IN THE WARS OF THE ROSES

A Story for the Young

by

Everett Evelyn-Green. 

1901

CONTENTS

Prologue. Chapter 1: A Brush with the Robbers. Chapter 2: A Hospitable Shelter. Chapter 3: A Strange Encounter. Chapter 4: Paul's Kinsman. Chapter 5: In Peril. Chapter 6: In The Hands of the Robbers. Chapter 7: The Protection of the Protected. Chapter 8: The Rally of the Red Rose. Chapter 9: The Tragedy of Tewkesbury. Chapter 10: The Prince Avenged. Notes. 

Prologue. 

"Mother, will the little prince be there?"

"Yes, my son. He never leaves his mother's side. You will see themall today, if fortune favours us--the good King Henry, his noblequeen, to whom he owes so much, and the little prince likewise. Wewill to horse anon, that we may gain a good view of the processionas it passes. The royal party lodges this night at our goodbishop's palace. Perchance they will linger over the Sunday, andhear mass in our fair cathedral, Our loyal folks of Lichfield areburning to show their love by a goodly show of welcome; and it issaid that his majesty takes pleasure in silvan sports and such-likesimple pleasures, many preparations for the which have beenprepared for him to witness. "

"O mother, I know. Ralph and Godfrey have been practisingthemselves this many a day in tilting and wrestling, and in the useof the longbow and quarterstaff, that they may hold their own inthe sports on the green before the palace, which they say the kingwill deign to watch. 

"O mother; why am I not as old and as strong as they? I asked Ralphto let me shoot with his bow; but he only laughed at me, and bademe wait till I was as tall and as strong as he. It is very hard tobe the youngest--and so much the youngest, too. "

The mother smiled as she passed her hand over the floating curls ofthe gallant boy beside her; He was indeed a child of whom anymother might be proud: beautiful, straight-limbed, active, andfearless, his blue eyes glowing and shining, his cheek flushed withexcitement, every look and gesture seeming to speak of the boldsoldier spirit that burned within. 

And these were times when it appeared indeed as if England's sonshad need of all the warlike instincts of their race. Party factionhad well-nigh overthrown ere this the throne--and the authority ofthe meek King Henry, albeit the haughty Duke of York had set forthno claim for the crown, which his son but two short years laterboth claimed and won. But strife and jealousy and evil purposeswere at work in men's minds. The lust of power and of supremacy hadbegun to pave the way for the civil war which was soon to devastatethe land. The sword had already been drawn at St. Albans, and thehearts of many men were full of foreboding as they thought upon theperilous times in which they lived; though others were ready towelcome the strife which promised plunder and glory and fame tothose who should distinguish themselves by prowess in field orcounsel in the closet. 

The gentle Lady Stukely, however, was not one of these. Her heartsank sometimes when she heard the talk of her bold husband andwarlike sons. They had all three of them fought for the king at thefirst battle, or rather skirmish, at St. Albans four years before, and were ardent followers and adherents of the Red Rose ofLancaster. Her husband had received knighthood at the monarch'shands on the eve of the battle, and was prepared to lay down hislife in the cause if it should become necessary to do so. 

But if rumours of strife to come, and terrible pictures ofbloodshed, sometimes made her gentle spirit quail, she had alwaysone consolation in the thought that her youngest child, her littlePaul, would not be torn from her side to follow the bloody trail ofwar. Her two first-born sons, the younger of whom was twenty-two, had long been very finished young gallants, trained to everymilitary enterprise, and eager to unsheathe their swords wheneverrumour told of slight to King Henry or his haughty queen from theproud Protector, who for a time had held the reins of government, though exercising his powers in the name of the afflicted king. 

But Paul was still a child, not yet quite eight years old; and ofthe five fair children born to her between him and his brothers, not one had lived to complete his or her third year, so that themother's heart twined itself the more firmly about this last braveboy, and in the frequent absences of husband and sons upon mattersof business or pleasure, the companionship between the pair wasalmost unbroken, and they loved each other with a devotion that mayeasily be understood. Paul felt no awe of his gentle mother, butrather looked upon himself as her champion and defender in hisfather's absence. It was no new thing for him to long for manhoodand its privileges; for would not these make him all the stouterprotector to his mother?

But she was wont when he spoke such words to check him by gentlecounsel and motherly sympathy, and now she took his hand in hersand patted it smilingly as she replied:

"Ah, my little Paul, time flies fast, and you will be a man beforevery long now; but be content for these next days to be yet achild. Perchance the little prince will pay more heed to such asare of his age. 

"You may chance to win a smile from him, even if the nobles andgentlemen regard not children. "

Paul's face brightened instantly. 

"O mother, yes; I had not thought of that. But I do so long to seethe little prince. Oh, if he were to notice me--to speak to me--howhappy I should be! We were born on the same day, were we not, dearmother--on the thirteenth of October? But I am older, am I not?"

"Yes, my child; by two years. You will be eight upon your nextbirthday, and he six. But I hear he is such a forward, kingly, noble child, that both in appearance and discretion he is far inadvance of his actual age. Those who are brought up with royaltyearly learn the lessons which to others come but with advancingyears. "

"I love the little prince, our good king's son, " cried Paul withkindling eyes; "I would that I had been called Edward, too. Mother, why was I not given his name, as I was born on his day, and that ofthe good St. Edward too?"

