had met them at B ro q u e ro ie by M ons and smote them ,

xxxv HOW A BBO T T HORO L D IVAS PU T T O RAN SO M 3 15

wi t h a dreadful slaughter T hen Ric h ild a had turned and fled

.
‘

wildly into a conven t and so men said tortured herself night , ,

and day with fearful penances if by any m eans she might a t one ,

for her great sins .

T o rf rid a heard and laid her head u pon her k nees and wept
, ,

so bi tterly t hat t he abbo t en t reated pardon f o r having pained

her so much .

T h e n ews had a deep and lasting e ff ect on h er T h e th ought .

o f Ric h ild a shivering and starving in t he squalid darkness o f a

conven t abode by her t hencefor t h S hould she ever find herself .

a t oning in lik e wise for her sorceries — harmless as they had

been for her ambitions j u st as they had been for her -

crimes ? Bu t she had commi t ted none N 0 she had sinned in .

,

many things but she was n o t as Ric h ild a An d yet in t he .

l oneliness and sadness o f the forest she c ould not p ut Ric h ild a ,

from before the eyes o f her mind .

It saddened Hereward lik ewise Fo r Ric h ild a he cared little . .

B u t tha t b o y — Ho w he had loved him ! Ho w he had t au gh t

h im to ride and sing and j ous t and handle sword and all t he
, , , ,

art of war Ho w his own rough soul had been the better for
.

tha t love Ho w he had look ed for w ard to the day when Arnoul
.

sh ould be a great prince and requi t e him wi t h love N o w he , .

was gone Gone ? Who was no t gone o r going ? He seemed

.
,

t o himself the last tree in the forest When should his t im e .

come and t he ligh t ning s t rike him do w n to rot beside th e res t ?

,

But he tost the sad though t s aside He could n o t a fford to .

n ourish them It was his only chance o f life to be merry and

.
,

desperate .

Well said Hereward ere th ey ha p t them s elve s u p for the ,

‘
nigh t . We o w e you t hanks Abbot T horold for an evening , ,
’
worthy o f a king s cou rt rather t han a h olly bush ’
.

’
I have won him over though t t he abbo t , .

S o charming a courtier — so swee t a minstrel — so agreeable

‘

a n ewsmonger — could I keep you in a c age for ever and hang ,

you on a bo u gh I were but t o o hap p y bu t you are too fine a

,

b ird t o sing in ca p tivity S o yo u m ust go I fear an d leave us

.
, ,

t o t he nigh t ingales And I will t ake for you r ransom’

.

Abbo t T h o ro ld s heart beat high .

T hir t y thou sand silver marks

‘ ’
.

‘
T hir t y t housand fiends
‘
My beau sire will you u ndervalu e yourself ? Will yo u de
,

grade yourself ? I t ook Abbot T horold from his t alk t o be a , ,

man who se t even a higher value on himself than other m en se t

on him Wha t higher c om p liment can I pay t o you r vast
.

wor t h t han m aking you r ransom high accordingly af t er t h e

, ,

s p irit of our ancient E nglish laws ? T ak e i t as i t is m eant ,

beau sire ; be p rou d to pay the m oney ; and we will throw

1
T h e place w as c al le d t i ll late an d m ay b e n o w T h e He dg e s o f , ,
‘

De a th .
’
3 16 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

you S ir Ascelin into the bargain as he seem s a fri end o f ,

S iward s
’ ’
.

T horold hoped that Hereward was drunk and might forget , ,

o r relent but h e was so sore at heart that he slep t n o t a wink

that night .

But in t he morning he found to his sorrow that Hereward , ,

had been as sober as himself .

In fine h e had to pay the m oney ; and was a poor man all
,

his day s .

Aha S ir Ascelin said Hereward apart as he bade them ,

’
,

all farewell with many courtesies I think I have put a spok e .

‘

in your wheel about the fair Alft ru d a .

’

E h ? Ho w ? Most courteous victor ?

’

’
S ir Ascelin is n o t a very wealthy gentleman .

Ascelin laughed assent .

N ud a s in t ra v i nudus e x e o — E ngland and I fear n o w thi s

‘
, ,
m ortal life likewise .
’

But he look ed to his ri c h u ncle the abbot to further a ,

certain marriage proj ect o f his And o f course n either my

-
.

friend Gilbert o f Ghent n o r my enemy William of N ormandy , ,

is likely to give away so rich an heires s without some grat ifi

’
cation in return .

S ir Hereward know s the world it seem s

‘ ’
, .

S o he has been told before

‘
An d therefore having no in .
,

tention that S ir Ascelin — ho w ever worthy o f any and every fair

lady — should marry t his one he t ook care to cut o ff the stream ,

at the fountain head If he hears that the sui t is still pushed .

,
’
he may cut o ff another head beside the fountain s .
’

‘
Yo u
‘
T here will be n o need said Ascelin laughing again
’
.
. , ,
’
have very su fficiently ruined my uncle and my hopes .

My head said he as s oon as Hereward was o u t o f hearing ,

.

If I do not cut o ff thy head ere all is over there is neither luck ,

nor craft left among Frenchmen I shall catch T h e Wake s leep .

’
ing some day, let him be never s o Wakeful .

C HA P T E R XX XVI
HO W A L FT RU D A W ROT E T O HE RE W A RD

T HE weary m onths ran o n from summer into winter and , ,

winter into summer again for two years and m ore and neither , ,

T o rf rid a n o r Hereward was t he be tt er for them Hope deferred .

maketh the heart sick and a sick h ear t is but too a p t to be a

p eevish o n e S o there were fi t s of des p ondency j ars m utual
.
, ,

re c rimina t io n s If I had n ot t aken your advice I should not

.
‘
,

have been h ere If I had n ot loved you so well I might have

.
’
,

been very di fferently o ff And so forth T h e words were .

’
.

wiped away the nex t h our perhap s the next minute by s acred , ,
3 18 HE RE IVARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

softening medicine at last but at firs t it is apt to be a harden

,

ing o n e and that savage ou t law life which they were leading
can never have been a wholesome o n e for any soul o f m an and ,

its grace s must have existed only in th e brains o f harper s and

gleemen Away from law from self restraint from refinement
.
,
-
, ,

fro m elegance from th e very sound o f a church going bell they

,
-
,

were sinking gradually down to the level o f the coarse men and
women whom they sa w the worse and not the better p arts o f
bo t h t heir characters were getting the upper hand and it was
but too possible t hat after a while the hero might sink into the
ru ffi a n the lady into a slattern and a shrew
,
.

But in j usti c e to them be it said that n either o f them had ,

complained of the other to any livi n g soul T heir love h ad been .

as yet t o o p erfec t too sacred fo r them to confess to ano t her

, ,

( and t hereby confess to themselves ) that it could in any wise

fail T hey had each idolised the o t her and been too proud o f
.
,

their idolatry to allow that their idol could crumble or decay .

And yet at last that p oint t o o was reached O n e day they .

were wrangling a b out somewhat as they too often wrangled , ,

and Hereward in hi s temper let fall the words As I said to ,

‘

’
Winter the other day you grow harder and harder upon me
, .

T o rf rid a started and fixed on him w ide terrible scornful eyes , , .

S o yo u complain o f m e to you r boon companions ?

’

And she turned and went away without a word A gulf h ad .

o p e I I e d bet w ee n them T hey hardly spoke to each other for a

.

wee1{
Hereward complained o f T o rf rida ? What if T o rf rid a s hould
com plain o f Hereward B u t t o whom N o t to the coarse
women round her her pride revolted from that thought — and
yet she longed for counsel for sympathy — t o o p en her heart but
,

t o o n e fellow woman S h e would go to the L ady Godiva at

-
.

C rowland and t ake counsel o f h e r w hether t here was any

, ,

m ethod ( for she put it to herself) o f saving Hereward fo r she

sa w bu t t oo clearly that he was fast forge tt ing all her teaching ,

and falling back to a point lower than that even from which she
had raised him u p .

T o go to C rowland was n ot diffi cult It was mid winter T h e .

-
.

dykes were all frozen Here w ard was o u t foraging in the L in

.

c o ln sh ire wolds S o T o rf rid a taking advantage o f his absence

.
, ,

proposed another foraging party to C rowland itself Sh e .

wanted stuff for clo t hes needles th rea d what not A dozen
, , , .

stout fellow s volunteered at on c e to take her T h e friendly .

monk s o f C rowland would feast them royally and send them ,

home heaped wi t h all m anner o f good t hings w hile as f o r .

’
m eeting Ivo T aillebois men if they had but t hree to o n e ,

agains t them t here was a fair chance o f killing a few and

, ,

carrying o ff t heir clothes and weapons which would be useful , .

S o t hey made a sledge tied beef bones underneath it put

, ,

T o rf rid a and the girl thereon well wrapped in deer and fox and ,
XXX VI HOIV A L FT RUDA WROT E TO HE REWARD 319

badger skin and t hen pu t ting o n their skates swep t them over
, ,

the fen to C rowland singing like larks along the dykes ,

.

And T o rf rid a went in to Godiva an d wept u pon her knees ,

a n d Godiva we p t likewise and gave her such counsel as she ,

could — how if the woman will k ee p the man heroic she must ,

keep herself no t heroic only but devout likewise how she her
self by that one deed which had rendered her name fam ou s
,

then and famous (though she ne ver dream t thereof) n ow and it

,

m ay be to t he end of t ime — had once f o r all t amed chained , ,

and as it were converted the heart o f her fierce young lord ;

, ,

and enabled her to train him in good tim e in t o the m ost wise ,
’
m ost j us t m ost pious o f all K ing E dward s earls
, , .

And T o rf rid a said yes and yes and yes and felt in her heart , , ,

that she knew all that already Had n o t sh e t o o t augh t e n .

,

t reated softened civilised ? Had not she t oo s p ent her life

, ,
’
u pon a man and tha t m an a wolf s head and a landless ou t law
, ,

more ut t erly than Godiva could ever have spent hers on o n e

wh o lived lapped in luxu ry and wealth and p ower ? T o rf rid a , ,

had done her best ; and she had failed : o r a t least fancied in
her haste that she h ad failed .

What she wan t ed w as n ot counsel b u t love And she c l ung , .

round the Lady G odiva till t he brok en and ruined widow ,

opened all her heart to her and t ook her in her arms and , ,

fondled her as if she had been a babe An d the two women .

s poke f e w w ords after t ha t for indeed t here was n o t hing to be ,

said O nly at last My child m y child cried Godiva better

.
,
‘
, ,
’
,
‘

for thee body and soul t o be here with m e in t he house of God

, , ,

t ha there amid e vil spirits and deeds of darkness in the wild

woon is . I

N o t a cloister not a cloister cried T o rf rid a s huddering and

’
, , , ,

h alf struggling t o get away .

‘
It is t he only place poor wilful child the on ly place thi s side , , '

t he grave in which we wretched creatures who t o o u r woe are

, ,

w omen born can find augh t o f rest o r peace By u s sin came

, .

i n t o the world and E ve s curse lies heavy on u s to t his day and

,
’

o u r desire is to ou r lords and t hey rule over u s and when th e ,

slave can work for her master no m ore wha t be tter than to ,

crawl in t o t he h ouse of God and lay down ou r crosses at the ,

foot o f His c ross and die ? Y o u too will com e here T o rfrid a
, , ,

some day I k no w it well Yo u too will come here to rest

,
. .
’

‘
N ever never shrieked T o rf rid a n ever to these horrid
, ,
’
,
‘

vaul t s I will d ie in the fresh air I will be buried under the

. .

green hollies ; and t h e n ightingales as t hey wander u p from ,

m y o w n Provence sh all build and sing over my grave N ever

, .
,

n ever murmured sh e t o herself all t he m ore eagerly because ,

some t hing wi t hin h e r said that it w ould c ome to pass .

T h e t wo wome n wen t into the c hu r c h t o matins and p raye d ,

long an d fervently And at the early day break the party went .
-
,

back laden with good things and hearty blessings and caugh t ,
3 20 HE REWARD T HE WAK E CHA P .

’
one o f I v o T aillebois men by the way and slew him and go t o ff , ,

h im a n e w suit of clothes in which t he poor fellow was going

cou rting and so they got home safe into the Bru n e sw o ld .

B u t T o rf rid a had n ot found rest unto her soul For the fir s t .

time in her life since she became the bride o f Hereward sh e had ,

had a confiden ce concerning him and unknown to him It was .

to his own m other — true And yet she felt as if she had b e
.

t ra ye d him but then had h e not betrayed her ? And t o Winter

of all men ?
I t might have been two m onths afterward s that Martin
L ightfoo t p ut a letter into T o rf rid a s hand
’
.

T h e let t er was addressed to Hereward : b ut there was n o

’
thing strange in Martin s bringing it to his mis t ress E ver since .

their marriage she had open ed and generally answered the very
,

f e w epistles with which her husband wa s troubled .

S h e was going to open this o n e as a matter of course when ,

glancing at the superscription she saw o r fancied she s aw that , ,

it was in a woman s hand S h e looked at it again It wa s

’
. .

sealed plainly with a wom an s seal and she looked u p at ’

Martin L ightfoot S h e had remarked a s he gave her the letter

.

a sly significant look in his face .

What dost thou k now o f this letter ? she in q uired sharply ’

.

T it is from the C ountess Alf t ru d a whosoever she may

, hat ,

A chill struck through her heart T rue Alft ru da had written .

,

before only to warn Hereward o f danger t o his life— and hers

, .

S h e migh t be writing again only for the sam e purpose But , .

still she did not wish th at either Hereward o r she sh ould o w e

,

Alft ru d a their lives o r anything , T hey had struggled on

. .

through w eal and woe without her for many a year L e t them .

do so without her still T hat Alft ru d a had once loved Hereward

.

she knew well Why should she not ? T h e wonder was to h er

.

t hat e v ery w oman did n ot love h i m B ut she had long since

’
.

gauged A lft ru d a s character and seen in it a p ersistence lik e ,

her o w n yet as she proudly hoped of a lower temper the per

, , ,

sistence o f the base weasel n ot o f th e noble hou nd : yet the ,

creep ing weasel might endure and win when the hound was , ,

tired o u t by his o w n gallant pace And t here was a something in .

’
t he tone of Alft ru d a s last let t er w hich seem ed to tell her that ,

the weasel was still upon t he scent o f i t s game But she wa s .

t oo proud to mistrust Hereward o r rather to seem to mistrust , ,

him And yet — how dangerou s Alf t ru d a might be as a rival if

.
,

rival sh e chose to be S h e was u p in the world now free rich

.
, , ,
’
gay beautiful a favourite at Q ueen Matilda s court while
, , ,

she
‘
Ho w came th is letter into thy hands ? asked she as care ’

le s sly as she could .

’
I was in P eterborough last night said Martin con cerning , ,

lit t le m atters o f my o w n and there came to m e in the s treet a

,
3 22 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

B ut a misery it was such a misery a s none can delineate save , ,

those wh o have endured it themselves o r had it confided to ,

them by another And h appy are they to whom neither h as

.

befallen .

S h e wandered out and into the wild wood and s at down ,

by a spring S h e look ed in it — her only mirror — at her wan

.

coarse face with wild black elf lock s hangin g round it and
, ,

wondered whether Alft ru d a in her luxury and p rosperity was , ,

still so very beautiful Ah that th at fountain were the fountain .

,

of Jo u v e n c e the spring o f perpetual youth which all believed

, ,

in those days to exist som ewhere — how would she plunge into ,

it and be young and fair once m ore

,

she would not S h e had lived her life and lived it well , ,

gallantly lo v ingly heroically

, S h e had given that man her
, .

youth her beauty her wealth her wi t He should n o t have

, , , .

them a second time He had had his will o f her If he chose . .

to throw her away when he had done with her to prove himself ,

base at last unworthy o f all her care her counsels her training
, , ,
—dreadful thought ! T o have lived to k eep that man f o r her o w n
,

and j u s t when her work seemed done t o lose him N o there , ,

was wor s e than that T o have lived that she might m ake that .

m an a perfect k night and j ust when her work seemed done to , ,

see him lose him s elf .

And s he wept till she cou ld weep n o more T hen she washed .

away her tears in that well Had it been in Greece o f o ld it .

,
’
would have becom e a sacred well thenceforth and T o rfrid a s ,

tear s have changed into forget me not s and fringed it s marge - -

,
with azure e verm ore .

T hen s he went back calm all but cold : but determined not , ,

to betray herself let him do what h e would P erha p s it was all

, .

a mistake a fan cy At least she w ould n o t degrade him and

, , ,

herself by s howing s uspicion It would be dreadful shameful

, .
,

to h erself wickedly unj ust t o him to accu s e him were he

, ,

innocent after all .

Hereward s he remarked was more kind to her now But it

, , .

was a kindness which she did n o t like It was shy faltering as .

, ,

o f a man guilty and ashamed ; and she repelled it as much as

she dared and then once o r twice returned it passionately
, , ,

madly in hope s
,

B u t he never s p oke a word o f that letter .

After a dreadful m onth Martin came my s teriously to her ,

again S h e trembled for she had remarked in him lately a

.
,

s t range change He had lost hi s usual lo q uacity and quaint

.

h umour and had fallen back into that sullen taci t u rnity which ,

so she heard he had kept u p in his youth He too mu st know

, .
, ,

e vil which h e dared not tell .