The mother fondly caressed the golden curls of the beautiful childas she answered:

"Ah, my son, we knew not till long afterward that our graciousqueen had borne a little son on thy natal day. Paul is a name whichmany of our race have borne before, and so we called our child byit. It is the man that makes the name, not the name the man. "

"I know that, mother; yet I would fain have borne the name of thelittle prince. But hark! I hear the sounds of the horses' feet. They are bringing them round to the door. Sweet mother, lose notime. Let us mount and depart. I would fain have been in thegallant band of gentlemen who rode out this morning at dawn towelcome and escort the king and queen; as my father and brotherswere. But let us not delay. I should be sorely grieved were we tomiss seeing the entry into the city. "

Lady Stukely smiled at the impatience of the child, knowing wellthat many hours must elapse before the royal party would reach thecity walls; but she was willing to gratify the ardent desires ofher little son, and as she was already dressed for the saddle, sherose and took him by the hand and led him out to the courtyard, where some half dozen of the good knight's retainers were awaitingtheir lady and her son. 

Stukely Hall was no very large or pretentious place, but it wasbuilt in that quadrangular form so common to that age, andaccommodated within its walls the dependents and retainers thatevery man of rank had about him under the old feudal system, whichobliged him to bring to his lord's service on demand a certainfollowing of armed and trained soldiers. 

In those days, when every article of common consumption was made athome, the household of even a knight or gentleman of no greatwealth or note was no inconsiderable matter, and even the fieldlabourers almost always dwelt within the walls of their lord'shouse, eating his bread, and growing old in his service as a matterof course, without thinking of such a thing as change. 

So that although the greater part of the retainers had ridden offat dawn with the knight and his sons, there were still a goodhalf-dozen stout fellows ready to escort their lady to the town;and besides these were many menials of lower grade standing aboutto see the start. Little Paul, who had grown up amongst them, ranfrom one to the other, telling them excitedly how he was going tosee the prince that day, and eagerly accepting from the hands ofhis old nurse a beautiful bunch of red roses which she had gatheredthat morning, in the hope that her darling might have the chance tooffer them to queen or prince. 

Mother and son each wore the red rose broidered upon their staterobes, and the boy had stuck the crimson blossom in his velvet cap. He was a perfect little picture in his white velvet tunic sloshedwith rose colour, his white cloth hosen laced with gold from ankleto thigh, a short cloak flowing jauntily from his shoulders, andhis bright golden curls flowing from beneath the crimson and whitecap. 

No wonder that his stately mother regarded him with looks of fondpride, or that his old nurse breathed a benediction on his prettyhead, and invoked the saints and the blessed Virgin on his behalf. They little knew that the gallant child was riding forth to anencounter which would be fraught for him with strange results; andthat the long-hoped-for meeting with the little prince would be thefirst step in one of those passionate attachments which almostalways cost the owner of them dear. 

The sun shone hot and bright as the little cavalcade set forth fromthe courtyard. The month was that of July, and merry England waslooking its best. The fair landscape lying before the eyes of theriders seemed to breathe nothing but peace and plenty; and it washard to think that the desolating hand of war might, before manyyears had passed, be working havoc and ruin over a land so smilingand happy now. 

The rich valley in which the ancient city of Lichfield standslooked peculiarly beautiful and fertile that day. Lady Stukely, whilst replying to the eager talk of her excited little boy, couldnot but gaze around her with admiration, familiar as the scene wasto her; and even the boy seemed struck, for he looked up and said:

"I hope the little prince will be pleased with our town. He willhave seen many fine places on this progress, but I do think weshall give him the best welcome of all. We all love him so. "

It seemed indeed as if the whole country had turned out to welcomethe royal guests; for as the riders drew near to the city walls, they found themselves in the midst of a crowd of holiday folks, allbent upon the same object--namely, to take up a good position forwitnessing the royal procession as it passed; and every few minutessome joyous roisterer would raise a shout, "Long live the king!""Health to the queen!" "Down with the false friends--the House ofYork!" which cries would be taken up by the multitude, and echoedlustily along the road. 

And as the party from Stukely Hall rode up, way being made by thecrowd for persons of quality well known and beloved in those parts, little Paul vented his excitement in a new cry of his own; for, standing up in his stirrups and waving his cap in his hand, hecried in his clear boyish tones:

"Three cheers, good people, for the little prince! Three cheers forEdward, Prince of Wales, our future king!"

And this cheer was taken up with hearty goodwill by all the crowd;partly for the sake of the cause ear to the hearts of these loyalpeople, partly from admiration for the gallant child who hadstarted it; and Paul rode on with a flushed and happy face, lookingup to his mother and saying:

"They all love the little prince. Oh how I wish he would come!"

The captain of the little band of soldiers who guarded the gate bywhich the royal procession was to enter, came forward doffing hismailed head piece to greet the wife of the gallant Sir James, whowas a notable gentleman in those parts. By his courtesy the ladyand her child were allowed to take up a position so close to thegate as would insure for them a most excellent view of the royalparty; whilst the humbler crowd was kept at a more discreetdistance by the good-humoured soldiers, who exercised their officeamid plenty of jesting and laughing, which showed that an excellentunderstanding existed between them and their brethren of the soil. The captain, as the hour for the entrance drew near, took up hisposition beside the lady, and conversed with her in low tones. Paullistened with all his ears the moment he discovered that thesoldier was talking about his beloved little prince. 

"I do not credit every idle tale I hear, or certes life would bebut a sorry thing for a soldier. But there is a queer rumour flyingabout that some of the bold marauding fellows who follow the bannerof York, Salisbury, and Warwick have been following and hanging onthe trail of the royal party with a view to the capture--so it issaid--of the Prince of Wales, who, once in the hands of the rivalfaction, would prove a hostage of no mean value. I can scarcecredit such a tale myself. Sure am I that it cannot have originatedin the mind of any of those noble earls, but must be the device ofsome meaner churl, who hopes to gain a reward for his treachery. Belike there is no truth whatever in it. Rumour is never idle, andmust have some food to satisfy its cravings. I credit not so wild atale, albeit I must be on the watch against all chances. 