’
T here is another letter come It cam e last night said he .
,
.

IVh at is that to thee o r m e My lord ha s hi s state secrets .

’
Is it for u s to pry in t o them ? Go .
X XX VI HOW AL FT RU DA WROT E T O HE REWARD 323

I thought— I thought
Go I s ay ,

T hat your ladyship might wish f o r a guide to C rowland .

C rowland ? alm ost shrieked T o rf rid a f o r the thought o f

‘ ’
,

C rowland had risen in her o w n w retched mind in s tantly and

in volun t arily Go madman ! .
‘
,

Mar t in went T o rf rid a paced madly up and down the farm

.

house T hen she settled herself into fierce despair

. .

T here was a noi s e o f trampling horses outside T h e m en .

were arming and saddling seemingly f o r a raid ,

.

Hereward hu rried I n for hi s armour When he saw T o rf rid a .

,

he blushed scarlet .

’ ‘
Yo u want your arms said she q uietly ; let me fetch
‘
,

th em ’

N 0 never mind I can harnes s myself ; I am going south

‘
.

west to p ay T aillebois a visit I am I n a great h urry I shall

, . .

—
be back I n three day s T hen good bye ’
. .

He s natched his arm s o ff a perch and hurried o u t again , ,

d ragging them o n As h e passed her h e o ffered to kiss her ; .

,

she put him back and hel p ed him o n with hi s arm our , ,

while he thank ed h e r confusedly .

He was as glad n o t to kiss m e after all ,

’
S h e looked after him a s he stood his hand o n hi s horse s ,

withers Ho w noble h e looked ! And a great yearni n g cam e

.

over her T o throw her arms round his ne c k once and then to
.
,

stab h erself and set him free dying as she had lived f o r him
, , , ,
.

T w o bonny boy s were wrestli n g o n the lawn yo u ng outlaws ,

h o had grown u p i n th e forest with ruddy cheek s and iron

Ii mbs
v
.

’
Ah Winter —
she heard him say had I had such a b o y a s ‘
, ,

t h at !
S h e heard n o more S h e turned away her heart dead wi th in ,

her S h e knew all that those w ords implied i n days when the
.
,

p os s ession o f land w a s everything to t he free man ; and th e

possession o f a son necessary t o pass that land o n in the ,

ancestral line O nly to have a so n ; only to prevent the o ld

.

estate p assing w ith an heiress into the hands o f strangers

, , ,

what cr i mes did no t men commit in those days and fin d them ,

sel ves excused for t hem I n public opinion ? And n ow her other ,

children ( if sh e eve r had any ) had died I n childhood the littl e ,

T o rf rid a named after herself was all that she had bro u ght to
, ,

Hereward ; and he was t he last o f hi s ho u se In him the race .

o f L eofric o f Go d iva of E arl O slao would becom e extinct ; and

, , ,

that girl would marry — whom ? Whom but som e French

c onqueror o r at best som e E nglish ou t law In either case
, .

Hereward would have n o descendants for wh om it wa s worth

his while to labou r or t o fight What wonder if he longed for a .

son — and not a son o f hers the barren tree— to pass his n ame ,

down to future generations ? It might be worth w hile for that , ,

324 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

to com e in to t h e king to recover his lands to S h e s aw it

, ,

all n o w and her hear t was dead within her

, .

S h e spent that evening neither eating n o r drink ing but , ,

sitti n g over her lo g embers her head u pon her hand s and , ,

thinking ove rall her p ast life and love s ince s he s aw him from , ,

the gable window ride the first time into S t O mer S h e went , . .

through it all with a certain stern delight in the s elf torture

,
-
,

deliberately day by day year by year —all its lofty aspirations , , ,

all its blissful passages all it s deep disa p p ointments and found , ,

in it — so she chose to fancy in t he wilfulnes s o f her misery ,

n o t hing but cause f o r remorse S elf in all vanity and vexation .

, ,

o f s p irit ; for herself she had loved him ; f o r herself she had
tried to rai s e him fo r herself she had set her heart on man and ,

n ot o n God S h e had sown the wind : and behold she had rea p ed
.

the whirlwind S h e could n o t repent she could n ot pray B ut

.
,
.

oh that she could die .

S h e was unj ust to herself in her great noblene s s I t was not .

true n o t half not a tenth part true But perhaps it wa s good

, , .

for her that it sh ould seem t rue f o r that mom ent ; that she
should be emptied o f all earthly things for once if so she m ight ,

be filled from above .

At last she went into the inner room to lie down and try to
sleep At her feet under the perch where Hereward s armou r
.
,
’

had hung lay an op en letter

, .

S h e picked it u p surp rised at s eeing such a thin g th ere and

, ,

kneeling down held it eagerly to the wax candle which was o n

,

a s p ike at the bed s head ’

.

’
S h e kne w the handwriting in a m oment It wa s Alft ru da s . .

T his then was why Hereward had been so s trangely hurried

, , .

He must have had that letter and dro p ped it .

He r mind and eye took it all in in o n e instant as the ,

lightning flash reveals a w hole landscape And then her mind .

became as dark as that landscape when t he flash is past .

It congratulated Hereward o n havi n g shaken himself free

from the fascination s o f t hat sorceress It said that all was .

se t tled with K ing William Hereward wa s to come to .

Winch ester S h e had the k ing s writ fo r his safety ready to

.
’

send to him T h e king would receive him as his liegeman

. .

Alf t ru d a would receive him as h er h usband

. Archbishop .

L anfran c had made diffi c ulties about the dissolution o f the

marriage with T o rf rida but gold would do all thing s at Rom e
and L anfranc was her very good friend and a reasonable man ,

and so forth .

Men and beasts likewise when striken w ith a m ortal wound

, , ,

will run and run o n blindly aimless im e lle d by the mere

, , , ,
ins t inc t o f escape from in t olerable agony n d so did T o rf rid a . .

Half und rest as she was she fled for t h into t he forest she knew , ,

not whi t her running as one doe s wrapt in fire but the fire was
,

not w ithout her but within , .

326 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

hat s hall be a s He wills yo u do n o t die while Martin can

T
’
keep you alive Wh y you are staggering already .
, .

Martin caught her u p in his arms threw her over hi s ,

s houlder as if she had been a child and hurried o n in the , ,

strength o f madnes s .

At last he stopped at a cottage door s et her down upon the ,

turf and knocked loudly

, .

G rim k e l T o liso n G rim k e l I say ,

And Martin burst the door open with hi s foot .

’
Give me a horse o n your life said he to the man inside ,
I , .
‘

’
am Martin T h e Wake s man upon m y master s busines s
,
’
, .
’

’
‘
Wha t i s mine i s T h e Wak e s G o d ble ss him said the man ’
, , ,

s tru ggling into a garment and hu rrying o u t to the shed , .

T here is a ghost against the gate cried he recoiling , .

T hat i s m y matter n o t your s Get m e a horse to p ut the

, .

ghost u p on .
’

T o rfrid a lay against the gate post exhausted n o w : but quite -

,

unable to think Martin li fted her o n to t he beast and led her

.
,

onward holding her u p again and again

, .

‘
You are t ired Yo u had run four mile s before I could make
.

’
you hear m e .

‘ ’
Would I had run four th ou s and ! An d she relap s ed into
stu p or .

T hey passed o u t o f the forest acros s open wold s and at last , ,

d own t o the river Martin knew o f a boat there He lifted her

. .

from th e hor s e turned him loo s e put T o rfrid a into the boat
, , ,

and took th e oars .

S h e looked u p and s aw the roofs o f B ourne s hining white in

,

the moonlight .

And then she lifted up her voice and shrieked three times , ,

L ost L ost L ost

with s uch a dreadful cry that t he starlings whirred up from ,

the reeds and the wild fowl rose clanging o ff the m eres and the
, ,

watch dogs in Bourne and Main t h o rp e barked and howled and

-
,

folk told fearfully next m orning h o w a white ghost had gone ,

down from the forest to the fen and wakened them with its ,

unearthly scream .

T h e su n was high when they cam e to C rowland minster .

T o rf rid a had neith er s p oken n or stirred ; and Mar t in W h o in ,

the m idst o f his madness k e p t a strange courtesy and delicacy ,

had n ever disturbed her save to wrap the bear —skin m ore closel y ,

over her .

When they cam e to the bank sh e rose stepped o u t without , ,

his help and drawing the bear skin closely round her, and o v er
,
- -

her head walk ed straight up to the gate o f the house o f nuns

,
.

All m en won d ered at the white ghost : but Martin walked

behi n d her his lef t finger o n his lips his right hand grasping
, ,

his little axe wi t h such a s t ern and serious face and so fierce an
, ,

eye that all drew back in silence and let her pass
, , .
XXX VI HOW AL FT RU DA WROT E TO HE REWARD 327

T he p ortress looked through the wick et .

I am T o rf rida said a voice o f terrible calm

,
’
I am com e to .
‘

see the L ady Godiva L e t m e in . .

’

T h e portress o p ened utterly astounded , .

Madam said Martin eagerly as T o rf rid a entered ,

.

’ ‘
‘
What ? What ? she seemed t o waken from a dream Go d .

bles s thee thou good and faithful servant

, and she turned
again .

‘
Madam ! S ay "
’
‘
VVh at ?
‘ ’
S hall I go back and kill him ? , And he held out the littl e
axe .

T o rf rid a
snatched it from his grasp with a shriek and ca s t it ,

inside the con vent door .

Mother Mary and all s aint s cried the portre s s you r gar ,
‘

ments are in rags madam ,

N ever mind Bring me garments o f you r s I shall need

‘
. .

none other till I die and she walked in and o n .

‘
S h e is come to be a nun whispered the portress to the .

next sister and she again to the next ; and they all gabbled
, ,

and lifted up their hands and eyes and thanked all the saints o f ,

t he calendar over t he blessed and m iraculou s c o n v e I si on of the

,

L ady T o rf rida and the weal t h which she would probably bri n g
,

to the convent .

T o rfrid a w ent straight o n s peaking to n o o n e n o t even to , ,

’
the pr i oress ; and into L ady Godiva s chamber .

’
T here she dropped at the countes s feet and laid her head ,

upon her knees .

‘
I am come a s yo u always told m e I sh ould d o B ut it has
, .

been a long way hi ther and I am v e tired ,

.
’

My child ! What I s t his ? What bring s yo u here ? ’

’
‘
I am doin g penance for m y s i ns .

‘
And your feet all cu t and bleeding g .

‘
‘
Are they ? said T o rf rid a v ac an t ly I will tell you all about
’

’
it when I wak e .

And s he fell fast asleep with her head I n Godiva s lap ,

’
.

T h e countess did n ot speak o r stir S h e beck oned the good .

prioress w h o had followed T o rf rid a in to go away S h e sa w

, ,
.

t hat something dreadful had happened ; and prayed a s she

awaited the n ews .

T o rf rid a slept for a full hou r T hen s he awok e with a .

star t .

Wh ere am I ? Hereward .

T hen followed a d readful shriek which mad e every nun in that ,

quiet house shudder and thank God that she knew nothi n g o f
,

those agonies of soul which were the lo t o f the foolish virgin s ,

who married and were given in marriage themselves instead o f ,

wai t ing wi t h o il I n their lamps for the tru e Bridegroomg .

’ ’
‘
I recollec t all now said T o rf rid a Listen ! An d she told
, .
‘
3 28 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

the counte s s all with s peech so calm and clear that Godiva was
,

awed by the power and spirit o f that marvellous woman .

‘
But she groaned in bitterne ss o f s oul Anything but this . .

Rather death from him t han treachery T his last worst w o e .

,

had God k ept in His quiver for me mo s t miserable o f women .

And now his bolt has fallen ! Hereward ! Hereward ! T hat

thy mother should wish her last child laid in his grave
‘ ’
N o t so said T o rfrida it is well a s it is
,
Ho w better ? It,
‘
.

i s hi s only chance for comfort f o r honou r for life itself He , , .

would have grown a — I was growing bad and fou l myself in

that ugly w ildernes s N o w he will be a knight once m ore
‘

among kn ights and win himself fresh hono u r in fresh fields

, .

L e t him marry her Why n ot ? He can get a dispensation from

.

the po p e and then there will be n o sin in it you know If the

, , .

Holy Father cannot mak e wrong right who can ? Ye s It is ,

.

very well as it i s And I am very well where I am Women

. .

Bring m e sci s sors and o n e o f you r nun s dres s e s I am com e to

,
’
.

’
be a nun like yo u .

Godiva would have s topped her B ut T o rfrid a ro s e upon h e r .

k nees and calmly made a solemn v o w which th ough canonically

, ,
’
void without her h usband s con sent would she well knew never , , ,

be dispu t ed by any there : and a s for him He has lost me ; ,

and for ever T o rf rid a never gives her s elf away twi ce
. .
’

’ ’
T here s carnal pride in those words m y poor child said , ,

Godiva .

‘ ’ ‘
C ruel ! s aid sh e proudly When I am sacrificing myself .

’
utterly for him .

’
And thy poor girl ?
‘
He will let her com e hi t her said T o rf rid a with forced calm ,
’
, .

‘
He will see that it i s not fit tha t she should grow up
yes h e will send her t o m e— to us And I shall live for her
,
.

and f o r you If you will let m e be your bower -woman dres s

.

you serve you read to you Yo u know that I am a pretty

, , .

scholar Y o u will let me m other ? I may call you m other may

.
, ,
’
I not ? And T o rfrid a fondled t h e o ld woman s thin hands
’
.

‘
For I do want so much something to love .
’

‘
L ove thy heavenly Bridegroom the only love worthy o f ,

woman sai d Godiva as her tears fell fast o n T o rf rid a s head

,
’
.

S h e gave a half impatient toss .

T hat m ay come in good time As yet it is enough to d o if

, .
,

I c an keep down this devil here in my throat Women bri n g .

,

m e the scissor s .
’

And T o rf rid a cut o ff her raven locks n ow streaked with ,

gra and put o n the nun s dres s and becam e a nun henceforth ’
, .

II the second day there came to C rowland L eofric the priest ,

and with him the poor child .

S h e had wok e in the m orning an d found n o m other L eofric .

and the o t her m e n searched t he w oods roun d far and wide , ,

.

T h e girl m ounted her horse and would go wi t h them T hen , .

3 30 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

we wh o have sat here at ea s e lay a penance o n thi s

S hall
‘
, ,

man who ha s shed his blood in fifty valiant fights fo r u s and

, ,

for S t G u t h lac and for this E nglish land ? L ook at yo n scars

.
,

upon his h ead and arms He has had sharper di s cipline from .

cold steel than w e could give him here with ro d ; and has fasted
n the wildernes s m ore s orely man y a time than we have fasted
iere
, ,
’
.

And all the m onk s agreed that no penance sh ould be laid o n

L eofric O nly that h e should abstain from s inging v ain and
.

carnal ballads which turned the heads o f the young brothers

, ,

and made them dream o f nought but battle s and giants and , ,
’
enchanter s and ladies love ,
.

Hereward cam e back o n the third day and found hi s wife ,

and d aughter gone His guilty conscience told him in the first .

instance why Fo r h e went into th e chamber and there upon

.
, ,

the floor lay the letter which he had looked f o r in vain

, .

N one had touched it where it lay Perhaps n o o n e had dared .

to enter the chamber If they had they would n o t have dared .

,

to m eddle with w ritin g which they could not read and which ,

m i ght contain some mag i c spell L etter s were v ery safe in

.

those o ld days .

T here arey m ood s of man which n o o n e will dare to de s cribe ,

unless like S h ak spe are he i s S h a ksp e are and lik e S h ak sp e are , ,

k no w s it not .

T herefore what Hereward thought and felt will n o t be told .

What he did was this ,

.

He raged and b lustered He m u st hide his shame He m ust . .

j ustify himself to his k night s and much m ore t o him s elf o r if , .

n ot j ustify himself must shift some o f the blam e over to the ,

o p pos i te side S o he raged and blustered He had been robbed

. .

o f his wife and daughter T hey had been caj oled away by the .

m onk s o f Crowland What V illains were those t o ro b an honest .

man o f his family while he was fighting for hi s country ?

S o he rode down to th e river and there took t w o great
barges and rowed away to C ro w laiI d with forty m en at arm s
,

.
, ,

And all the while he thought o f Alf t ru d a as he had seen her ,

at P eterborough .

And o f no o n e else ?
’
N o t so Fo r all the while he felt that he loved T o rf rid a s
.

’
lit tle finger better than Alft ru da s whole body and soul into ,

t he bargain .

What a long way it was to C rowlan d Ho w wearing were .

t he hours th rough m ere and ea Ho w wearying the m ono t on .

ous p ulse o f t he oars If t obacco had been known t hen Here .

,

ward would have sm oked all t he way and been n one the wiser , ,

t hough th e happier for it ; for the herb t hat drive s away the ,

evil s p irits o f anxiety drive s away also the good though ster n , , ,

spirits o f rem orse .

But I n those days a man could only escape facts by dri n king ;
XXX VI HOW AL FT RU DA WRO T E T O HEREWARD 33 1

and Hereward was t o o m uch afraid o f what he should meet in

C rowland to go thi t her drunk
,
.