"But hark! hear you not that sound in the distance? and methinks Isee on yonder height the glitter of the spearmen and the sheen ofan armed multitude. Ay, it is truly so. They come, they come! Why, it is a goodly following our gallant knights and gentlemen havefurnished. Their gracious majesties will have no cause to grumbleat the loyalty of their trusty county of Lichfield {1}. "

Paul's breath went and came. The words of the captain had stirredhis heart, and now the actual approach of the royal family setevery pulse throbbing. Eagerly his eyes were fixed upon theadvancing column of gallant riders, the self-appointed bodyguard ofthe king and queen--a bodyguard which, changing and shifting as theroyal party progressed through the kingdom, yet never deserted themthroughout the triumphal march, and did not a little to raisewithin the breast of the queen that martial ardour which was to beso severely tested in days to come. 

Nearer and yet more near came the gay procession; banners flying, trumpets sounding, the joy bells from the town giving back gayresponse. And now the mounted gentlemen--amongst whom Paul's quickeyes have already discovered his father and brothers--wheel rapidlyaside to right and left, forming a sort of avenue to the gatewaythrough which the royal riders are to pass, to receive the loyalwelcome of the venerable prelate and the city dignitaries. 

Paul's breath comes and goes as the cheering in the crowd growsvociferous. He grasps his bunch of roses firmly in his hands, hischeeks glowing till they almost rival the damask bloom of theflowers, his eyes fixed in all their eager brightness upon theadvancing band, which consists of the king and queen and prince andtheir own immediate attendants. It is a moment never forgotten bythe boy in after life--the moment when first his glance fell uponthe royal child around whose history romance has woven so many atale; and it was with a start of peculiar surprises and a thrill ofemotion he could not have analyzed, that the boy beheld the littleprince of his dreams. For in those beautiful princely features, inthe alert graceful figure and the floating curls of gold, Paulseemed to see his own lineaments reproduced, and gave onebewildered glance toward his mother to see if perchance the samethought struck her. 

And indeed it did; for the chance resemblance between the youngheir of the House of Lancaster and the son of an obscureStaffordshire knight was so remarkable that none who saw the twochildren could fail to be struck by it. Paul for a moment wasalmost awed, feeling as if he had no right thus to have aped theoutward aspect of the little prince; but the next moment all elsewas forgotten in the excitement of the moment and in the vigorouscheering which greeted the close approach of royalty. 

The party moved slowly forward, returning the loyal salutations ofthe crowd right graciously. The little prince was charming in hisfriendly gestures, and Paul observed that to one and another of theknights and gentlemen drawn up to do them honour he held out somelittle token, which was received with every demonstration ofrespect and gratification. 

His intense excitement caused the little Paul to push out somewhatfurther than the line observed by the soldiers, and no one recalledhim to his place; and thus it was that when, as the cortege movedforward, the Prince of Wales dropped the plumed hat with the whiteostrich feather, which he was raising in response to thesalutations showered upon him, it was Paul who had leaped to theground and caught up the costly headgear from beneath the very feetof the king's horse, and, with glowing face and ardent gaze ofadmiration and homage, had bent the knee to the princely child, andrestored the cap, whilst his bunch of roses was offered at the samemoment with an air of modest eagerness that touched all hearts. 

The little prince took both the cap and the flowers, thanking thelad with friendly smiles; but when he saw how closely that brightface resembled his own, and how those floating curls of shininggold uncovered to the hot sunshine were but as the counterpart ofhis, he too glanced at his mother, whose smiling face was bent witha proud pleasure upon the pretty picture formed by the twochildren, and he said in his clear, joyous tones:

"Why, verily, this must be a brother or a cousin of mine own. Tellme your name, good lad. Surely we must be akin. "

"Nay, gracious prince, " answered Paul in low tones; "I am but theson of a simple knight, who has ever been your royal father's loyalservant. But I was born, like you, upon St. Edward's Day, andperhaps our patron saint smiled kindly on us both. "

The boy was so excited he scarce knew what he said; but his wordsseemed to please the little prince, who replied:

"Nay, now, if you share the good offices of my patron saint, youmust wear my badge too, for love of me. See here, this littlesilver swan, the device of my noble ancestor King Edward the Third, it is now my badge, and you must wear it for my sake. Farewell forthe nonce; we shall meet again--I am sure of it--ere we say goodbyeto this pleasant city. I would I had a brother like you. But wewill meet anon. Farewell, and forget me not. "

The royal cavalcade was yet moving onward whilst these graciouswords of childish greeting were spoken. The next moment thebewildered Paul was standing looking after the pretty child prince, the silver swan he grasped tightly between his hands aloneconvincing him that the whole encounter had not been a fairfleeting dream. 

The great green meadow just without the walls of the city presentedan animated spectacle even to eyes accustomed to the gay andparty-coloured dresses of the Middle Ages, and to the hardy sportsof her bold sons. The whole town and countryside had assembled towitness or bear a share in the merry silvan sports, instituted witha view of amusing the royal guests, who had halted at Lichfield forthree nights in order that the pious monarch might hear mass onSunday at the cathedral; and the Saturday was given over to therevels and pastimes at all times dear to the people, but more sothan ever when royalty deigned to be the witness of the feats ofskill and strength. And King Henry loved to watch the sports of hissubjects. His simple mind; that shrank from the intrigues of courtlife, seemed to gather strength and health when removed from thestrife and turmoil of parties. His malady, which at timescompletely incapacitated him from tasking part in the government, was always liable to recur, and it was with a view of recuperatinghis health, and calming his anxieties and fears for himself andthose he loved best, that the queen had decided upon this progressthrough the loyal midland counties, and encouraged the people todisplay their skill in manly sports before their king; for nothingseemed more beneficial to him than the interest evoked by anyspectacles of this kind. 

And little Paul Stukely was an eager spectator of the encountersand feats that were taking place before royalty that bright summerday. Paul felt as if he were living and moving in a wonderfuldream. He kept pulling off his little velvet cap to make sure thatthe silver swan--the prince's token--was still in its place; andeven when most interested in any contest going on upon the green, his eyes would turn instinctively toward the fair child leaningupon his father's knee, and eagerly watching the rustic revels. 

The royal guests were sumptuously lodged beneath a silken awningunder a mighty oak tree that gave a refreshing shade. A platformhad been erected for them beneath the awning, and chairs of stateset thereon. From this vantage ground they could watch everythingthat went on, and reward the victors with words of praise, smallpieces of silver, or some fragment of lace or ribbon from the royalapparel, as best suited the rank of the aspirant for honour; andthe kindly smiles and gracious words bestowed upon all whoapproached increased each hour the popularity of the Lancastriancause and the devotion of the people to their king. 

But Paul had not, so far, ventured to present himself before theplatform where the little prince was standing. He had not forgottena single one of the kind words spoken by the youthful Edwardyesterday, but he was fearful of presuming upon the favour thusshown him, and his very admiration for the princely child seemed tohold him back. 

He knew that his father and brothers might rebuke him forforwardness if he presumed to thrust himself into notice. Sir Jameswas one of those appointed to keep order upon the ground, andwithhold the rustics from incommoding in any way the royalvisitors; and the child knew that he would be the first to rebukehis own son for putting himself unduly forward. As the youngest inthe house, Paul was accustomed to be held in small repute, and hadno desire to provoke a rebuff which might even reach the ears ofthe little prince himself. 

So he contented himself by hanging about on the outskirts of thecrowd, casting many longing, lingering glances toward the groupbeneath the giant oak, and at other times diverting himself bywatching the wrestlers, the mummers, or the archers, who in turncame forward to try their skill and strength. The quarterstaffcontests were very exciting, and several broken heads were theresult of the hearty encounters with that formidable weapon. 

But Paul was familiar with most of the sports, and presently grewweary of watching. It was hot, too, and there was not much shade tobe had in that big meadow; so he wandered a little apart, toward acopse beside a small stream, on the opposite side of which a thickforest rose stately and grand, and sitting down beside the merrybrook, he clasped his hands round his knees and sank into areverie. 

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that he did not notice thelight tread of approaching footsteps, and gave a great start whenhe suddenly felt an arm flung caressingly about his neck. He sprangto his feet with a cry of astonishment, and stood face to face withthe little prince. 

"You see I have found you, " cried the child gleefully. "I saw youseveral times in the crowd today, but you would not come near me. Never mind; this is much better, for here we can talk, here we canbe friends. Are you aweary of their gay shows? So am I, in faith. We have seen the same thing everywhere, and it is so good to bealone sometimes. I love not to be always followed and watched. 

"See you that dim, dark wood? Let us e'en hide ourselves thereinfor a short hour. My mother will miss me from her side anon, andwill send to seek me. I would not be found too easily. Come, let ushide ourselves there, and you shall tell me all about yourself, andwe will play at being trusty friends and comrades. 

"It is dull work being always a prince. I would that we couldchange parts for once. You shall be the prince and I will be thebold knight's son, and your very faithful servant. "

"O my lord!" faltered Paul, almost overcome with excitement andpleasure at this strange encounter. 

But the little prince stamped his foot and spoke with the air of aregular little autocrat. 

"Nay, call me not that. Did I not say I would be nobody's lord forthe nonce? What is your name? Paul? Then I will be called Paul forthis next hour, and you shall be Edward. See, here is my jewelledcollar and the cap with the ostrich plume--the badge of the Princeof Wales. Yes, put them on, put them on. Marry, I could think itwas my very self, but a short inch the taller. 

"Now, see, I take your cap instead; and now I am Paul, and you mustbid me follow you and attend you in your journey through theforest. See, we will be fugitives, flying from the wicked Duke ofYork, who would fain grasp at the king's power, but my mother willnot let him. "

For a moment the child's eyes flashed, and his clenched hands andheaving breast showed that the spirit of Margaret of Anjou livedagain in her child; but pulling himself up short with a laugh, thelittle prince added with a deferential bow, resuming his characterof subject, "But I crave your pardon, sweet prince, if I losecontrol of myself in the thought of your wrongs. Lead on, noblelord, and I follow. Let us seek safety in the dim aisles of yongiant wood. Surely there is some ford or bridge nigh at hand whichwill give us safe crossing without wetting ourselves. "

Children are children all the world over, and at any period of itshistory. Childhood ever delights in romance and imaginativesituations and adventures; and before ten minutes had passed theboys had completely entered into the spirit of their play. Paul, shaking off the awe which had at first held him silent and abashed, played the part of prince with an energy and zeal which evoked thedelight and admiration of his companion; whilst the younger boy wasamused to lay aside for the moment any pretence at royalty, and payhis humble devoirs to his liege lord. 

Paul knew of some stepping stones which led across the stream intothe dark wood, and soon the boys were in what seemed to them theheart of the great forest. The prince was delighted by all he saw. The sense of freedom was enchanting, and his curiosity unbounded. He had never in his life before enjoyed a game of play in sounfettered a fashion with a comrade of nearly his own age; and soonforgetting even their own game, the boys were walking with armstwined round each other's neck, telling each other all that was intheir hearts, and exchanging vows of unalterable affection. 

"When I am grown to manhood, and am a belted knight with noblegentlemen of mine own to attend me, you shall be my very firstesquire, Paul, " said the prince emphatically; "and we will ridethrough the world together, seeking adventures which shall make allmen wonder when they hear of them. And when I am king you shall bemy first counsellor and greatest lord. I will degrade from officeand dignity those proud nobles who have been traitors at heart tomy kingly father, and to you I will give their broad lands and hightitles. We will thus be comrades and friends through life. Youwould never desert me, would you, Paul?"