S om etimes he hoped that T o rfrid a might h old her purpo s e ,

and set him free t o follow hi s wicked will All the lower nature .

in him so l ong cru shed under leapt up chuckling and gri n ning
, ,

n d t u m b lin g head over heels and cried — N o w I shall have a

a
,

l oli d a
S OIIIe t im e s h e hoped that T o rf rid a might com e o u t t o the
s h ore and settle the mat t er in o n e m om ent by a glance o f her
,
’
,

great hawk s eyes If she would but quell him by o n e look ; .

leap o n board seize the helm and assum e without a word the
, ,

command o f his m en and him steer them back to Bourne and ,

s it down beside him with a kiss as if nothing had happened If , .

sh e would bu t do t hat and ignore th e past wou ld h e n o t ignore , ,

it ? Would he n ot forget Alft ru d a and K i n g William and all , ,

the world and go u p wi t h h er into S herwood and then north t o

, ,

S cotland and G o sp at ric and be a man once m ore ? ,

No . He would go w ith her to the Baltic o r th e Me dit e r

ran e an C on st antino p le and the Varan gers would be th e place
.

and the men Ay there to escape o u t o f that charmed ring into

.
,

a new life .

N0 . He did not deserve s uch luck an d he would n o t get it .

S h e would tal k it all o u t S h e m ust for she was a woman .

, .

S h e would blam e argu e say dreadful words — dreadful becau se

, , ,

true and de s erved T hen she would grow angry a s women d o .

,

when they are m ost in the right and say too much — still m ore ,

dreadful words which would be untrue and un d eserved T hen

,
.

h e should resist recriminate He would n o t stand it

, He . .

could n ot stand it N o He could never face her again . . .

And yet if he had seen a man in sult her — if he had seen her
at that m oment in peril o f t he slightest danger the slightest ,

b ruise h e w ould have rushed forward like a m adman and died

, , ,

saving her from that bruise And he k ne w that and with the .

s trange self contradiction o f human n ature he soothed h is o w n

-
,

conscience by the thought that h e loved her still ; an d that ,

therefore— somehow o r o t her he cared n o t to mak e out how— h e ,

had d one her n o wrong T hen he blustered again for the benefit .
,

o f his men He would teach these m onk s o f C rowland a lesson

. .

He would bu rn the minster over their heads .

‘
T hat would be pi t y seeing they are the only E nglis h men ,
’
left in E ngland said S iward the White his nephew very , , ,

g
sim
g y .

l
hat is that to thee ? T hou hast helped to burn Peter
’
boro u gh at my bidding and thou shalt hel p t o bu rn C rowland .

I am a free gen t leman o f E ngland and what I c h oose I do ,

.

I and m y brother are going t o C ons t antin ople to j oin the Var
anger guard and shall not bu rn C r o wland o r le t any m an
, ,
.

’
burn it .

‘
S hall not let ?
’
3 32 HE REWARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

‘ ’
man so quietly that Hereward wa s
N
o ,
s aid the you n g ,

cowe i
‘
I— onlyI meant—
if they d id n o t d o right by m e .
’

‘
D o right thyself said S iward
’
,
.

Hereward s wore awf u lly and laid his han d o n his s word hilt ,
-
.

B ut he did not draw it for he thought he saw overhead a cloud

which wa s very lik e the figure o f S t G u t h la c in C rowland .

window and an aw e fell upon him from above

, .

S o they came to C rowland ; and Hereward landed and beat

upon the gates and spoke high g word s
, B ut the m onk s did n o t .

open the gates f o r a w h ile At last the gate s creak ed and

o p ened ; and in the gateway stood Abbot U lfke t y1 I n hi s io b e s
,
I

o f state and behind him the pr i or and all the o fficers and all
, , ,

t he m onks of the h ou s e .

C ome s Hereward I n peace o r in war ?

’

‘
In war said He reward . .

T hen that true and trusty o ld m an who s ealed hi s patriotism , ,

if n ot with his blood — for the very N ormans had n o t the hear t
to tak e t hat— s t ill with long and bitter sorrows lifted u p his ,

head and said like a valiant D ane a s his name bespoke phim
, , , ,

Against
g the traitor and the adulterer
I am n either roared Hereward
’
,
.

‘
T hou wo u ldst be if thou couldst Whoso looketh upon a
, .

woman to
’
‘
P reach m e n o serm ons m an L e t m e in to seek m y wife , .

O ver my body said U lfk e t yl an d laid himself down across

‘ ’
, ,

the th reshold .

Hereward recoiled If he had dared to step over that s acred .

body there was n o t a blood stained ru ffian in his n e w w h o

,

dared to follow him

Rise rise ! for God s sake l ord abbot said he ‘
‘
,
Whatever
’
, , .

I am I need n o t that you S hould disgrace me thu s O nly let

, .

—
m e see h er reason with her ’
.

S h e has vowed herself to God and is n one o f thine hence

‘
,

f ortll
‘
It I s against the can on s A wrong and a robbery . .
’

U lf ke t yl rose grand as ever ,

.

‘
Hereward L e o fric sso n o u r j o y and o u r glory once Hearken , .

to th e old man who will soon go w hither thine un c le Brand I S

g one and be free o f Fren c hmen and of all this wicked world
, , .

When the walls of C rowland dare not shelter the wronged

’
woman fleeing from m an s treason to God s fai t hfulness then
,
’
,

let the roofs of C ro w land burn till the flam e reaches h eaven fo r ,

a sign
g that the children o f God are as false as t h e c h il’d re h o f
t his w o rld and break t h ei r faith lik e any bel t ed knight
, g .

Hereward was silenced His men sh runk back f ro m him . .

He fel t as if God and the m other o f God and S t G u t h lac and

, ,
.
,

all the h os t o f heaven were shrinking back from him likewise , .

He t u I n e d to supplications compromi s e s — w hat else was left , .

334 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

C HA P T E R X XXVII

HO W HE RE W A RD L O S T SW O RD B RAI N BI T E R

ON account of w hich says the chronicler many trouble s cam e ’

, ,

to Hereward because T o rf rid a was m ost wise and o f great ,

counsel in need Fo r afterwards as he him self confessed thing s

.
, ,
’
went not so well with him as they d id in her time .

And the first thing that went ill wa s thi s He wa s riding .

through the B ru n e sw o ld and behind him Gery W e n o c h and , , ,

Mat e lgar these three And there met him in an open glade a
, .

knight the biggest man he had ever seen o n the biggest h orse
, , ,

and fi v e knight s behind him He was an E nglishman and n o t .

,

a Frenchman by his d ress ; and Hereward spoke cou rteousl y

,

enough to him But who h e was and what his busin es s was in
.
,

the B ru n e sw o ld Hereward thought that he had a right t o ask

, .

‘
T ell me wh o thou art w h o askest before I tell thee w h o I ,

am wh o am asked riding here o n comm on land quoth the , ,

’

knight su rlily en ough

, .

‘
I am Hereward wi thout who s e leave n o man ha s ridden the
,
’
B ru n e sw o ld f o r many a day .

And I am L e t w o ld the E nglishman wh o ride s whither h e ,

will n m erry E ngland without care f o r any Frenchman upon

e art if ,

Frenchman ? Why calle s t thou m e Frenchman man ? I am ,

Hereward .
’

‘
T hen thou art if tales be true a s French as I v o T aillebois
, , .

I hear that thou hast lef t thy true lady like a fool and a chu rl , ,

and goest to L ondon o r Winchester o r the nether pit — I care , ,

n o t which — t o mak e thy peace with th e Mamzer

’
.

T h e man was a su rly brute : but what h e said wa s so true ,

that Hereward s wrath arose He had promised T o rf rida many

’
.

a time never to quarrel with an E nglishman but to endure all ,

’
things N o w o u t o f very spite t o T o rf rid a s cou nsel becau s e i t
.
, ,

was T o rf rid a s and he had promised to Obey it he took u p the

’ ‘

, ,

quarrel .

If I am a fool and a churl th ou art a greater fool to p ro

‘
, ,

vok e thine own dea t h and a greater I

S pare your breath said the big man and let me try Here , ,
’
ward as I h ave many another
, .

Whereon they drop p ed their lance points and rode at each -

,

other like two m ad bulls And by the con t agion o f folly .

,

common in the m iddle age at each other rode Hereward s ,

’

’
three knights and L e t w o ld s five T h e tw o leader s found them .

s elves both rolling o n the ground j umped up drew thei r ,

s w ords and hewed away at each o t her Gery unhorsed his man
, .

at the first charge and left him stunned T hen he turned o n , .

XXX VII HOW HEREWARD L O S T SWO RD B RAIN BIT E R 3 35

another and d id the s ame by him W e n o c h and Mat e lgar each

,
.

’
overthre w their m an T h e fifth o f L e t w o ld s knights threw u p
.

hi s lance —point n ot li king his n ew company,

Gery and the .

o t her two rode in o n the t w o chiefs who were fighting hard , ,

each under shield .

S tand back ! roared Hereward and give the knight fair

‘ ’ ‘
,

play When did any o n e o f u s want a man to help him ? K ill

’
o r die S ingle has been o u r rule and shall be ,
.

T hey thre w up t heir lance poin t s and stood round to see -

,
’
that great fight L e t w o ld s knight rode in among them and
.
,

stood likewise and friend and foe looked o n a s they might at ,

a pair o f game cock s .

Hereward had to hi s o w n su rprise and that o f his fellows

, ,

met his m atch T h e spark s flew the iron c langed

. but so ,

hea v y were the stranger s strokes that Hereward reeled again ’

and again S O sure was the guard o f h is shield that Hereward

.
,

cou ld not wound him hit where he would At last h e dealt a ,

.

’
furious blow o n the stranger s head .

‘ ’
If that does not brin g your master down ! q uoth Gery .

By Brain b it e r is gone
It was too true S word B rain b it e r s end was come T h e
.
’
.

ogre s magic blade had sn ap t O ff short by the hilt

’
.

‘
Your master is a true E nglishman by the hardnes s o f his ,

brains qu oth W e n o c k as the stranger reeling for a m oment

’
, , , ,

lifted up his head and stared at Hereward in the face doubtful

, ,

what to do .

‘
Will you yield ; o r fight on ? cried he ’
.

‘
Yield ? shouted Hereward rushing upon him as a ma s ti ff
’
, ,

migh t o n a lion and s t riking at his helm though shorter than

, ,

h im by a head and shoulders such swift and terrible blow s with ,

the broken hilt as staggered the t all s t ranger

, .

‘ ’
What are you at forgetting what you have at your side ? ,

roared Gery .

Hereward spran g back He had a s wa s his custom a second .

, ,

sword o n his righ t t high .

‘ ’
I forget every t hing now said h e to him self angrily , .

An d that was too true But he d rew the second sword and .
,

sprang a t his man once m ore .

T h e stranger tried a c cording to the ch ronicler w h o probably

, ,

had it from o n e of t he th ree bystan ders a blow which has cost ,

m any a brave man his life He struck right d own on Here .

ward s head Hereward raised his shield warding the stroke

’
.
, ,

and threw in that c o u p d e j arre t which t here is n o guardi n g , ,

after the d own right blow ha s been given T h e strange r .

dro pp ed upon h is woun d ed knee .

‘
Yield cried Hereward in his t urn
’
, .

‘
T hat is no t my fashion And t he stranger fou gh t o n upon ’
.

his stum p s like Witheri n gton in Ch ev y Ch a se

, .

Hereward mad with the sight o f blood s truck at him fou r

, ,
33 6 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

or fi ve time s T h e s tranger s guard was s o quick that he could

.
’

not hit him even o n his knee He held his hand and drew
,
.
,
back looking at his n e w rival
, .

‘
What the m urrain are we two fighting about ? said he at ’
,

I k now n o t ; n either care said the Other with a grim ,

’
,

chuckle B ut if any man will fight me him I fight ever since

.
‘
, ,
’
I had beard to m y chin .

‘
T hou art t he bes t man that ever I faced .
’

T ha t I s like enough
’
.

‘
What wilt th ou take if I g ive thee thy life ? ,
’

My y w ay on which I was goi ng For I turn back for no man .

’
alive o n land .

‘ ’
T hen thou hast n o t had enough of m e ?
’
‘
N o t by an oth er hour .

’
T ho u must be born o f fiend and not of man ,
’
Very like It Is a wise son know s his o w n father
. .

Hereward burst out laughing .

Would to heaven I had had thee f o r my man thi s three year s

since .
’

P erhap s I w ould n o t have been thy man .

‘ ’
Why n o t ?
‘
Because I have been my o w n man ever since I was born ,
’
and am well content with m yself f o r m y master .

S hall I bind up th y y leg ? asked Herewar d having n o m ore ’

,

to say and not wishing t o kill the man

,
.

N0
‘
It w ill grow again lik e a crab s claw
.
,
’
.
’

An d Hereward turned away s ulky and

‘ ’
T hou art a fiend .
, ,

half afraid .

’
Very like N o man know s what a devil h e is till he tries
.
,
.

What dost m ean ? and Hereward tu rned angrily back ’

.

‘ ’
Fiends we are all till God s grace comes ,
’
.

"
L it t le grace has come to thee yet by thy ungracious tongue ,
.

Rough to men may be gra c ious to women

’
.

“ hat hast thou to do w ith w omen ? asked Hereward

g
’

fi erce
‘
I have a wife an d I love her ,
.

8
T hou art not like to g get back t o her to day .

‘
I fear not wi t h t his paltry scratch I had looked for a cut
,
.

from thee would have saved m e all fighting henceforth

,
.

What dos t mean ? asked Hereward wi t h an oath ’

.

T hat m y w ife I s in heaven and I would needs follow her

’
, .

Hereward got o n his h orse and rode away N ever could he , .

find o u t who that S ir L e t w o ld was o r h ow he came into the ,

B ru n e sw old All h e kn e w was t hat h e never had had such a

.
,

fight s i nce he wore beard ; and that he had lost sword Brain
bi t er from which hi s evil conscience a u g u red that his l u ck had
turned and that he should lose many things be s ide s
, .
33 8 H E REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

he went back all the way to camp and took ( say s the chronicler) ,
‘
forty m ost fam ous knights all big and tall of sta t ure and splendid ,
—
,
’
if from nothing e lse from their look s and their harness al one , .

S o Hereward and those forty knights rode down from P eter

borough al o ng the Roman road For the Rom an roads were
, .

then and for centuries after the only road s in thi s land ; and
, ,

our forefathers looked on them as the work o f gods and giants

"

and called them after the names o f their Old gods and heroes
Irmen S treet Watling S treet and s o forth
, , .

And then lik e true E nglishmen our o w n forefathers sho w ed

, ,

their respect for the said divine works n o t by O opyi n g them , ,

but by picking them to pieces to pave every man his own

cou rtyard B e it so T h e neglect o f new roads the destruction
. .
,

o f the old ones was a natural evil consequence o f l ocal self

,
.

governm ent A cheap price perhaps after all to pay f o r that

.
, ,

power o f local self go vernm ent which has k ept E ngland free
-

unto this day .

Be that as it m ay down the Roman road Hereward went ;,

past Alconbury Hill o f the Old posting days past Hatfield , ,

’
th en deep forest ; and so t o S t Alban s then d eep fore s t like .
,

wise An d there they lo d ged in the minster fo r the m onks

.

t hereof were good E nglish and sang masse s daily f o r K ing ,

Harold s soul ’
And the next day they went south by ways
.
,

which are n ot so clear .

Just outside S t Alban s — Verulamium o f the Roman s ( th e

.
’

ruin s whereof were believed to be full of ghosts dem ons and , ,

magic treasu res )— they turned at S t S tephen s to the left o ff ,

.
’
, ,

t he Roman road to L ondon and by another Roman road struck

into the vast forest whi c h ringed L ondon round from north —east
to south west Following t he u pper wa t ers o f the C olne which
-
.
,

ran through the woods o n their lef t they came to Watford and , ,

then turned p robably to Rickmansworth N O longer o n the .

Roman paved ways they followed h orse tracks between the ,

-
,

fores t and the rich marsh m eadows o f the C olne a s far as D e n -

,

ham and then str u ck in t o a Roman road again at the north end
,

of L angley P ark From thence over heathy commons for that —

,
.

western part o f Bu c kinghamshire i t s soil bei n g light and some ,

gravel was little cultivated then and h ardly all cultivated now
, ,
—~they held on s t r aight by L angley town into the Vale o f
T ham es .

L i tt le they dreamed a s they rode down by D itton Green o ff , ,

the heathy com m ons past th e poor scattered farms o n to the , ,

vast rushy m eadows while upon them was the dull weight o f
,

disa pp ointment shame all but despair ; their race enslaved

, , ,

their country a prey to stra n gers and all its future like their , ,

ow n ,
a lurid blank — li t tle they dreamed o f what that vale would
be within eight hundred years — the eye o f E ngland and it may ,

be of the world ; a spot which ow n s m ore wealth and peace ,

m ore art and civili s ation m ore beau t y and m ore virtue it m ay , ,
X XX VIII HO IV HEREWARD CAME I N T O T HE K I N G 33 9

’
be than any o f the God s gardens which make fair this earth
,
-
.

Windsor o n its crown ed s t eep was t o them bu t a new hunti n g

, ,

ala c e of the old miracle monger E dward who had j ust ruin ed -
,

n gla n d Runnymede a mile below them down the broad

.
,

s t ream was bu t a horse fen fringed with wa t er —lilies where the

,
-
,

m en of Wessex had met o f Old to counsel and to bring the ,

cou ntry to t his pass And as they c rossed by ford o r ferry .

,

boat the shallows o f O ld Windsor whither t hey had been tend

, ,

ing all along and s t ruck in t o th e m oorlands of Wessex itself

, ,

t hey were as m en going into an un known wilderne s s : behind

them rui n and before t hem unknown danger
, ,
.

O n through Windsor Fores t E dward the S aint s o ld hunting

’
,

ground i t s bottom s ch oked wi t h bee c h and oak and birch and ,

alder scrub i t s u p per lands vast flats of level hea t h along the
great t ra c kway which run s al on g t he lower side o f C hobham
C amp some quarter o f a mile broad every rut and trackway as
, ,

fresh at this day as when the an c ien t Briton finding t hat his ,

neighbour s e sse d u m — c hariot or ra t her cart— had worn the ruts

’
,

t oo deep stru c k out a fresh wandering line fo r himself across

,

the dreary hea t h .

O ver t he Black water by S andhurst and al ong the flats o f ,

Hartford Bridge w here the Old furze grown ru t s show the

,
-

t rackway t o this day D own into the c laylan d forests of the .

A n d re d sw e ald and u p out of them again at Basing on to the

, ,

clean crisp chalk turf ; to strike at P opham L ane the Roman

road from S il c hester and hold it over t he high downs till they
, ,

saw far below them th e royal city Of Winches t er .

I tc hen silver as they looked on her from above but when they
, ,

cam e down to her so clear t ha t n one could see wh ere water

,

ended and where air began hu rried t hrough the city in m any a ,
‘ ’
stream Beyond it rose th e White C am p the Venta Bel
.
,
‘

’
garum the circular ear t hw ork o f whi t e chalk on the high dow n
, .

Wi t hin the ci t y rose the an cient mins t er church bu il t by E t hel ,

w o ld a n c ie n t even t hen — where sle p t the ancient kin gs

h

K en
n u lf ,
E gbert and E t h e lw u lf the S axons
,
and by them t he ,

D anes Canute t he Great and Hardican u te his son and

, , , ,
’
N orman E mma his wife and E t helred s before h im ; and t he
, ,

great E arl Godwin who seemed to Hereward t o have d ied n ot

, ,

t wen t y but two hundred years ago — and i t may be an old

,

S axon hall upon th e lit t le isle whi t her E d gar had bi dd en b ring
the hea d s of all t he wolves in Wessex where af t erwards the ,

bishops b u ilt W o lv e se y Palace But nearer to them o n the .

,

down which slo p ed u p t o the west stood an uglier t hing which , ,

t hey saw wi t h c u rses dee p and loud — the k eep of the new N o r ,

man castle by the west gate .

Hereward hal t ed his knight s u p on the down outside the

nor t hern gate T hen he rode forward h imself T h e gate was
. .

open w ide bu t he did n o t care to g o in .

S o he rode into the gateway and smote upon that gate wi t h ,

3 40 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

his lance butt But the porter s aw the k n ights upon the d ow n
-
.
,

and wa s afraid to come o u t f o r he feared treason .

T hen Hereward smote a second time but the porter did not
com e o u t .

T hen he took the lance by the shaft and s m ote a third time ,
.

And he smote so hard that the lance butt fl e w to flin d e rs against

,
-

Winchester Gate .

And at that started o u t two knights who had com e down ,

from the castle seeing the m einie o n the down and asked
,
’
Who art th ou who k n o c ke st here so bold ?
,

Wh o I am any m an can see by those splinter s if he k nows

, ,
’
what men are left in E ngland this day .

T h e knights looked at th e brok en wood and then at each ,

other Who could the man be who could beat an a s h stave to

.
,

flin d e rs at a S ingle blow ?

You are young and do n o t know m e and n o shame to you
, .

G O and tell William the king that Hereward is come to p u t his

’ ’
hand s bet w een the king s and be the king s man thenceforth , .
’

Yo u are Hereward
‘
asked one half a w ed half disbelieving , ,

at Hereward s sh ort stature

’
.

‘
You are — I kn ow not who Pick u p those splinter s and .
,
“
tak e them to K ing William an d say T h e man who broke tha t ,

lance against the gate is here to make his peace with thee and ,
”

he will know who I am .

’

And so cowed were t hese two knights with Hereward s royal ’

voice and royal eye and royal strength that they w ent simply
, , , ,

and did wha t he bade them .

And when K ing William saw the splinters he wa s a s j oyful ,

as m an could be and said ,

S end him to m e and tell him B right shines the sun to m e

‘
, ,

that lights Hereward into Winchester .

’

’
But lord k ing he has with him a meinie o f full forty k nights
, , .

S o much the better I shall have the m ore valiant E nglish

.

’
m en to help m y valiant French .

S o Hereward rode round outside the walls to William s new

’
, ,

en trenched palace outside the west gate by t he castle ,

.

And then Hereward went in and knelt before the N orman , ,

’
and p u t his hands between William s hand s and swore to be his ,

man .

‘ ‘
I have k ept m y word said he which I sent to thee at ,
’
,

Rouen seven years agone T hou art king o f all E ngland and .

I am the last m an to say so .

’

‘
And since thou hast said it I am kin g indeed C ome with , .

’
me and dine and to m orrow I will see thy knights
,
-
.

And William walked o u t o f the hall leaning o n Hereward s ’

shoulder at which all the N ormans gnashed their teeth wi t h envy

, .

‘
And for m y k n ights lo rd king ? T hine and mine will mix
‘

, ,

for a while yet lik e oil and water ; and I fear lest there be
,

m ur d er done between them .

’
3 42 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

th at h e ne v er had met with a woman of so clear a brain o r o f ,

so stout a heart .

At last being puzzled to get that w hich he wanted he touched

, ,

0 11 t he m at t er o f her marriage with Hereward .

S h e wished it h e said dissolved ,

S h e wished herself to enter
, .

religion .

T h e C hu rch would be most happy to sanction so holy a desire ,

but there were obj ections S h e was a married woman ; and .

her husband had n o t given his consent .

’
L e t him give it then , .

T here were still Obj e ct ions He h ad nothing to bring against .

her which could j ustify the dissolution o f the holy bond I

unless
’
Unles s I bring som e m yself ?
T here have been rum ou rs — I s ay not h o w true — o f magi c
‘

and sorcery
T o rf rid a leapt u p from her s eat and laughed such a lau gh , ,

that t he priest said in after years it rung th rough hi s head as ,

if i t had arisen o u t o f the pi t o f t he lost .

S O that is what you want churchman ? T hen you shall ,

have it B rin g m e pen and ink I need n ot confess to you

. . . .

Y o u shall read m y c onfession when it is done I am a bet t er .

scribe mind yo u than any c lerk bet w een here and Paris
, ,
.
’

S h e seized the pen and ink and wrote ; n o t fiercely a s the , ,

p riest expected but slowly and carefully

,
T h en she gave it th e .

pries t t o read .

‘
Will that do churchman ? Will that free m y s oul and that
, ,
’
o f your French archbishop ?
An d the p riest read to him s elf
Ho w T o rf rid a o f S t O mer born at Arles in P rovence c o n
.
, ,

fessed that from h e ryouth up she had been given to the practi c e
Of diabolic arts and had at divers times and p laces used the
,

same both alone and with Ric h ild a la t e C ountess o f Hainault

, , .

Ho w wickedly wantonly and ins t in c t wi t h a malignant spiri t

, , , ,

she had c om p assed by c harms and spells to win the love o f

, ,

Hereward Ho w she had ever since ke p t in bondage him and

.
,

others whom sh e had not loved with the sam e carnal love bu t ,

only desired t o make them useful to her ow n desire o f power

and glory by the same magical arts for which she n o w humbly
,

begged pardon of Holy C hurch and o f all C hris t ian folk and , ,

p enetra t ed with com p u nction desired only that sh e might retire ,

in t o the conven t o f C rowland S h e asser t ed the marriage whi c h .

sh e had so unlawfull y compassed to be n ull and v oid and

p rayed to be released t h erefrom as a bu rden to h er conscience ,

and soul that she might spend the res t o f her life in peni t ence
,

for her many enormous S ins S h e submi t ted herself t o t h e .

j udgmen t of Holy C hurch only begging that this her free c o n ,

f e ssio n might be counted in her favo u r and that she might n ot ,

be put to death as S h e deserved nor immu red perpetually

, ,
XXX I X T O RFRI DA IN SPIRE D BY T HE D E V I L 3 43

becau s e her m other I n law according to th e flesh the C o u ntess

-
,

Godiva being Old and infirm had daily n eed o f h e r ; and she
, ,

wished to serve her menially as long as sh e lived After w hi c h .

,

she p u t herself utterly upon the j udgm en t o f the Church And .

meanwhile she desired and prayed t hat she m i ght be allowed to

remain in p erpetual im prisonment ( whereby h er marriage could
be canonically dissol ved ) in the said m onastery o f C rowlan d ,

not leaving the precincts thereof with out s p ecial leave given
by the abbot and prioress in o n e case between her an d them
r eserved ; to wear garments o f haircloth : to fast all the w aI
on bread and water ; and t o be disciplined with rods o r other
w i se at such times as t he prioress should command and to such
, ,

degree as her bo d y softened with carnal luxury could I e aso n

, ,

ably endure And beyond — that being dead to t he world God

.
, ,

m ight have mercy on h e r soul .

And she m eant what she said T h e madness o f remorse an d .

disappointment so com mon in the w ild mid d le age had come

, ,

over her and with it the twin m adness o f self —t or t u re .

T h e priest read and trembled n ot for T o rf rid a but for

, ,

himself lest she should enchant him after all

,
.

’
S h e mus t have been an awful sinner said he to the m onks ,

when he got safe o u t o f th e ro om ; com p arable o n ly to t he ‘

wi t ch o f E ndor or the woman Jezebel o f whom S t J ohn writes

, ,
.

in th e Revelation s .
’

‘
I do not know how you Fren c hmen measure folk s wh en you ,

see them but to o u r mind sh e is for goodness h u mility , ,

’
l p at ie n c e comparable only to an angel of G o d said Abbot
g fig
, ,

kety l
‘
You E nglishmen will have to change your minds 0 11 m any
’
p oin t s if you mean to stay here
,
’
.

‘
We shall not c hange them and w e shall stay here quoth , ,

the abbo t .

‘
Ho w ? You will not get S weyn and his D anes to help you a
second time .

N 0 we sh all all die and give yo u your w ills and yo u will

‘
, ,

n o t have t he hear t t o c ast ou r bones into t he fen s

N o t unless you intend t o work m iracles and set up for

‘
,

sain t s lik e you r Al ph e ge and Ed m und

,
.
’

Heaven forbid t ha t we sh ould compare ou rselves with them !

O nly let u s alone till we die
’
.

’
I f you let us alo n e and d o n ot tu rn traitor meanwhile
‘
, .

Abbot U lfk e t yl bit his li p and ke p t down t h e rising fiend , .

’
‘
And n o w said t he p r i est d eliver me over T o rf rid a the
, ,
‘

youn g er da u ghter of He I e w a rd and this woman t hat I may

, ,
’
t ake her to the king who has found a fit husband for her , .

You will hard ly get her ’

N o t ge t her ?
‘ ’

’
N o t without her m other s consent T h e lass cares for nought .

b u t her
’
.
3 44 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

that sorceress ? S end for the girl

P ish .
’

Abbot U lfke t yl forced in his o w n abbey great and augu st

, ,

lord though he was to Obey any upstart o f a N orman priest w h o

,

came back ed by the king and L anfranc sent f o r the lass ,

.

T h e young outlaw came in — hawk o n fist and it s hood o ff , ,

fo r it wa s a pet — short stur d y upright brown haired blue , , ,

-
,

eyed ill d ressed with h ard hands and sunburnt face but with
,
-
, ,

the hawk eye o f her fath er and her m other and the hawks
-
,

amon g which she was bred S h e looked the prie s t over from .

head to foot till he was aba shed , .

A Frenchman
‘
said she and she said n o m ore , .

’
T h e priest looked at her eyes and then at the h awk s eyes ,
.

T hey were disagreeably like each other He told hi s errand as .

c ourteou sly as he could for he was not a bad hearted man f o r a ,

-

N orman priest .

’
T h e lass laughed him to scorn T h e king s comman d s ? S h e .

never saw a king in the greenwood and cared for none T here ,
.

wa s no king in E nglan d n o w since S weyn U lfsso n sailed back ,

to D enmark Who was this French William to sell a free

.
,

E nglish lass like a colt o r a c o w ? T h e priest might go back to

the slaves o f Wessex and command them if h e could : but in ,

the fens m en were free and l asses t o o ,

.

T h e priest was piously sh ocked and indignant and began to ,

argue .

S h e played with her hawk instead o f li s tening and then was ,

marching o u t o f the room .

‘ ’ ’
Your m o t her said he is a sorceress , ,
‘
.

‘
You are a knave o r set o n by k naves Y o u lie ; and yo u
’

,
.

’
k now you lie And she turned away again
. .

S h e has confessed it ’
.

‘
You have driven her mad between yo u till she will confess ,

anything I presume yo u threatened to burn her as some o f

.
,
’
yo u did a while back And the yo u ng lady made use o f words .

equally strong and tr u e .

T h e p riest was n o t accustomed to the direct language o f th e

greenwood and indignant o n his o w n account threatened and
, , ,

finally O ffered to use force Whereon there look ed up into his , .

face such a demon ( so he said ) as he never had seen o r dream ed

o f and said
,
’
If you lay a finger o n me I will brittle yo u like any deer
‘
,
.

And therewith pulled o u t a saying — knife about half as long ,

.

’
again as the said priest s hand being very shar p so he deposed , , ,

d o w n th e whole length of o n e edge and likewise down hi s little ,

fi n ge r s length o f th e other
’
.

N o t being versed in the term s o f E nglish venery he asked ,

Abbot U lfke t yl what brit t ling Of a deer migh t mean and being
informed that it wa s that o p era t ion o n the carcase o f a stag
which his coun t rymen called e v e n t re r h e subsided and thou ght , ,

i t best to go and consult the young lady s m o t her ’

.
3 46 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

No
‘
madam said Alf t ru d a not adding that s h e had taken
, ,

good care that he should n o t k now .

‘
It I s the best thing which I have heard of him I sh ould tell .

’
him were i t not tha t I mu st not m eddle with m y lord s plans
, .

God gran t him a good delivery as they say o f th e oor souls I n

g aol Well madam you have you r will at last 5 c d give you
,

.
, , .

’
grace thereof for you have n ot g i ven him m uch chance as yet
,
.

’
You r maj esty will h on ou r us by coming to the wedding ?
‘

asked Alft ru d a utterly unabashed ,

.

Matilda the Good look ed at her with a face o f such calm

childlik e as t onishment that Alft ru da dropped her proud head ,

at last and slunk out o f the p resence l ike a beaten cur

, .

B ut William wen t to the wedding ; and swore horrible oaths

tha t they were the handsomest pair he had ever seen And so .

Hereward married Alft ru d a Ho w Holy C hurch settled the .

matter is not said But that Hereward married Alf t ru d a

, .
,

under these very circum stan ce s m ay be considered a historic ,

fac t being vouched for both by G aim ar and by Richard o f E ly

,
’
.

And d oubtless Holy C hurch contrived that it should happen

without sin if i t conduced to h er o w n interest
, .

And little T o rf rid a— then aged it seems some sixteen years , ,

was m arried to Hugh o f E v e rm u e S h e wept and struggled

-
.

as she was dragged into the church .

B ut I do n o t want to be married I want to go back to my

‘
.

’
m other .

’
T h e diabolic instinct may have de s cended to h er said the
‘
,

p riests and attrac t s her to the sorceress

, We had best .

sprinkle her wi t h holy wa t er .

’

S o they sprinkled her with holy water and u sed exorcism s , .

Indeed the case being an impor t ant one and the p ersonages o f
, ,

rank they brought o u t from their treasures th e apron o f a cer

,

t ain v i rgI n sai n t and p u t it round h er ne c k in h ope s o f driving

, ,

o u t t he hereditary fiend .

’
If I am led wi t h a h al t er I m ust needs go said she with o n e , ,
’
o f her m o t her s o w n flashes o f wit and went But L ady Alf ‘
,
.
,

truda whis p ered she halfway u p t he chur c h I never lo v ed him

,
’
, ,
.
’

Behave yourself before the king or I will whip yo u till the

‘
,

blood runs .
’

And so she would and no o n e would have wondered in those

c1ay s
’
I will mu rder you if you do B ut I never even saw him
‘
, . .

L i tt le fool ! And what are yo u going through but what I

‘
,

went th rough before you C l

Y o u t o say t hat gnashed the girl as an other spark o f her ,
’
m other s wit came out And yo u gam ing w h at .
‘

What I waited fo r for fif t een years said Alf t ru d a coolly

‘ ’

If you have co u rage and cunn i ng like me t o wait f o r fifteen

,
‘
,

years you too m ay have you r will like w ise

,
.