"I would lay down my life for your highness, " cried Paul withenthusiasm. "I will live and die true to the Red Rose--to the signof the silver swan. "

The little prince's eyes kindled. 

"I believe you would. I love you, Paul, and methinks that you wouldlove me too. I would that I could take you with me now to be myfriend and comrade through life; but perchance your lady mothercould ill spare you, by what you say. I know what a mother's loveis like. "

Paul's face was grave. For the first time in his life he wasconfronted by the problem of a divided duty--that problem whichtroubles us all more or less at some time in our history. 

"I would gladly go with your highness to the world's end, " he said. "I should love to live and die at your side; but I doubt me if itwould not be cruel to my mother. She sometimes tells me that herlife would be a lone one without me. "

"And you must stay with her, " said the prince with decision; "atleast so long as you are a child. When you are a grown man it willbe different. Some day I will send for you, and you shall be myfirst and best friend; but it cannot be now. My mother might notapprove my choice, and yours might not let you go. Princes as wellas other men have to wait for what they want"--and the childsighed--"but some day our turn will come. "

Then they resumed their play, and the hoary wood resounded to themerry shouts of the boys as they ran hither and thither in activesport, till the little prince was fairly tired out, though, stillexulting in his escape from maternal vigilance, he stoutlyprotested against going back. 

"See, good Paul, " he said, "here is a right commodious hollow tree, heaped with last year's dead leaves. I will rest awhile hidden awayhere, where none will find me were they to look for me ever so. Andif you could find and bring me here a draught of water from thebrook or from some spring, I should be ever grateful. I am soreathirst and weary, too. "

The child was nevertheless much pleased with his nest, andforthwith curled himself up in it like a young dormouse, delightingin the conviction that no attendants despatched by his mother tocapture him would ever find him here. Boys have been young picklesever since the world began, and were just as full of pranks in thefifteenth century as they are now. Edward had: a full share ofboyhood's mischievous delight in his own way, and owing to thestrong will and the ever-present vigilance of his mother, he hadnot had many chances of indulging his natural craving forindependence. Therefore he rejoiced the more in it now, and wasquite determined to return to his royal parents at such time onlyas it suited his own whim. 

Paul was willing enough to do the behest of the prince, and stayedonly to make him comfortable before starting off on the quest forwater. He thought young Edward would soon be asleep, as indeed hewas, so luxurious was his leafy couch within the giant oak; andresolved to run as far as a certain well he knew of in the wood, the water of which was peculiarly fresh and cold and clear, andwhere a cup was always kept by the brothers of a neighbouringmonastery for the benefit of weary travellers. 

Paul sped away on his mission with a light heart He was elatedabove measure by his day's adventure, and his head was brimmingover with plans and dreams of the future, which was to be soglorious and so distinguished. 

He the chosen comrade of their future king! he the loyal upholderof that king's rights, the bulwark of the throne, the trustednoble, the shrewd counsellor, the valiant warrior! A boy's ambitionis boundless--innocent of envy or evil, but wild in its flights. 

Paul went on his way with glowing cheeks and sparkling eyes, till astealthy sound in the bushes beside him made him stop short, listening intently. He heard voices in cautious whisper. 

"He cannot be far away. He certainly came to the wood. Long Petersays he had another boy with him; but be that as it may, he ishere, and close at hand. We must lose no time. The alarm will begiven if he is missed. Take one, or take both, it matters not if webut get the prince into our hands. He may be known by his ostrichplume and his golden curls, and the jewelled collar he wears abouthis neck. "

Paul heard these words plainly, and it seemed as if his heart werein his mouth. It beat so violently that he fancied the conspiratorsmust surely hear. The words he had heard but yesterday flashed backinto his mind. 

It was true then. There was a conspiracy to carry off the youngprince, and the band of men pledged to the deed were actually ontheir track and close at hand. How could he warn the prince intime? How could he save him from their hands?

For a moment the boy's courage seemed to desert him. A cold sweatbroke out on his face, his knees trembled beneath him. But his fearwas not a selfish or unworthy one; it was all for the royal child, whose peril was so imminent. 

And then, with a sudden revulsion of feeling, he recollected thathe himself wore the cap with the white plume, the jewelled collarof royalty, and the dagger the little prince habitually carried inhis girdle. And had he not the same floating golden curls, the samecast of features, the same active figure, and almost the samestature? Might he not save the real prince by playing his part tosome purpose for the time being? The men would not distinguishbetween the pair--he felt certain of that; they would at once makeoff with their prize. Later on, of course, they would discover thetrick, but then the prince would be safe. His own followers wouldhave long since discovered him. Yes, he would do it--he would savethe prince at all cost. What did it matter if his own life were theforfeit? The heir of England would be saved. 

It was no small act of heroism to which the boy made up his mind inthose few moments. Those were lawless days, and human life was heldvery cheap. The band of fierce men who had believed they werecarrying off a prince, would think nothing of running him throughwith their swords when they discovered how they had been tricked, and that by a mere child. Paul set his teeth hard and bracedhimself up for the task he had set himself. He knew his peril-herealized it too; but he was a soldier's son, and had he not said hewould live and die for the prince? Would he ever be worthy of theknighthood every lad looked forward to as the goal of his ambition, if he shrank now from the task he had set himself?

Hardly had that resolution been taken before there sprang out fromthe thick underwood two or three fierce-looking men, armed to theteeth. 

"Ha, my young springal! well met, in sooth, " cried the foremost ofthe band, laying a firm hand upon the boy's shoulder. "We have beenlooking long for you. 