T h e pu re child shuddered and was married to Hugh o f ,

xxx i x T ORFRI DA IN SPI RE D B Y T HE D E V IL 3 47

E v e rm u wh o was according to them o f C rowlan d a good

e, , ,

friend to tha t m onas t ery and therefore doub t less a good m an , , ,

.

O nce says wicked repor t he o ffered to s t rik e her as was the

, , ,

fashion in those chivalrous days Wh ereon she turned upon .

him lik e a tigress and bidding him rem ember that she was t he
,

daughter o f Hereward and T o rf rid a gave him su ch a beating ,

t hat he n ot wishing to d raw sword upon her su rrendered a t

, ,

d iscretion and t hey lived all their lives afterward s as happily

as m ost other married people in t h ose times .

All this howeve r pleasant to Hereward wa s n o t plea s ant to

, ,

the French c our t iers w hereon after the s im p le fashion o f ,

those times t hey looked abou t f o r o n e who would pick a quarrel

,

wi t h Hereward and slay him in fair fight B ut an Archibald .

Bell the Cat was n ot to be found behind every hedge

- -
.

S till he might be provoked to fi gh t

,
If his f o e was slain .
,

so m uch the worse for both par t ies Fo r a d uel especially if a .

,
’
fatal o n e within t he precin cts o f the king s court was a grave
, ,

o fl e n c e p unishable at least in ex t reme cases with death

, , ,
.

N o w it befell that am o n g them a t Winchester was O ger the

,

B reton h e wh o h ad held Mo rc a r s lan d s round Bourne and wh o

,
’

was n o w in wra t h and d read enou gh a t the p ro s pec t o f having

to give them u p to Hereward I t was n o d i fficult m atter t o se t .

t h e h o t headed C elt o n t o provoke the equally h o t head ed

- -

Wake and accordingly O ger having been duly plied with , ,

wine was advised to say o n e af t ernoon

,

Hereward feeds well at t he king s table Fren ch cookin g is ’

.

a pleasant change for an ou tlaw w h o has fed for m any a day ,

o n rats and mice and su c h small deer

’
.

‘
A pleasanter change for a s t arveling B reton who wa s often ,

g lad enough ere h e cam e to E ngland to ro b his o w n ponies ,

o f t heir furze top p ings and boil t hem down for w ant o f kale
’
-
, .

‘
We use fu m e to pp ings in B rittan y to scourge saucy ch urls
-

withal S peakest t hou thus t o me wh o have the blood of K ing

.
,

Ar t hu r and half his knigh t s in m y vei n s

’
T hen dis c ipline thi n e own churl s back t h ere w ith f o r churl
t hou art thou gh thou comes t of Arthur s bl ood N ay I will not
,
’
.
,

q uarrel with t hee I have had too many gnats pestering m e in

.

t he fens al ready to care for o n e m ore here .

’

W
h g 1 t herefrom
.
t he Breton j udged that Hereward had no lust to
T h e next day he met Hereward going ou t to hunt and was ,

confirmed in his opinion when Hereward lif t ed his c ap to him

m ost cou rteou sly saying t hat he was no t aware before tha t his
,

n ei g hbou r was a gen t leman o f such high lineage .

L in e age Z Be t ter at least t han t hine thou bare legged

'
.
,
-

S axon who hast d ared to c all me base born and s t arveling ?

,
-

’
S o t hou must needs have thy th roa t c u t Z I took thee for a .

’
wiser m an .

‘
Many have taken me f o r that which I am n o t If you will .
3 48 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

harne ss your s elf I will do the same and we will ride up to the
,
’
woods and set tle thi s matter in peace
, .

T hree men o n each side to s ee fair play said th e Breton ’

.
,

And up to the w oods they rode ; and fought lon g without

ad vantage o n e ither s ide .

Hereward was n o t the man which h e had been His nerve .

was gone a s well as his conscien c e and all the dash and fury
,

o f his o ld onslaughts gone therewith .

He grew tired o f t he fight n o t in body but in mind ; and , ,

more than once drew ba c k .

‘
L e t u s stop this child s play s aid he accordi n g to the ’ ’
, ,
‘
chronicler ; what need have we to fight here all day about
nothing
Whereat the Breton fancied him al ready m ore than half
beaten and attack ed m ore furiously than e v er He would be
, .

the first man o n earth wh o ever had had the better o f t he great
outlaw He would win himself eternal glory as the champion
.
,

o f all E n gland .

But h e had m istaken his man and his indomitable E nglish ,

pluck It was Hereward s fashion in fight and war says th e

.
‘ ’ ’
,
‘ ’
c hronicler always to ply the m an m ost at th e last And s o
,
.

found the B reton ; f o r Hereward suddenl y lost patience and ,

rushing o n him with o n e o f his o ld shouts he w ed at him again ,

and again as if his arm would never tire ,

.

O ger gave back would h e o r n ot In a few m oment s his

, .

sword arm dro p p ed to hi s side cut half through

-
,
-
.

‘
Have yo u had enough S ir T ristram the younger ? q uoth ,
’

Hereward wiping his sword and walking m oodily away

, ,
.

T h e fruit o f which was this T hat wi t hin twenty four h our s .

-

Hereward wa s arrested o n a charge o f s p eaking evil o f the

king breaking his peace com p assing the d eath o f hi s faithful
, ,

lieges and variou s o t her wicked traitorous and diabolical a cts

, , ,
.

He wa s to be sent to Bedford Castle in the custody o f Robert ,

He re p o l chatelain o f Bedford a reasonable and c o ur t eou s man

, ,
.

T h e king had spared his life in con s ideration o f his having first ,

submi t ted himself .

Hereward went like a man stunned and spok e ne v er a ,

word D ay after day he rod e northward unarmed f o r the first

.
,

time fo r many a year ; an d for the first time in all hi s years ,

w ith gyve s o n ancle and o n wrist T his was the wage s o f his .

sin T his was the faith o f Frenchmen He was n ot as t onished

. .
,

hardly disappointed Hatred o f William and worse hatred o f .

, ,

himself swept all the passions from hi s s oul O f Alf t ru d a he

,
.

never thought for a m oment Indeed he never th ought s teadily .

,
o f anything was hardly consciou s o f anything till he heard the
, ,

key turned o n him in a room — not a small o r doleful o n e — in

Be d ford keep ; and found an iron shackle o n hi s leg fastened ,

to t he stone bench o n which he Sat .

Robert o f He re p o l had meant to leave hi s pri s oner loose .

35 0 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

one of the m ost f u l— Fitz O sb e rn E arl of Hereford

p o w eI His I
-
, .

sister Ralph was to h ave married but William f o r reason s u n

, ,

known forbade th e m atch T h e t wo great earls celebrated the

,
.

weddin g in s p i t e of William and asked W a lt h e o f a s a guest , ,

And at E xning between the fen and N ewmarket Heath,

W as th at b ri d e ale -

Wh ich w as m an s b al e ’
.
’

For there was m atu red the plot which Ivo and other s had long
seen brewing William ( they said ) had made himself hateful to
.

all m en by his cruel t ies and t yrannies and indeed his govern , ,

m ent was growing more u nrighteous day by day L e t them .

drive him out o f E ngland and part t he land between them , .

T w o sh ould be d ukes t he third king paramount ,

.

W alt h e o f I presume qu oth Hereward plotted drunk and

‘ ’ ‘
, , , ,

repented sober when too late T h e W it t ol ! He should have

, .

’
been a m onk .

‘
Re p ented he has if ever h e was guil t y F or h e fled to
,
.

Archbisho p L anfranc and confessed to him so much tha t , ,

L anfran c declares him innocent and has sent him o n to William ,

’
in N ormandy .

‘
O kind prie s t ! true priest ! T o send hi s sheep into the
’
wolf s m outh .
’

’
Yo u forget dear sire that William is ou r king
, ,
.

‘
I can hardly forge t that with this p re tt y ring u p on my ,

ancle But af t er my ex p erience o f how he has ke p t fai t h w i t h

.

me what can I expect for W alt h e o f the W ittol save that which
, ,

I have foretold many a time

‘
As for you dear sire t h e king has been m isinformed con
, ,

cerning you I have sent messengers to reason w i t h him again

.

and again : but as l ong as T aillebois Warrenne and Robert , ,

‘
Malet had his ear o f what u se were m y poor words Z ,
‘ ’
And what said they Z ‘

T hat there would be n o peace in E ngland if you were

loose ?
‘
T hey lied I am n o boy like W alt h e o f I k now when the
.
,
.

game is played o u t And i t is played ou t now T h e Frenchman

. .

is mas t er and I kno w it well Were I loose to m orrow and as

, .
-
,

g reat a fool as W alt h e o f w hat could I do with i t may be some , , , ,

forty knigh t s and a hundred men at arms against all William s

,
- -
,
’

armies ? B ut h ow goes on this fools rebellion If I had been ’

loose I m ight have helped to crush it in the bud

,
.
’

And yo u would have d on e that again st W a lt h e o f (1

‘
Wh y not again st him ? He is bu t bringin g m ore misery o n
E n gland T ell that t o William
. T ell him that if he sets m e .

free I will be t he fi rst to attack W a lt h e o f or whom he will

, ,
.

T here are no E nglish left to fight agains t said he bitterly ’

, ,

for W a lt h e o f is none now ’

.

‘
He shall know you r words when he retu rns to E ngland .
’
xxx 1 x T ORFRIDA IN SP IRE D BY T HE DEV IL 35 1

What is he abroad and all this evil going on

, ,

In N orman d y Bu t t he E nglish have risen for t h e king in

.

Herefordshire and beaten E arl Roger and O d o of Bayeux and

,

Bisho p Mowbray are on their way to C ambridge where t hey ,

h ope to give a good account of E arl Ralph and hope too tha t , ,

t he E nglish may help them there .

’

‘
A nd t hey shall T hey hate Ralph G u ad e r as much as I d o .

’
Can you send a message for m e ?
’
Whi th er ?
T o Bourne in th e B ru n e sw o ld and say to Hereward s men
’
,

wherever they are L e t them rise and arm if t hey love Here
, ,

ward and go down t o C a m b ri d ge to be the foremost at Bisho p ,

O d o s side against Ral p h G u ad e r o r W alt h e o f himself

’
S end ! ,
.

send O h t hat I were free

‘
Would to h eaven thou wert free my gal lant sir said the ,

good m an .

From that day Hereward w ok e u p somewhat He was still .

a br oken m an querulou s peevish but the hope of freedom and

, ,

t he hope o f bat t le stirred him If h e could but get to his men .

B ut his melancholy returned His men — som e o f t hem at least .

— went d own to O d o at C ambridge and did good service , .

G u ad e r w as utterly rou t ed and escaped to N orwich an d , ,

thence to Bri t tany his home T h e bishops punished their

, .

prisoners th e rebel Fren c h with horrible mu t ila t ions

, , .

T h e wolves are begi n ning to ea t each other said Hereward

‘ ’
,

to himself But i t was a sickening th o u ght t o him that his

.
,

m en had been fighting and he not a t their head .

After a while t here cam e to Bedford C astle two witty knaves .

‘
O n e was a cook wh o cam e to buy milk says the chronicler
’
, ,

t h e other s eemingly a gleeman T hey told s t ories j este d .

, ,

harped sang drank and pleased mu c h the garrison and S ir

, , ,

Robert who let them hang about the place

, .

T hey asked nex t whether it were true that the fam ous Wak e
,

was there ? If so might a man ha ve a look a t him ?

,

T h e gaoler said t hat m any men might have g one to see him ,

so easy was S ir Robert t o him Bu t he wo u ld have n o man ; .

and none dare en t er save S ir Robert and he for fear of their ,

lives B u t he would ask him o f He re p o l

. .

T h e good knight o f He re p o l said L e t the rogues go in they

‘
, ,
’
ma amuse the poor soul .

0 t hey wen t in and as soon as th ey went he knew them , .

O n e was Martin L igh t foo t t he o t her L eofri c his m ass p ries t , ,

-
.

Who sent you a s ked he surlily turning his face ,

away .

She
’
.

Who
’
We know but one she and sh e is at C rowland , .

’
S h e sen t you ? and wherefore ?
T hat we m ight sing t o you and mak e yo u m erry ’
, .
35 2 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

Hereward an s wered them with a terrible word and turned ,

his face to the wall groaning and then bade them sternly to go
, , .

S o they went f o r the time ,

.

T h e gaoler told t his to S ir Robert wh o understood all being , ,

a kind —hearted man .

‘
From hi s p oor first wife eh ? Well there can be no harm , ,

i n that N o r if t hey came from thi s L ady Alf t ru d a either for

.
,
that matter let them go in and o u t w hen t hey will .
’

’
B u t they may be spies and traitors .

’
T hen we can but hang them .

Robert o f He re p o l it would appear from the chronicle did

, ,

n ot m uch care whether they were s p ie s or n o t .

S o the men w ent to and f ro and often sat with Hereward .

B ut he forbad e the m sternly to m ention T o rf rid a s name ’

.

Alf t ru d a m eanwhile returned to Bourne and took possession

, , ,
’
o f her n e w h usband s h ouse and land s S h e sent him again and .

again m essages o f passionate love and sorrow but he listened

to them a s s ullenly as he did to his tw o servants and sent n o ,

an swer back And so h e sat m ore weary month s in the very

.
,

prison it m ay be in the very room in which John Bunyan sat

'

, ,

six h undred year s after but in a very di fferent frame of

h
ni
g
mm i
On e day S ir Robert was going up the stair s wi t h another
knight and met the two coming down He wa s talking to that
, .

knight earnestl y indignantly and someh o w as he passed

, ,

L eofric and Martin h e thought fit to raise his voice as if in a ,

great wrath .

S hame to al l honour and chivalry Good saint s in heaven ,

what a thing i s h uma n fortune T hat this man w h o had once ,

a gallant army at his back sh ould be at this moment going like ,

a sheep to the s laughter to Buckingham C astle at the mercy , ,

o f his worst enemy c f Ivo T aillebois o f all m en in the world

m

If there were a dozen knights left o f all tho s e w hom he used to ,

h eap with wealth and honour worthy the nam e o f k n ights , ,

they would catch u s between here and S tratford and make a ,

’
free man o f their lord .

S o spake — o r w ord s to that e ffect according to the L atin ,

ch ronicler wh o must have go t them from L eofric himself— the

,

good knight o f He re p o l
‘

Hillo knaves said he seeing the tw o are you here eaves

, , ,
’
dropping ? O u t o f the castle this instant o n you r lives ,
.

W hich hint those two witty knaves took o n the spot .

A fe w days af t er Hereward was travelling toward Bucking

,

ham chained upon a horse with S ir Robert and his men and a
, , ,

goodly company o f knights belonging t o Ivo I v o as the story .

,

runs seems to have arranged with Ralph Pagn e l at Bucking

,

ham to put him into the k eeping o f a creature o f his o w n And

, .

’
h o w easy it was to put out a m an s eyes o r starve him t o death , ,

in a French keep none knew better t han Hereward

, .
35 4 HEREWARD T HE WA K E C HA P
.

you lord abbot if Job would not have cur s ed if he had been
, ,

l ord o f S palding Yo u k now t hat the king let the s e C rowland

.

m onk s have W alt h e o f s body ? ’

‘
Yes I thou ght it an unwise act o f g race It would have
, .

been wi s er t o leave him a s he intended o u t o n the bare do w n , , ,

’
in ground unconsecrate but wha t ha s happened ?
T hat o ld traito r U lfk e t yl and his m onk s bring th e body t o
, , ,
’
C rowland and b ury it as if it had been the p o p e s
,
In a week .

t hey begin to spread their lies — that W alt h e o f was innocent ;

that Archbishop L anfranc h imself said so .
’

T hat was the only act o f human weakness which I have ever
’
know n the venerable prelate commit s aid T horold , .

T hat the burghers at Win chester were so deep in the traitor s ’

favou r that the king had to have him o u t and cut o ff his head
,

in the gray of the morning ere folk s were u p and about that ,

t he fellow was so holy that he passed all his time in prison in

weeping and praying and said over the wh ole psalter every d ay, ,

because his mother had taught it him — I wish she had tau gh t him
t o be an honest man — and that when his head wa s o n the block
h e said all the paternoster a s far a s L ead us not into t e m p t a ,
’
”
tion and t h en o ff went his head whereon hi s head being o fl
, , ,

h fi n ish e d the prayer with — you know best what comes next
ag
,

b ot q
D eli v er u s from evil Amen What a manifest lie T he ,

traitor wa s not permitted it i s plain t o ask for that which could , ,

n ever be granted to him but his soul u nwor t hy t o be d elivered ,

f o m e v il entered ins t ead into evil and howl s for ever in

the p it
, ,
’
.

’ ‘
B ut all the rest may be true s aid one and yet that be n o ,
’
reason why these monk s sho u ld say it .

’
S o I told them quoth T aillebois and threatened them t o o
, ,

for no t content with making him a martyr they are making

, ,
’
him a saint .

‘
Im p ious ! Who can do that save the Holy Father ? said ’
,

T horold .

‘
You had best get your bishop to look to t hem then f o r ,

t hey are carrying blind beggars and m ad girl s by the dozen to

be cured at the man s tomb t hat i s all T heir fellows in the cell
’
, .

a t S p alding went about to take a girl that had fits o ff o n e o f my

m an o rs t o cure her ; but that I s topped with a good horse
w il 1 p
,
’
.

‘
An d rightly .
’

‘
An d gave th e monk s a piece o f m y mind and drove them
c lean o u t o f thei r cell hom e t o C rowland .
’

What a piece o f Ivo s mind o n t his occa s ion might be let ’

,

Ingulf descri b e
‘
Against o u r m onastery and all the people o f C rowland he
was by the instigation o f the devil raised t o such an ex t rem e
, ,

pi t ch o f fu ry tha t he would follo w their animals in t he marshes

,
XL HOW E ARL W AL T HE O F W AS MADE A S AI N T 35 5

with hi s dogs drive t hem to a great distance down in t h e lakes

, ,

mu t ila t e som e in t he tails o t hers in the ears while often by , , ,

breaking the back s and legs of the beas t s o f burden he rendered ,

t hem ut t erly u seless Against o u r cell al so (at S palding ) and.

o u r bre t h ren hi s neighbours the p rior and m onks who dwelt

, , ,

all day within his presence he raged wi t h tyrannical and franti c ,

fury lamed t heir oxen an d horses daily impounded their shee p

, ,

and poultry ; strikin g down killing and slaying their swine , ,

and pigs while at the sam e tim e t he servants o f th e p rior were

oppressed in the earl s cou rt with insupportable exactions were ’
,

of t en assau lted in the highway s with swords and staves and ,

’
sometime s killed .

At this m oment there was a bustle outside T h e door which .

led from the hall was t h rown open and then rushed in muddy , ,

and g ory O ger the Breton

, .

Have a care for yourselves lordlings T h e Wak e i s ,

l oose
If the earth had o p ened between them t h e party could n o t ,

have started more sudden ly on their feet .

When their c u rses had lulled somewhat O ger told his story ,

b gt w e e n great gulp s o f wine f o r he was nigh dead with hard

rI a
‘

mg .

We were in a forest midway between Bedford an d Bucking ,

ham when t he rascals dashed out o n u s— G w e n o c h and Win t er

, ,

and the res t wi t h that Ram sey m onk and the Wake banner— I
,

know not how many there were We had n o time t o form or .

,

even arm O u r helmets were hangin g at our saddle —bow s— it

.

’
was all o v er in a minute .

Cleverly d one 1 shouted Iv o in s p ite o f his cu rses ; for h e

‘
,

honestly loved deeds of arm s f o r h im or against him On e , .

‘

W ak e makes many .
’

And that old traitor o f He re p o l refused to fight We were

‘
.

st his j urisdiction he said Your men L ord Ivo and S ir

pa
, .
, ,
’
alp h s mu st g u ard t he prisoner if t hey would
’
, .

He has been in leagu e wi t h T h e Wake all through ’

.

T hat has he For when T h e Wak e was freed and armed and
.
,

h ewing away like a devilish dwarf as he i s he always bade spare ,

S ir Robert crying t hat h e was his friend and hi s saviou r and

,

ere t hey p ar t ed th e two villains shook hands lovingly saying ,

aloud h o w S ir Robert should ride post to th e king and giv e

, ,

him a good report o f Hereward .

’

T h e commen t s which followed this statement had best be

omi tted as they consisted wholly o f French oaths
, .

‘ ’
And how camest thou alive hither o f all men ? asked the ,
abbot at last .

Ho w ? I was smitten d o w n at once having n o sword arm

‘
,

as you kno w But T h e Wak e when he saw me down bade

.
, ,

s p are m e He would not slay me l est t h e king shou ld say h e

.
,

did it for the sake of m y lands I should ride to you here a t .

35 6 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

P eterborough , and carry this m essage to you all ; that whoso

’
wanted his head c u t o ff should come t o him a t B ourne ,
.

He has p romised t o cut my head o ff long ago said Ascelin

’
,
.

E arl knights and gen t lemen do yo u n o t think it wiser tha t

‘
, , ,

we should lay o u r w its together once and for all and cut o ff ,

his
But who will catch T h e Wak e sleeping ? said Ivo lau ghing
‘ ’
,
.

’
T hat will I I have m y plans and m y intelligencers
.
,
.

You you r intelligencers

N obles there is n ought suits s o much m y chivalrou s hum our
, ,
‘

a s the consoling of d ist re sse d lad ie s I may h ave visited the .

fair A lf t ru d a a t Bou rne I may have reminded her o f certain

o ld pleasant passages between her and m e
’
.

’
Which may end in t hy going over thy horse s crou p nephew ,

a s th ou didst about another dame o f Hereward s ’ ’

.

Uncle ? Wha t wo u ld a singer o f doughty d eeds and a doer ,

thereof beside like you have m e do — especially when we both

, ,

have thir t y thousand m arks to avenge— save dare again — per

haps to w in ? N o n o I lost that T o rf rid a : but I am grown
, .

cunninger n o w ; and Alf t ru d a is an easier game to fly at I .

m ay have s aid to her for instance that s he had better have , ,

c hosen m e ; and been answered by gen t le wailings about wh o

should p rotect her in her loneliness : I m ay have o ff ered to d o
”
so myself and been shrieked at with O u t traitor ! wre t ch !
,

and yet have visited Bou rne again — In all honesty mind you , ,

my lord s And I may have t alked with a pretty bower —maiden

.
,

and have said that though Abbot T horold be poor yet he has a ,

ring o r two left or an owch or suchlike which might be earned

, , ,

by service due And so forth Wait f o r me m y good lords all

. .
,

and I w ill n o t keep you waiting long .

’

And so those wicked m en took coun s el together to slay

Hereward .

C HA P T E R XLI

HO W HE RE W A RD BE G A N T O G E T HI S S O U L S
’
P R CE I
AN D now behold Hereward at home again fat with the wages ,

of sin and not k nowing tha t they are death

, .

He is once m ore D ominus de Brunne cum Marisco lord o f

‘ ’
,

Bourne wi t h the fen with all re t urns and liberties and all
,

other t hin gs adj acen t to t he same vill which are n o w held as

a barony from the lord king o f E ngland ’
He has a fair young .

wife and wi t h her farms and m anors even richer than his o w n
, .

He is s till young hear t y wise by experience high in the king s

, , ,
’

favou r and d eservedly so

, .

Why should he n o t begin life again

Why n ot ? Unless i t be true t h at the wages o f s in are not a ,

n e w lI f e bu t death
, .
35 8 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

general h ad the same ch oice as far as human case s o f con s cience -

c n be alike — p ut before him And h e ch ose as Hereward

c fiose
.

But as with N ap oleon and Josephine s o it wa s with Here ,

ward and T o rf rid a N either th rove after . .

It was n o t punished by m iracle What sin is ? It work ed .

o u t it s o w n punishm ent ; that which it merited deserved o r , ,

earned by its o w n labou r N o man could commit such a sin

,
.

without shaking hi s wh ole character to the root Hereward .

tried to persuade him self t hat hi s was n ot shaken that he wa s

the same Hereward a s ever But he could n o t deceive himself .

long His conscience was evil He was discontented with all

. .

m ankind and with himself m ost o f all He tried t o be good — a s

, .

good a s he chose to be If he had d one wrong in o n e thin g h e .

,

might make up for it in other s : but he could n o t All his .

higher instincts fell from him o n e by o n e He did n o t like to .

think of good and n oble things ; h e dared n o t think o f them .

He felt n ot at first but a s t he month s rolled o n that he wa s a

, , ,

changed man that God had left him His o ld bad habits began .

to re t urn to him Gradually he s ank back more and m ore into

.

the very vice s from which T o rf rid a had raised him sixteen years
before He took to drinki n g again to dull the malady o f
.
,

thought ; he excu s ed himself to himself ; he w ished to forget

his defeat s his disappointment the ruin o f his country the
, , ,

splendid past which lay behind him like a dream T rue : but .

h e wished to forget likewise T o rf rid a fa st ing and weeping in

C rowland He could n o t bear the sight o f C rowland tower o n
.

the far green horizon the sound o f C rowland bells boomi n g over
,

the flat o n the south wind He never rode d own into the fen s .

he never went to see his daughter at D eeping because C row ,

land lay that way He went u p into t he o ld Bru n e sw o ld

.

h unted all day long through the glades where he and hi s merry
men had done their doughty deeds and cam e home in th e
evening to get d runk .

T hen he lost his sleep He sent down to C rowland to L eofric .

t he priest that h e might come t o him and sing h im sagas o f the

, ,

o ld heroes that he migh t get rest

,
B u t L eofric sent back for .

answer that h e would n ot come

,
.

T hat n ight A lft ru d a heard him by her side in the still h ours ,

wee p ing silently to himself S h e caressed him but he gave n o .

h eed to her .

‘ ’ ‘
I believe said she bitterly at last that you love T o rf rid a
, ,
’
still be tt er than you d o me .

And Hereward answered like Mah omet in like case T hat , ,

‘

d o I by heaven
,
S h e believed in m e when no o n e else in t he
.

w o rld d id
’
.

And t he vain hard Alf t ru d a answered angrily ; and there

was many a fier c e quarrel between them af t er t hat .

Wi t h his love o f drinking his lo ve o f boasting came back , .

 ’
X LI HOW HE BE GAN T O GE T HIS S OU L S P RI CE 35 9

Because h e could do n o more great deeds — o r rather had not t he

s p irit left in him to do m ore — h e mu st needs like a worn o u t ,
-

o ld man babble o f the great deeds which he had done insult

, ;
and defy hi s N orman neighb ours often talk what m I gh t be
easily caricatured into t reason against K ing William him self .

T here were great excuses for his follies as there are f o r those ,

o f every beaten man : but Hereward was spent He had lived .

his life ; and had n o more life which he could live ; fo r every
man it wou ld seem brings in t o th e world w ith him a certain
, ,

capacity a certain amount of vital force in body and in soul

, ,

an d when that is used u p t he man mu st sink down into som e ,

sor t of second childhood : and end like Hereward very m u c h , ,

where he began unless the grace o f God shall lif t him u p above
the capacity o f the m ere flesh into a life literally new ever , ,

renewing ever expanding and eternal

,
-
,
.

But the grace o f God had gone away from Hereward as it ,

goes a w ay from all m e n who are u nfaithful to t heir wive s .

It was very pitiable L e t n o man j udge him L ife to m o s t . .

, ,

i s very hard work T here are those w h o endure t o the end and
.
,

are saved there are those again w h o d o n o t endure upon , ,

whose souls may God have mercy .

S o Hereward soon becam e as intolerable to hi s N orman

neighbo u rs as they wer e intolerable t o him ; and he had for
“

, ,

his o w n safe t y to keep up at Bou rn e the same watch and ward

, ,

by day and night as he had k ept up in th e forest , .

In those days a messenger cam e riding p ost t o Bourne T h e .

C ountess Judith wished to visit the to m b o f her late hu sban d ,

E arl W alt h e o f and asked hospitality o n her road o f Hereward

and Alft ru d a .

O f course she would com e with a great train and the trouble ,

and expense would be great But t he hospitality o f those days .

,

when m on ey was scarce and wine scarcer still was unbounded , , ,

and a ma tt er o f course and Alft ru d a was overj oyed No .

d oubt J udi t h was the m ost u n p o p ular person in E ngland at

,

t hat m ome n t called by all a t rai t ress and a fiend Bu t she was .

an o ld acquaintance o f Alf t ru d a s ; she was t he king s niece ; ’ ’

she was imm ensely rich n ot only in m anors o f her own but in , ,

manors as D omesday book testifies about L in colnshire and the

,
-
,

coun t ies rou nd which had belo n ged to her m u rdered h usband
,

which she had too pro b a bly received as the price o f her trea s on .

S o Alft ru d a looked to h er visit as to an h on ou r which would

enable her to hold her head high am on g the proud Fre nch
dames who despised her as the wife o f an E nglishman
, .

Hereward looked o n the visit in a di fferent light He called .

Ju d i t h ugly nam es n ot undeserved and vowed tha t if sh e

,

entered his h o u se by the front door he would go o u t at the back .

’
T o rf rid a p ro p hesied he said t hat she would betray her hu s
, ,

band and she has done it

,
.
’

T o rf rid a p rophesied ? Did s he prophesy that I should

3 60 HE RE W ARD T HE WA K E
betray you lik ewise ask ed Alf t ru da in a tone , of bi t ter
s corn .

’
N 0 , yo u h andsom e fiend will yo u d o it ?
’
‘
Yes I am a han dsome fiend am I not ? and sh e bridled u p ,

her magnificent beauty and stood over him as a snake stan d s

,

over a m ouse .

—
Ye s you are handsom e beautiful I adore yo u ’
.

’
‘
An d yet you will not do what I wish ?
‘
What yo u wish ? What would I n o t do f o r yo u ? what have
’
I not done for you ?
‘
T hen receive Ju d ith An d n o w go hunting and bring m e
.
, ,

in game I want deer ro e fowls any t hing and everything

.
, , ,
’
from the greatest to the smallest Go and hunt . .

And Hereward trembled and went .

T here are flower s whose scent is so lu s ciou s that silly children

will plunge their heads am ong t hem drinking in their odour , ,

to the exclusion o f all fresh air O n a sudden sometimes comes .

, ,

a revulsion o f the nerves T h e delicious odou r change s in a

.

moment to a disgusting one and the child cannot bear for year s
after the scen t which has on ce becom e intolerable by o ver
sweetnes s And so h ad it ha pp en ed t o Hereward He did n o t
. .

lo v e Alf t ru d a n ow he loa t hed ha t ed ,dreaded her And yet ,

.

he could not t ake h is eyes for a m oment o ff her beauty He .

watched every m ovement o f her hand to pre ss it obey it He , ,

.

would h ave preferred instead o f h unting simply to sit and watch

her go about the house at her work He was s pellbound to a .

thing which he regarded wi t h horror .

B ut he was told t o go and hunt and he went with all hi s m en , ,

and sent hom e large sup p les f o r the larder An d as h e hunted .

,

the free fresh air o f the forest com forted him th e free forest ,

life came back to him and he longed to be an outlaw once m ore

, ,

and hunt on f o r ever He would not go ba c k ye t at least to

.
,

face that J udith S o he sent b a ck th e greater part o f his men

.

with a s tory He wa s ill : h e was laid up at a farmhouse far

.

away in t h e forest and begged the countess to excuse his

,

absence He had sent fresh su p plies o f game and a goodly c o m

.
,

pany o f his m en knight s and h o u se c arle s w h o w o u ld escort her

, ,

royally to C ro w land .

Judith cared little f o r hi s absence ; he was but an E nglish

barbarian Alft ru d a was half glad t o have him o u t o f the way
.
,

lest his n ow sullen and u ncertain tem p er sh ould break o u t and

bowed herself to the earth before Judith wh o patronised her to ,

her hear t s conten t and o ffered her slily insolent condolen c es o n

’
,

being married to a barbarian S h e herself could sympathise .

who more ?
Alft ru d a might have answered wi t h scorn that she was a
’
p rin c ess and o f be t ter E nglish blood than J u d it h s French
,

blood bu t she had her ends to gain and gained them , .

For J udith was plea s ed to be so delighted wi t h her that she

3 62 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

But tho s e knight s never came back S o th e whole body .

m oved o n Bourne and there they found o u t the news f o r ,

themselve s .

Hereward had gone home as soon as they had departed and ,

sat down to eat and d rink His manner was sad and strange . .

He drank much at the mid -day meal and then lay down t o s leep , ,

setting guards as usu al .

Af t er a while he leapt up with a sh riek an d sh udder .

T hey ran to him asking whether he was ill , .

‘
Ill ? N o Yes Ill at heart I have had a dream — an ugly
. . .

d ream I thought that all the men I ever sle w on ear t h came
.

to m e with t heir wounds all gaping and cried at m e O u r luck , ,

”
then thy luck n o w
, Cha p lain ! Is there not a verse some .

—
where uncle B rand said it to me on his deathbed — “
Whoso
sheddeth man s blood by man shall his blood be shed’

,
”

S urely the master is fey whis p ered G w e n o c h in fear to the ,

’

chaplain Answer him o u t o f S criptu re

. .
’

T ext ? N one such t hat I know o f quoth priest Ailw ard a

‘ ’
, ,
’
gracele ss fello w who had taken L eofric s place , If that were .
‘

t he law it would be but few honest men that would die in their
,
’
’
beds L e t us d rink and drive girls fancies o u t o f o u r head s
.
,
.

S o th ey drank again and Here w ard fell asleep once more .

‘
It i s thy turn to watch priest s aid Winter to Ailw ard , ,
’
.

‘
S o keep the door well f o r I am worn o u t with hunting and
’
, ,

so fell asleep .

Ailw a rd sh u fli e d into hi s harnes s and went t o th e d oor ,

.

T h e wine w as head y ; the s un was h o t In a few minutes he .

was asleep lik ewise .

Hereward s lept w h o can tell h ow lon g ? But at last there

,

wa s a bustle a heavy fall and waking with a start he sprang

, ,

up He s aw Ailw ard lying dead across the door and above

.
,

him a crowd o f fierce faces some of which he kne w too well ,

.