"To horse, brave fellows! we have our prize. We may not lingerhere. "

"Hands off, varlet!" cried Paul, throwing himself into thecharacter of prince with great energy and goodwill. "Know you towhom you speak--whom ye thus rough handle? Have a care; the Princeof Wales is not thus to be treated. "

"Pardon, sweet prince, " cried the leader, with ironical courtesy, his grasp not relaxing one whit from the boy's arm. "Time leaves usscant opportunity for the smooth speech of the court. We must useall despatch in conveying your worshipful presence hence, to thesafe custody of England's friends. 

"Nay, struggle not, boy. We would not harm you. You are safe withus--"

"I know you not. I will not be thus insulted. I will to my royalparents, " cried Paul in well-feigned indignation. 

But remonstrance and resistance were alike useless. At the sound ofa peculiar whistle from one of the party, there immediatelyappeared some half score of mounted troopers, leading other horseswith them. The boy was swung upon the saddle of one of the horsesand fastened there by means of thongs, which, although notincommoding him whilst riding, utterly precluded all idea ofescape. Moreover the steed was placed between those of two of thestalwart troopers, each of whom kept a hand upon the reins of thesupposed prince; and thus, silently but rapidly, the little bandthreaded the intricacies of the wood, by paths evidently known tothem, and ere the dusk had fully come, had cleared the forestaltogether, and were galloping steadily and fast across the opencountry toward the north. 

Paul had not spoken another word. He had been in terror lest bysome inadvertent phrase he might betray himself, and let thosefierce men know that he was not the prince; in which case not onlymight his own life be forfeit, but the real prince might fall intotheir hands. But now as the dusk overtook them, and still they wereflying farther and farther away from the city where the prince lay, his heart rose, and beat with a generous triumph; for though hisown fate might be a speedy death, the heir of England was safe. 

It was dark before the lights of a wayside hostelry became visibleacross the dreary waste they were traversing. The leader of theband turned and addressed a few words to the troopers who had thecare of the captive; and at once he felt himself deprived of thetell-tale cap and collar, the former of which was replaced by acloth cap belonging to one of the men, which almost concealed theboy's features. He was also wrapped in a mantle that furtherdisguised him; and thus they rode up to the inn. 

A ruddy stream of light poured out from that comfortable hostelry, and Paul saw, seated on his stout nag, with three of his servantsbehind him, the well-known figure of a neighbouring farmer, whombusiness often took to a town many miles from his native place. 

The troopers were dismounting and hurrying into the inn. Two onlyremained with their prize. Paul's resolution was quickly taken. Hethrew off the encumbering mantle and cap, and cried aloud:

"Gaffer Hood, Gaffer Hood, come and help me! These men have carriedme off, and are taking me I know not whither. Come and help me toget free, and my father will richly reward you. They think I am thePrince of Wales, who was playing with me but this afternoon. Tellthem who I really am, and they will let me go. "

"By the mass, if that be not the voice of little Paul Stukely!"exclaimed the honest farmer in great amazement, as he brought hisstout nag alongside the animal that carried the child. The troopersdrew their swords as if to interpose (and in those days it wasconsidered better to leave these reckless gentlemen alone when theyhad booty in their hands, however come by, and no doubt they werein league with the host of the inn); but the character of thedialogue between the farmer and the child was so astounding thatthe men remained mute and motionless, whilst the leader of thegang, who had heard something of the words, came hurrying to thespot, to see that his prize was safe. 

He was quite prepared to make short work of farmer and men alike ifthere should be any futile attempt at rescue. The man knew histrade, and long habit had made him utterly reckless of human life. But the words he heard exchanged between the child and the farmerheld him spellbound, too. 

"I was playing with the prince, " cried Paul, loud enough for all tohear. "He bid me take his collar and cap and be prince in fantasy, whilst he was my esquire. Afterwards, when he was weary, he laydown to rest, and these fellows caught me and carried me off, thinking I was prince indeed. I would not tell them what they haddone, lest they should return and capture him. But bid them looseme now, good Gaffer, and give them all the money in your pouch asmy ransom, and I warrant my father will repay you double. 

"It is the heir of the House of Lancaster you want, gentlemen, nota poor knight's youngest son, a lad of no account. This good manwill pay you some broad gold pieces if you will let me go; but ifyou are resolved to take my life as the price of my deceit, why, take it now. I am not afraid to die in a good cause, and thisworthy man will perchance take home my body to my mother, that itmay lie in time beside hers. "

"Nay, lad, we will all die ere they shall touch a hair of thy bonnyhead, " cried the honest farmer, signing to his men to come and beready. "If there's a man in this troop dastard enough to lay a handupon thee, he shall settle accounts with Gaffer Hood ere he leavesthe place. A farmer can fight, ay, and give good strong blows, too. 

"Now, gentlemen, which of you will lay hands on that gallant child?for he will have to do it across my dead body first. "

"Tush, man, put up thy sword, " cried the leader of the band, who, being a man prompt both in action and thought, had taken in thebearings of the situation with great rapidity, and upon whom thesimple heroism of the child had not been thrown away. 

Rough and self-seeking and cruel as lawless times had made suchmen, they were not devoid of all better feelings; and although, hadthere been no interposition on his behalf, Paul might have been avictim to their irritation at being thus duped, as it was his lifewas now safe enough. 

"We war not with babes and children. The boy has borne himselfgallantly, and we will take the gold pieces and let him go free. Our chance may come another time, and we want not the cumbrance ofchildren on our march. He would not be hostage worth having, soransom him and begone. We have the prince's jewels if we have notthe lad himself. 

"Go your way, boy; you will make a soldier in time. You have theright grit in you. Farewell! one day we may meet again. "

And thinking, perhaps, that he and his band had better not lingerlonger, the captain gave the word to mount; and as soon as Paul'sthongs were cut and the ransom paid over, the troopers set spurs totheir horses' sides and vanished away in the darkness. 

Once again little Paul Stukely stood in the presence of royalty. The prince's arm was about his neck, the proud queen's eyes--moistnow with tears--were bent upon him in loving gratitude, whilst fromthe king's lips he was receiving words of praise that set the hotblood mounting to his brow. Behind him stood his father, all aroundwere the attendants of the royal family; and Paul, unaccustomed tobe thus the centre of attention, almost wished the ground wouldopen to hide him, although his heart could not but beat high ingratification and loving loyalty. 

All the city was ringing with the daring attempt that had been madeto carry off the young Prince of Wales, and the gallantry of theboy who had dared to brave the consequences, and take upon himselfthe personality of the youthful Edward. The child himself, thefarmer who had been the means of his restoration, and the knightwho owned so brave a son, all had been heroes of the pastsix-and-thirty hours. 

A special mass of thanksgiving had been sung in the cathedral onthe Sunday. The captain of the town, who had heard a rumour whichhad sent him flying into the forest the previous afternoon, to findthe true prince vainly seeking his missing comrade, could not makeenough of the boy whose simple-hearted gallantry had saved him froma lasting remorse, and perhaps a lasting disgrace. Indeed, SirJames Stukely had had to hurry his child home in haste to hismother's care, lest he should hear too much of his own prowess;and, thrusting him into her loving arms, had said, in a voice whichquivered in spite of himself:

"Here, dame, take the boy and give him a kiss to show that he hasbeen a good lad. He has done his duty, as a Stukely ought to do, and that should be enough for all of us. But let us have nononsense talked. What will the country come to if everyone who doeshis duty as it should be done expects to be called a hero, and Iknow not what besides? The prince is safe, and the boy likewise. Now off to bed with him, and no more nonsense to be talked in myhearing. 

"God bless you, child! You'll live yet to be a credit to the nameyou bear. "

And Paul was made happier by that one word from his stern thoughloving sire than by all the praises he had heard lavished uponhimself during the past hours. For there was no one in the wideworld that the child so reverenced as his dark-browed father, whoseldom praised his children, and was inflexible in his punishmentswhenever they were deserved. To be told by him that he had done hisduty, and would be a credit to his house, was happiness far beyondhis deserts, he thought; and he registered a mental vow, deep downin his brave little heart, that he would never in time to come givethe world cause to say he had not lived up to the promise of hisboyhood. 

The loving sympathy with which his mother listened to his story, the caresses she showered upon him in thought of the deadly perilin which he had stood, and the hearty approbation of his brothersand the retainers and servants in his father's halls, were a smallpleasure as compared with those few brief, almost stern, words fromthat father himself. Even the notification that he was to presenthimself on the Monday before the king and queen added little to hishappiness, although the idea of seeing once again his admiredlittle prince could not but fill him with gratification. 

His father led him to the royal presence, and bowed low on hearinghimself thanked for having brought up sons who so well demonstratedthe loyalty and devotion which had been born and bred in them. ButPaul scarce heard what passed, for the little prince dashed forwardto take him round the neck, kissing him with all the natural graceof childhood, whilst half rebuking him for having denied him hisown legitimate share in the adventure. 

"If we had but been together we would have achieved our ownliberty, " he said, his bright eyes flashing with the spirit of hisancestors. "We would have shown them what Plantagenet blood coulddo. I would I had been there. I would I had shared the adventurewith you. It would have been a thing for our bards to write of, forour soldiers to sing over their campfires. But now I shall havenone of the glory. I was sleeping in a tree. It was you who werethe hero, the prince. "

"Ah, sweet prince, had they once laid hold on the true prize, methinks neither you nor I would so easily have escaped, " saidPaul, who had vivid recollections of the iron hands that had beenlaid upon him by the stern men who had carried him off. "I know nothow I could have escaped, had it not been that they were willing tobe quit of me when they found out I was not him whom they sought. "

But the prince was hardly satisfied with the rather tame ending tothe adventure. 

"To be rescued by a farmer, and carried home on his nag!" he said, tossing back his curls with a gesture of hauteur. "Paul, I wouldthat you had cut your way through the very heart of them. I wouldyou had left at least one or two dead upon the spot. Had we beentogether--" He clenched his hands for a moment, but then laughed alittle, and said in a whisper--"But no matter, Paul; they all saythat you played the hero, and I will not envy you for it. We shallbe men one day, and then I shall come and claim your promise. Youwill be my faithful esquire, and I will be your liege lord. Together we will roam the world in search of adventure, and well Iknow that we shall meet with such as will not disgrace the royalhouse of the Plantagenet. "

The child's eyes flashed, and an answering spark was kindled in thebreast of the hardy little Paul. He put his hand within that of theprince, and cried loud enough to be heard by those who stood by:

"Dear my lord, I will serve you to the death. I will go with you tothe world's end. "

Sir James laid a warning hand upon his son's shoulder. 

"Boy, " he said in a low voice, "it becomes thee not thus to putthyself forward in the presence of royalty. Be silent before thybetters, and show thy loyalty by thy deeds, not by high-soundingwords of which thou canst have but little understanding. "

Paul was instantly abashed. Indeed, in those days it was not usualfor children to make their voices heard in the presence of theirelders; but the prince was privileged, and it was his words thathad drawn forth this exclamation from Paul. 