He sa w Ivo T ai llebois he saw O ger he saw his fellow Breton -

,

S ir Raoul de D o l ; he saw S ir Ascelin ; he saw S ir Asw a rt ,

T h o ro ld s man he saw S ir Hugh o f E v e rm u e his o w n son in

’
-
,

la w and with them he saw o r seemed to see the ogre o f , ,

C ornwall and Fe argu s o f I v ark and D irk Ham m e rh an d o f

, ,

Wal cheren and many another o ld foe lon g un d erground ; and

,
’
in his ear rang the text Whoso sheddeth man s blood by man ,

shall his blood be shed And Hereward knew that his end was .
’

come .

T here was n o tim e t o put o n m ail o r helmet He saw sword .

and shield han g o n a perch and tore them down As he girded ,

.

the sword o n Winter sprang t o his side ,

.

I have th ree lan c e s— two f o r me and o n e f o r you and we

‘
,

can hold the door against twenty .

’

T ill th ey fire the hou se over o u r heads S hall Hereward d ie .

“k a vo lf in a cave ? Forward all T h e Wake men A Wake

W
A a1ze
,
 ’
X LI HOW HE BE G AN T O G ET HIS S OU L S P RI CE 3 63

An d h e rushed o u t upon his fate N o m an foll owed him .

,

save Winter T h e rest dispersed u narmed were running

.
, , ,

hither and thith er helplessly .

’
‘
Brothers in arms and brothers in Valhalla ! s houted ,

Win t er as b e rushed af ter him .

A k night was run n ing to and fro in th e cou rt shouting ,

Hereward s name ’
Where is the villain ? Wake ! We have
.
‘

’
caught t hee asleep at last .

‘
I am o u t quoth Hereward a s the man almost s t umbled
,
’
,
’
against him and this is in ‘
.

And through shield and hauberk and body as says G aim ar , , , ,

went Hereward s j avelin while all drew back confounded for

’
, ,

t he m oment’ at t ha t mighty s t roke .

Felons ! shouted Hereward your k ing has given m e his

‘
,
‘

truce ; and d o you dare break my house and kill my folk ? Is ,

t hat your French law ? And is this you r French hon our — ~T o

take a man unawares over his meat ? C om e o n traitors all , ,

and get what you can o f a naked man ; you will buy it dear
1

Guard my back Winter ,

And h e ran right at the press o f knights ; and the figh t

b egan .

He g o re d th e m lik e a wo o d wil d b o ar ,

A s l o n g as th at l an ce m ight e n du re ,

says G aim ar .

An d wh e n th at l an c e d i d b re ak in h an d ,

Fu ll fe l l e n o ug h h e sm o te with b ran d .

And a s h e hewed o n silently with grin d ing teeth and h ard , , ,

glittering eyes o f whom did h e think ? O f Alf t ru d a ?

,

N o t so But of that pale ghost with great black h ollow eyes

.
, ,

w h o sat in C rowland w i t h thin bare fee t and sack cloth o n her , ,

t ender limbs wa t ching pra ing longing loving uncomplain

, , , , ,

ing T hat ghos t had been or many a m onth the background

.

o f all his t ho u ghts and dreams It w as so clear before his .

mind s eye now that unaware s to himself he shou t ed

’

, ,
’
T o rf rid a ! as he struck and struck the harder at the sound
‘

of his o ld ba tt le c ry -
.

And n ow he is all wounded and b e bled ; and Winter who -

,

has fought back t o ba c k wi t h him has fallen o n his face and ,

Hereward stands alone tu rning from side to side as he sweeps , ,

his sword right and lef t till t he fores t rings with the blows but ,

s t aggerin g as h e turns Within a ring o f eleven corpses he .

stands Who will go in and make the twelfth ?

.

A knigh t rushes in to fal l h eadlong d own cl oven through , ,

the helm : but Hereward s blade s n a p s shor t and he hurls it ’

,

away as his foes rush in with a shout o f j oy He tears his .

shield from his left arm and with i t says G aim a r brain s two , , ,
more .

1
L e w ith o ut arm o u r . .
3 64 HE RE W ARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

But the end is come T aillebois and E v e rm u e are behind .

h im n ow fou r lances are t h rough his back and h e ar him down ,

u p on his knees .

Raoul de D o l
‘
C u t o ff his hea d B reton ! shouted I vo
’
, .

rushed forward sw ord in h and At that c ry Hereward lif t ed

,
.

up his dyi n g head O n e stroke m ore ere it was all done for
.

ever .

And with a shout o f T o rf rid a which m ade th e B ru n e sw o ld

’
ring h e hurled the shield full in the Breton s face and fell
, ,

forward dead .

T h e k n ights drew th eir lances from that terrible corpse

slowly and with cau t ion as men who have felled a bear and , ,

yet dare n ot step w i t hin reach of the seemingly lifeless

paw .

’
T h e d o g died hard said Ivo
‘
L uck y for u s that S ir Ascelin
,
.

h ad news of his knights being gone to C rowland If h e had .

’
had them to back him we had not done this d eed t o day ,
-
.

I must k eep m y word with him said Ascelin a s he struck ,

’
,

o ff the once fair and golden head .

‘
Ho Breton cried I vo the villain is dead Get up man
, ,
’
,
‘
.
, ,
’
and see for you rself What ails him ? .

But when they lifted u p Raoul de D o l hi s brain s were

running down his face ; and all men stood astonished at that
last migh t y stroke .

T hat blow said Ascelin will be sung hereafter by mi nstrel

‘ ’
, ,

and maiden as the last blo w of the las t E nglishman K nights .

,

we have slain a better knight than ourselves If there had .

been th ree more such m en in this realm they would have ,

’
driven u s and K ing Wil liam back again int-o the sea .

S o said As c elin those words of his t o o were sung by many , ,

a j ongleur N orman as well as E nglish in the times that were

, ,

to come .

’
‘
L ik ely enough said I vo ; but that is the m ore reason
,
‘

why we should set that head of his up over th e hall d oor as a -

,

warning t o these E nglish churls that their last man is dead ,

’
and their last s t ake t hrown and lost .

’
S o p erished T h e last of the E nglish .

It was the third day T h e French were dri n king in the hall .

o f B ourn e advising Ascelin with coarse j es t s to lose no time

, , ,

in es p ousing the fair Alft ru d a wh o sa t weeping wi t hin over ,

t he headless corpse wh en in the afternoon a servant came in ,

a n d told them h o w a barge full of monk s had come t o t he shore ,

and that they seemed t o be m onk s from C rowland Ivo .

T aillebois bade drive them back again in t o t he barge W I t h

w h i p s B ut Hugh of E v e rm u e s p oke u p
. .

I am lord and master in Bourne t his day and if Ivo have a

‘

q uarrel against S t G u t h lac I have n one T his Ing u lf o f

.
,
.

Fon t enelle t he new abbo t wh o has c om e thither sin ce o ld

,

U lfk e t yl was sent to p rison is a loyal man and a friend o f , ,

366 HE RE W ARD T HE WA K E C HA P .

cleanly swept again Give m e hi s b ody o r bear fo r ever the -

’ ’
nam e o f cowards and T o rf rid a s curse , .

S h e fixed her terrible eye s first o n one and then o n another , ,

c alling them by nam e .

I vo T aillebois — basest o f all

’
'

T ak e t h e w it c h s accursed eyes o ff m e and he covered his

face with his hand s I shall be overlooked — plane t struck
.
‘
-
.

He w the witch down T ake her away

‘
Hugh o f E v e rm u e — T h e dead man s da u ghter i s your s and ’

,
’
the dead man s lands Are not these remembrances enough .

o f h im ? Are yo u so fond o f his memory that yo u need hi s

’
c orp se likewise ?
Gi v e it her Give it her said h e hanging down his head ,

like a rated cu r
‘
Ascelin of L incoln once Ascelin of Ghent— T here wa s a , .

tim e when you would have done — what would yo u not fo r -

’
o n e glance o f T o rf rid a s eyes S tay D o not deceive yourself . .
,

fair sir T o rf rid a mean s to ask n o favour o f you o r o f living

.
,

man B ut she commands you

. D o the thin g sh e bids o r .
,

with o n e glance o f her eye she send s yo u childless to your

’
grave .

‘
Madam ! L ady T o rf rid a ! What is there I would n o t d o
for you What have I done n ow sav e avenge you r great ,

wrong
T o rf rid a made n o answer : but fixed s teadily o n h im eye s
which widen ed every m oment .

‘
B u t madam , and he turned s h rinkin g from th e fancied
spell what would yo u have ? T h e — the corpse ? It is in the
kee ing o f— o f another lady .
’

‘
o ? said T o rf rid a quietly
’
L eave her to m e and she .

swe p t past them all and flung open the bower door at their ,

backs dis c overing Alft ru d a sit t ing by the dead

, .

T h e ru ffian s were s o ut t erly a p palled not only by the false ,

p ower s o f magic but by t he veritable powers o f maj esty and

,

eloquence that they let h e r do what she would

,
.

’
O u t ! cried she u sing a short and terrible e p ithet Ou t
‘
, .
,

siren w ith fairy s face and tail o f fiend and leave the husband
,
’
,

with his wife

Alft ru d a l ook ed up shrieked and then with th e sudden , ,

passio n o f a weak nature d rew a li t tle knife and s p rang up , ,

.

Ivo made a coarse j est T h e abbot sprang in For t he sake .

of all holy things let t here be n o m ore m u rder here

,
’
T rf rid a smiled and fixed her snake s eye upon her w retched
p
,

rI v a
Ou t d
c h oose thee a new h u sband am ong these
w oman , an
Fre n ch gallan ts ere I blast thee from head to foot with the
,
’
le p rosy of N aaman the S yrian .

Alf t ru d a shuddered and fled shrieking into an inner room ,

.

‘
,
—
N o w knights give me that which hangs outside,
’
.
 ’
X LI HOW HE G
BE AN T O GET HIS S OU L S P RI CE 367

A s celin hurried o u t glad to e s cape In a minute he re ,

.

turned .

T h e head was al ready taken down A tall lay brother th e .

,

m oment he had seen it had climbed the gable snatched it away , , ,

and n o w sat in a corner o f the yard holding it o n his knees , ,

t alking to it c hiding it as if it had been alive When men had

, ,
.

o ff ered to take it he had drawn a battle axe from under his

,
-

frock and t hreatened to brain all comers And the m onks had
,
.

warned o ff Ascelin saying that the man was mad and had , ,

Berserk fi t s o f s u perhuman s t ren gth and rage .

He will give i t m e said T o rf rid a and went o u t ,

’
.

L ook at that gable foolish head said the madman T en

‘ ‘
, , .

years agone yo u and I took down from thence ano t her head
, .

O foolish head t o get you rself at las t into that sam e

,

p la e ! Why w ould yo u n o t be ruled by her you foolish golden

heac
,

i?
Martin said T o rf rid a .

‘
T ake it an d comb i t mistres s as yo u used to d o C omb , , .

out t he golden lo c k s again fit t o shine a c ross the battlefield ,

.

S h e h as let them all get ta n gled into elf kno t s that lazy slut -
,
’
wi t h in .

T o rfrid a took it from his hands dry eyed and went in ,

-
, .

T hen the monks silently took up the bier and all wen t forth , ,

and down the Roman road to w ard t he fen T hey laid the corpse .

within the barge and slowly rowed away ,

.

A n d pas t h e De e pi n , own t h e Well an st re am ,

t g d d
By wi n i n re a e s o n , an d s in i n m e res
d g ch h g
B e we e n ray re e -ro n s an d re e n al e r-b e s,
t g d d g d d
An d t h e b ro wn o rro r o f t h e o m e l e ss fe n ,
h h
A ir e o f m o n s an d wail o f wo m e n ro se
d g k
I n v ai n t o e ave n f o r t h e l as E n lis m an
h t g h
T e n i e far o ff wi i n t h e b o n l e ss m i s ,
h d d th u d t
An d l e ft
t h e Fre n m an m as e r o f t h e l an ch t d ’
.

So T o rf rid a
took the cor p se hom e to C rowland and buried ,

it in the choi r near the blessed martyr S t W alt h e o f af t er

,
.

which she did no t d ie but lived o n many years s pending all

1
, ,

day in nursing and feeding the C ountess Godiva and lying all ,

night on Hereward s t omb and praying t ha t h e might find ’

,

grace and mer c y in that d a y .

And at last Godiva died and t hey took her away and buried ,

her with great pom p in her o w n mins t er ch urch o f C oventry -

.

And af t er tha t T o rf rid a d ied likewise be c ause she had n o

thing else for which to live And they laid her in Hereward s .
’

grave and their d ust is mi n gled t o this d ay

, .

And O ger t he Bre t on go t back Mo rc a r s lands an d held them ’

,

at least t ill the time o f D omesday book But Man t horpe T of t -

.
, ,
’
and Witham A sw art T h o ro ld s man got back and they were
, , ,

1
I f In gu lf c an be tru sted ,
T o rfrid a d ie d ab o u t A . D . 1 08 5 .
3 68 HE REWARD T HE IVA KE C HA P .

held for se v eral cen t uries by t he abbey o f Pe t e o ro u gh ,

’
se e n I in gly as some se t o ff for Abbot T horo ld s thirty thousand

marl{ s
And Ivo T aillebois did evil mi gh t I ly all his days ; and h o w
he died and what befell him afte r death let P eter o f Blois
, ,

declare .

And L eofric the priest lived o n to a good o ld a ge and above ,

all things he re m e m b e I ed the deeds andg the sin s o f hi s m as t er ;

and wrote them I n a book and this I s what remain s thereof , .

But whe n Martin L ightfoot died n o man has said ; f o r n o

man i n th ose d ay s took a c count o f s uch poor churl s and run
nin g serving men .

And Herewa rd s com rades were all scattered abroad some

’

maim ed som e blinded some wi t h tongues cut out to beg by the

, , ,

wayside o r crawl into con vents and then die ; w hile their sis t ers
, ,

and dau g hter s ladies born and bred were the slave s o f grooms
, ,

and scullions from beyond the sea .

And so as s ang T h o rk e l S k allaso n

,
m

Co l d h e art an d b l o o d y h an d l
ru l e E n gli sh l a d
’
N ow n .

And after that things waxed even worse and wor s e for s ixty ,
years and m ore ; all through the reign s o f t he t w o William s ,

and of Henry Beau c lerc and o f S te p hen ; till men sa w visions

,

and p or t ents and thought that the f o u l fiend was brok en loose
,

O n earth And they w hispered oftener and oftener that the

.

soul of Hereward haunted the B ru n e sw o ld where he l oved to ,

hunt t h e dun deer and the roe And in the B ru n e sw o ld when .

,

Henry o f P oitou was made abbot men saw 2

let n o man think ,

ligh t ly of the marvel which we are about to rela t e as a truth ,

for it was well known all over the country— u p on the S unday ,
“ ”
when men sing E xsu rge q uare O D omine many hunters , ,

hun t i n g bla c k and tall and loa t hly and their hounds were
black and ugly with wide eyes and they rode on black horses
, , ,

and black b u c ks And they saw them I n the very deer p ark I n
.

t he town o f P eterboro u gh an d in all the woods t o S tamford , ,

and the monks h eard the blasts o f the horns which they blew
i n the night Men o f truth kep t watch upon them and said
.
,

t h at th ere might be well about t w enty o r thir t y horn blower s

T his was seeng and heard all that L ent until E as t er And th e ’
.

French m onk s o f Peterborough said how it was T h e Wake ,

doomed t o wak e for ever with Ap ollyon and all his crew because ,

h e had stolen the riches of the Golden Boro u gh : but the p oor
folk kne w be t ter and said T ha t the mighty outlaw was re j o ic
, ,

i n g in the chase blowing his horn for E nglishm en to r i se against

,

t he Fren c h ; and therefore it was that he was seen first o n A I I se

O L ord S unday .

L ai n g s Heii n skri n gla

1 ’
’
.

2
An gl o -S ax o n Ch ro n ic l e A D ,
. .
3 70 HEREWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

you might a s well have tilled th e sea ; for all the lan d was
ruined b y such deeds and it was said openly that C hris t and
,

His saints slept ’

.

And so was avenged the bl ood o f Harold an d his brothers , o f

E dwin and Morcar of W alt h e o f and Hereward ,
.

And those who had the s p iri t o f Hereward in them fled to the
merry green wood and became bold ou t laws with Robin Hood
, , ,

S carlet and J ohn Adam Bell and O lym o f the C leugh and
, , , ,

William o f C lo u d e sle e and watched with sullen j o y the Fren c h

robbers tearing in pieces each other and the C hurch wh o had ,

ble s t their crime .

And they talked and sung o f T h e Wak e and all his doughty ,
’
deeds over the hearth in lone farmhouses o r in th e ou t law s
, ,

lod ge beneath the h ollins green ; and all the burden o f their
song was Ah that T h e Wak e were alive again for they knew
,
‘

not that T h e Wake was alive for evermore that only his husk
and shell lay mouldering there in C rowland ch oir that above
t hem and around t hem and in them destined to raise them
, , ,

o u t of that bi t ter bondage and m ould t hem into a gre a t nation , ,

and the parents o f s t ill greater nation s in lands a s ye t unknown ,

brooded the immortal sp irit o f T h e Wak e n o w purged from al l

'

earthly d ro ss— even the spirit o f Freedom which can never die ,
.

C HA P T E R X L II
HOW DE EP NG I FE N W A S D RA N E D I
B U T war and disorder ruin and death cannot la s t f o r ever , ,
.

T hey are by their o w n nature excep t ional and suicidal and ,

spend themsel v es with what they feed o n And then the tru e .

laws o f God s universe peace and order usefulness an d life will

’
, , ,

reassert them selves as they have been waiting all along to do

, ,

hid in God s presence from th e strife o f men

’
.

And e v en so it wa s wi t h Bourne .

N earl y eighty years after in the year o f grace 1 1 5 5 there , ,

might have been seen sitting side by side and hand in hand , , ,

upon a sunny bench on the B ru n e sw o ld slope in the low ,

D ecember sun an o ld knight and an o ld lady the m a s ter and

, . ,

mistress o f B ou rne .

M uch had c h anged S ince Hereward s days T h e house below ’

.

had been raised a whole story T here were fresh herb s and .

flower s in the garden u nkn own at the time o f the Conquest

,
.

Bu t the great chan ge was in th e fen especially away to w ard ,

D e e ing o n the south eastern h orizon

,
-
.

here had been lonely meres foul watercou rses s tagn ant , ,

slime t here were now great dyk es rich and fair corn and grass
, ,

lands rows o f whi t e c o tt ages T h e newly d rained land swarmed

, .
-

wi t h s tocks o f n ew breeds : horses and sheep from Flanders ,

X L II HOW DE EPIN G FE N W AS DRAIN ED 3 71

cattle from N ormandy for Richard de Rulos was t h e fi rst — as

far as his t ory t ells — o f that n oble class o f a g ricul t ural squires
’ ’
wh o are E ngland s blessing and E n gla n d s p ride .

For this Richard d e Rulos says Ingulf o r w hoever w rote in ,

’
,

hi s n ame who had married t he daugh t er and heiress o f Hugh

,
‘

o f E v e rm u e L ord o f Bourn e and D eeping being a man o f

, ,

agricultural pursuits go t permission from t he monk s o f C row .

land for twen t y marks o f silver t o enclose as m uch as he would

, ,

of the common m arshes S o he shut ou t the Welland by a .

strong embankmen t and building thereon numerous tenemen t s ,

”
and co t tages till in a shor t time he formed a large vill
, ,

marked o u t gardens and cul t ivated fields while by shu t ting o u t

, ,

the river h e found in t he m eadow land w hich had been lately

, ,

d eep lakes and impassable marshes ( wherefore the place was

called D eeping t he deep meadow ) m o s t fer t ile fields and desir
, ,

able lands and o u t o f s lough s and b og s accursed m ade qui t e a

,

garden o f pleasaunce .
’

S o t here the good man the beginner o f the good work o f cen ,

t u rie s s at looking ou t o ver t he f e n and listening to th e m usic

, ,

w h ich cam e o n the southern breeze above the lo w o f the kine , ,

and t he clang o f th e wild fowl settling down to rest from the -

,

bells o f C rowland minster far away .

T hey were not the s am e bells which tolled for Hereward and
T o rf rid a T hose had run d own in m olten stream s u pon that
.

fatal night when Abbot Ingulf leap t o u t o f bed to see t he vast

wooden s anctuary wrapt in o n e s heet o f roaring flam e from the ,

carelessness o f a pl umber wh o had raked the ashe s over his

fire in the bell tower and left it to s moulder th rou gh the night
-
, .

T hen perished all the riches o f Crowland its library t o o of ,

more than seven hundred volumes wit h t hat fam ous N adir o r , ,

O rrery th e like whereof was not in all E ngland w herein th e

, ,

seven planets were represented each in their proper m etals , .

And even w o rse all the charters o f th e m onastery perished a

, ,

loss which involved the m onks t hereof in cen t uries o f law s uits ,

and compelled them to become as industrious and skilful forgers

Ifg
documents as were to be found in the minster s o f th e Middle
e .

But C rowland Minster had been rebuilt in g reater glory than

ever by t he hel p o f t he F rench gentry round Abbot Ingulf
, .

finding that S t G u t h lac s plain inabili t y to take care o f himse lf

.
’

’
h ad dis c redite d him m uch in t he fen men s eyes fell back -
, ,

Frenchma n as he was o n t h e virtues o f t he holy mar ty r S t , , .

W alt h e o f whose tomb he open e d with due reverence and found

, ,

t he body as w hole an d u n c o rru ted a s o n the day o n which it

wa s buried and t he head u n it e c to the body while a fine crim ,

son li n e around the neck w as the o nly sign remaining o f his

decolla t ion .

‘
O n seeing which Ingulf could n ot contain himself for j oy
and interrupting the res p onse which the bre t hren were s inging ,
3 72 HE REWARD T HE WAK E C HA P .

with a l oud voice b egan the hymn T e D eum L au dam u s o n , ,

which the chanter taking it up enj oined the rest o f the

, ,

brethren to sing it After which Ingulf— w h o had never s een

.
’

W alt h e o f in life — discovered that it wa s none other than he

whom he had seen in a vision at Fontenelle as an earl most ,

gorgeously arrayed with a torc o f gold about hi s neck and with

, ,

him an abbot two bishop s and t w o saints the three former

, , ,

being U sf ran Au sb e rt and W an d re sigil o f Fontenelle and the

, ,

t w o saint s o f cour s e S t G u t h lac and S t N eot

, ,
. . .

Whereon crawling on his hands and knees he ki s sed the fac e

, ,

o f the holy martyr and perceived such a sw eet odour proceed

,

ing from t he holy body a s h e never remembered to have smelt , ,

it h zr in the palace o f the king o r in S yria w ith all it s aromatic

fierg
,
’
s .

Q uid plu ra ? What m ore wa s needed for a convent o f bu rnt

o u t m onk s ? S t W alt h e o f~was translated in state to the side o f
.

S t G u t h lac
. and the news o f this translation o f the h oly
martyr being spread throughout the country multitudes o f the ,

faithful flocked daily to the tomb and o ff ering up their vow s ,

’
there tended in a great degree to resu sci t ate o u r m onastery
, .

But more T h e vir t u e s o f S t W alt h e o f were too great n o t to

. .

t u rn themselves o r be tu rned to some prac t ical u s e S o if n ot

, , .

in the days o f Ingulf at least in those o f Abbot Jo ff rid wh o

, ,

came after him S t W alt h e o f began again say s Peter o f Blois

, .
, ,

t o work wonderful deeds T h e blind received t h eir sigh t the.

‘
,

deaf their hearing the lame their power o f walking and the
, ,

dumb their power o f speech while each day troop s innumerable

o f other sick person s were arrivin g by every road a s to the very ,

fountain o f their safety and by the offerings o f the pilgrims

who came flocking in from e v ery part the revenue s o f the ,

m onastery were increased in n o small degree .

’

O nly o n e wicked N orman monk o f S t Albans Audwin by .

,

n ame dared to dispu t e the sanctity o f th e m ar t yr calli n g him

, ,

a wicked traitor wh o had met wi t h hi s deserts In vain did .

Abbot J o ffrid himself a N orman from S t E vroult expos t ula t e

,
.
,

with the inconvenient blas ph emer He launched o u t into .

invective beyond measure till o n t he spot in presence o f the s aid ,

father he was seized with such a stomach ache that he went

,
-
,

h ome to S t Albans and died in a f e w days ; after which all

.
,

went well with C rowlan d and the French m onks w h o worked , ,

t he E nglish martyr to get money o u t o f the E nglish whom they

had enslaved .

An d yet — so strangely mingled fo r good and evil are the

works o f men — that lying bro therhood o f C rowland set up in ,

those very days fo r pu re love o f learning and o f teaching learn

,

ing a li t tle school o f let t ers in a poor town hard by which b e

,

came un d er their auspices the Uni v ersity o f C ambridge

, ,
.

S o the bell s o f C rowland were restore d m ore melodiou s than ,

ever and Richard o f Rulos doubtle ss had hi s s hare in their re

MES S RS MACMILLAN
’
. 0 0 S PUBLICAT IONS
.

CHE AP E D I T I ON O F T HE WORK S OF

C H A R L IE! S KI N G S L E Y
A New an d Ch e aper
of the most popu lar o f Mr Ed ition .

’
KI N G S L E Y S Boo k s T h e N e w E dition will b e prin te d in
.

C rown 8 v o fro m e n tir e ly n e w typ e an d w ill b e issu e d in

, ,

Monthl y Volu m e s pri ce 3 s 6 d each in the following orde r

,
. .
,

W e stw ard Ho ! Read y . Po em s .

Hypati a . T he
Y e as t T h e W a e r B ab ie st Ju n e ‘
. . .

t
Al on L o ck e . Mad am Ho w an d L ad y W h y Ju ly . .

T w o Y e ars Ago . At L as t . Au g .

He rew ard t h e W ak e . P r o se Id ylls .

CHEAP E DI T ION O F T HE WORK S OF

CHA RL O T T E M . Y ON G E
CO N C U RRE N T L Y wi th th e r i
Ch eap E dition of CHA RL E S KI N G S L E S Y ’

W RI T I N G S , i t is t h e in te ntion of t h e P ub lish e rs to issue a

N e w , Ch e ap, an d U niform E di tion o f t h e P opul ar N ov e ls b y
Miss CHA RL O T T E M YO N G E In ord e r that the S e ri e s may
. .

b e c ompl e te d wi thin a r e asonab le tim e , it wil l app e ar at t h e

rate of T w o Volu m e s pe r Month in t h e ord e r indi cate d b e low .

Al l the Origin al Illustrations will b e giv e n , an d the price will

b e 3 s 6 d pe r volum e
. . .

T he following is the ord er of pub li cation

Heir o f Re d clyfl e
'

T he .

He art se ase .
T h e C aple o f P e arls
h t .

Ho pe s an d P e ars .
L ad y He s e r , an d t h e Dan
t
Dyn ev o r T e rrace .
vers P ape rs . 15 .

T h e Dai sy C ain h .
Magn m B o n u m
u Ju n e 1 . .

T h e T ri al : Mo re Li n s o f k L o ve an d Li e f . 15 .

t h e Daisy C ai n h .
Un kn o w n t o His o ry Ju ly 1 t . .

Pillars o f t h e Ho se V ol I u . . .
S ray P e arls
t . 15 .

T h e Arm o re r s Pre n i ce s A u g 1
u t
’ ’
Pillars o f t h e Hou se V ol II . . .
. . .

T h e Y o u n g S e pm o h e r t t .
T h e T w o S i d e s o f t h e S h i e ld n 1 5 .

N u t t ie s Fa e r th
’
Cle ve r W o m an o f t h e Family .
.

T h e T h re e B rid es .
S e n e s an d C arac e rs
c h t .

C an ry Ho se
h t u .

My Y ou n g Al c id e s . A M o d e rn T e le m ach u s .

T h e Cage d Li o n . Bye W o r d s .

T h e Do ve in t h e Eagle s N e s t
’
.

MA CMI L LAN AND 0 0 ,

L O N DON .
 C HA RL E S KI N G S L E Y S W O RKS
’
.

t t
Collec ed E d i io n , c o m le e in X X I o l me s, in n ifo rmp t
in d in g Cro wn 8rd Gs each V II V u u b
p
. . . . .

POE MS Co m le e E d i ion t
S E RM O N S ON t N A T I ON A L
Y
.
.

EAST A P ro l e m
. b S U B JE C T S .
.

A L T O N L O C K E ; T ai l o r an d P o e S E R M O N S F O R T HE T I M E S t .

Y
.

H P A T I A ; o r, N e w F o e s w i h G O O D N E W S O F G O D t .

an O l d F a c e T H E G O S P E L O F T HE P E N
.

G L A U C US o r, T h e W o n d e rs o f
!
T A T E U C H ; an d D A V I D .

t h e S e a Sh o re W i h Ill u s ra io n s t
T H E W A T E R O F L I F E , an d
. t t .

W E S T W A RD HO ! o h e r S e rm o n s t .

T H E H E R O E S ; o r G re e k F airy D I S C I P L I N E , an d o t h e r S e rm o n s .

T al e s f o r m y C hi l d re n Wi h W E S T M I N S T E R S E RM O N S . t
I t t
llu s ra io n s W i h a P re face t
.

Y
.
.

T W O E AR S A G O
T H E W A T E R B A B IE S : A F ai ry
.

T H E W A T E R B A B I E S : A F ai r T a l e f o r a L an d B ab y N ew E d i
T al e f o r a L an d B ab y W it
.

io n W i h 1 00 P ic u re s b y L l N LE Y .
t t t
I
et c .
t t
ll u s ra io n s b y S i r N O EL P AT O N ,
S A M B O U RN E Fca 4t o 1 2s 6 d
T he T i mes says : “ Al o ge h e r t h e v o l m e
.

. pt .

t
. .

u
T H E R O M A N A N D T HE T E U can b e reco mm e n d e d as so m et hi n g m o re h an t
T ON L e c u re s e fo re t h e
o f Cam rid ge
.

b
W i h P re face b y P ro
t
n iv e rsit y o f e ce b
io n al m eri
t
U x pt t .

SE L E CT IO N S F RO M T HE
.

fe sso r Max Md L L E R
H E R E W A R D T H E W A KE
.

W RI T I N G S . t
W i h P o rt rai t . Cr .

. 8 vo . 68 .

T HE HE R M I T S .
HE A L T H AND E D UC A T I O N .

MADAM HOW AND L AD Y Cro w n 8 v o . 6s .

W HY F i rst L e sso n s i n O U T O F T HE D E E P
“

o r, W o rd s f o r
!

Lo re u .

f o r C h il d re n t
5 25 3
11 Ill s
t h e S o rro w f u l Fro m t h e W ri in gs
xt a f ap
.
.

e of C HARL ES E w e sns r E r c . 8v o .
.

AT L A S T ; A C h ri s m as i n t h e t 3 s Gd
.

t
W e s I n d i e s W i h n u m ero s ll s . t u I u D A I L Y T H O UG H T S S elec t e d fro m .

t rat io n s t
t h e W ri in gs o f CH AR LES KJN GS L E Y b y
Yt
.

P RO SE ID LL S, N EW AN D h is W ife Cro wn 8 v o 68 . . .

OL D W i h an ll s ra io n I ut t FR O M D E A T H T O L I FE F rag
Y
. .
.

PLA S A N D P U R I T A N S ; an d t
m e n s o f T e ac h i n g t o a V i l l age
o h e r H i s t o ri c al E s s ay s
t . C o n gre ga i o n W i h L e e rs o n t h e t . t tt
HI S T O R I C AL E S S A Y S L ife aft er D e a h Ed i ed b y hi s W if e t t
SAN IT A R AN D YS O CI A L
.

Fc a p . 8vo . 2 s 6d .
.

.
.

E SSA S Y .
G L A U C U S ; o r, T h
t h e S h o re Wi h t
e W
c o l o u re d
on d e rs
I ll t u s ra
o f
S C I E N T I F I C L E C T UR E S A N D
.

E S SA S Y t io n s, e xt ra c lo th , gil t e d ge s. P resen ta
ti o n E d i ti o n Cro w n 8 v o 7s 6d
.
. . . .

L I T E R A RY AN D G E N E RA L T HE H E R O E S ; G re e k F ai ry
o r.
L E C T UR E S .
T ale s fo r m y C h i l d re n Wi h . t
V IL L A G E AN D T OW N A N D I ll t ti
u s ra E xt o n s. ra c lo th , gil t e d ge s.
C O UN T R Y S E R M O N S . ( G ift b k E diti ) - oo on . Cro wn 8 vo . 7 s 6d . .

N o E n glish
Edi ti o n de
a uth
h as e v e r a e are d in a m o re ch arm in g fo rm
L u xe, b u t it is h a m u c h
or
t t
pp
T h is is n o t
a d ay read e rs, an e d i io n
e r h in g fo r w o rk - b tt t
.

t
an
of
tp
e
ad mi ra b t t
le as e an d mo s leasan u se P all Mall Gaz ett e t .
— .

N ow rea d y, on fi n e p ap er , comp lete in I II I . Vo ls . Globe 5 3 . ea ch .

QEh zt sIzg Qlfh it iu n .

C HA RL E S KI N G S L E Y S N O V E L S AN D P O E M S
’
.

W E S T W A R D H O I T w o Vo l s EAST On e V o l . Y . .

T W O Y E A RS A G O T w o Vo l s A L T O N L O C KE T W O Vo l s
Y
. . . .

H P A T IA T w o Vo l s .H E RE W A RD T W O Vo l s . . .

POEMS T w o Vo l s . .

MA CMI LL AN AN D CC .
,
L ON D ON .

CH ARL E S KI N G S L E
2 V o ls . 12 s .
Y ; H i s L e t t e rs an d M e m o i rs . A b idg d Edit i
r e on .

AL L S A I N T S D AY , A N D O T ’
H E R S E RM O N S . 7s 6 d . .

T R UE W O R D S F O R B R A V E ME N 2s 6 d . . .

REGAN PAU L, T RE N CH, AND CO , L ONDON . .