The king and the queen, however, smiled upon the boy; and thelatter said in tender tones, that would have amazed some amongsther enemies:

"Nay, chide not the boy, good Sir James; he does but speak as hisheart dictates, and I would indeed that my son might look forwardto the day when he and your gallant son might be companions inarms. But I ask no pledge in these troublous, stormy days. Only Iwill cherish the hope that when brighter days dawn for the House ofLancaster, and her proud foes are forever subjugated to their rightposition, this bold boy may appear again before us to receive atour hands the guerdon he is too young for yet. And be sure thatnever will knighthood be more gladly accorded to any than to him, for the deed which saved England's heir and hope from the deadlyperil which menaced him but a few short hours ago. "

Sir James and his son both bowed low, and the father prepared tolead away the boy. But the prince had once more thrown his armsround Paul's neck, and was speaking in his eager way:

"You and I will be knighted together when we are grown. I shallthink of you, and you will not forget me--promise that you willnot. And when we meet next, wherever it may be, we shall know eachother for the likeness we bear the one to the other. Kiss me, Paul, and promise never to forget. Farewell now, but my heart tells me weshall meet again. "

The king's son and the knight's embraced with all the warmth of areal and deep affection, albeit of only a few hours' growth, andgazing at each other to the last they parted. 

"I shall always wear the silver swan, " Paul had said as their lipsmet. "You will know me by that. And I--oh, I never could forgetyou! Your face will live always in my heart. "

The doors closed behind the retiring knight and his son. The visionalone conjured up by the words of the prince lived in the heart ofPaul Stukely. His face was very brightly grave as he rode homebeside his father. How little he or any in that noble companyguessed where and under what circumstances the prince and Paulwould meet next!

Chapter 1: A Brush With The Robbers. 

"Help--help--help!"

This cry, growing feebler at each repetition, was borne by theevening breeze to the ears of a traveller who was picking his wayalong the dark mazes of Epping Forest one cool, fresh October day. Instinctively he drew rein and listened, laying his bandunconsciously upon the hilt of his poniard. 

"A woman's voice, " he said half aloud, as he spurred more rapidlyonward in the direction whence the cry proceeded. "A woman setupon, no doubt, by some band of these marauders who are desolatingthe country and disgracing humanity. Cowards! I wonder how many ofthem there are? A solitary traveller has not much chance against agang of them; but at least I can sell my life dear. I have littleenough to live for now; and it would be a stain for ever upon myfather's fame were I to pass by unheeding the cry of a damsel indistress. 

"Forward, then, good Sultan; there is work for both of us before wecan think of food or lodging after our weary day of travel. Forward, good horse. "

The coal-black charger, who, despite his jaded air and look ofneglect, had evidently come of a good stock, and had both blood andmettle of the true soldier sort in him, pricked his ears, archedhis neck, and appeared to be fully aware of what was required ofhim by his loved master. He broke into a gentle canter, and despitethe roughness of the ground, maintained that pace for severalhundred yards, until the hand of the traveller upon his rein warnedhim to moderate his pace. 

The shades of evening were falling fast, but a young moon rode highin the sky, and helped to light up the expanse of broken ground andpiled-up tree trunks which suddenly became visible to the travelleras he reached a clearing in the forest, through which the roughtrail or path he was pursuing led. And here in this clearing hecame upon the object of his search, and saw that his surmise as tothe cause of the cries he had heard was only too correct. Four bigburly men, all armed with the weapons of the day--bills, maces, andeven the handgun, which was beginning to find a place amongst themore time-honoured arms of offence and defence--were surroundingthe struggling figure of a woman, a young woman the travellerfancied, from her slimness and the cat-like agility which shedisplayed in struggling with her captors. 

It appeared as if the men did not desire to hurt her if they couldavoid doing so, but rather wished to make of her a prisoner; whilstshe was making the most frantic efforts to escape from theirrestraining hands, and was uttering strangled cries for help, whichwere so deadened by the thick folds of the heavy driving cloak, which had been wrapped about her head, as to be barely audible evenat a short distance. 

"Let her fight and struggle, " said a tall, broad-shouldered manwith a darkly sinister face, who stood a little apart all thiswhile, keeping, however, a very close watch upon the group. "Shewill soon tire herself out, and then we can carry her awaypeacefully. Don't hurt her. Let her have her fling--it won't lastlong--and she will be all the tamer afterward. "

The traveller, who was but a stripling himself, set his teeth hardas he heard these words spoken. Something in the cool arrogance ofthe man, who appeared to be a leader of the rest, stirred his bloodand made his hands tingle to be at his throat. 

But it would not do to act rashly in an encounter with fourstalwart men, all armed to the teeth, and plainly well used to thepractice of arms. The youth saw that he must husband his strengthand use his opportunity with every care. His best chance lay intaking the party by surprise. 

He examined his weapons with a keen eye. He too possessed one ofthe handguns of the period, and was a good marksman to boot. Hehad, too--and glad enough was he of it at that moment--the deadlyguisarme, that old-fashioned weapon that combined a spear andscythe, and was used with horrible effect in the charges of theday. Then there was the short battle-axe, slung across hissaddlebow, which at close quarters would be a formidable weapon, and the poniard in his belt had in its time done deadly work beforethis. 

But although he had plenty of weapons for offence, he had not muchdefensive armour upon him. Only a cloth cap protected his head, andalthough his jerkin was of the tough leather which often defied thethrust of a dagger almost as successfully as mail, it might notprove a defence against the combined attack of a number of enemies;and his legs were unprotected save by the long leather riding bootslaced up the front, and ornamented with silken tassels, now muchfaded and stained. 

Altogether, he appeared hardly equipped for so desperate anencounter as the one that lay before him; but it was plain that hedid not on that account shrink from it. His appearance upon thescene had not been observed by any of the robbers--for such theyplainly were--and he was thus able to take his time and weigh hischances carefully. 

The girl was suffering no injury from her captors; but what herfate might be if rescue did not come was what no one could say. Itwas plain that it was the desire of the leader of the band topossess her as a captive. It was he who was the leading spirit inthe attack. He was just as determined to carry her off as he waswishful to accomplish the capture without inflicting injury. 

The stripling astride the good warhorse--who seemed to scentbattle in the air, and stood perfectly still, quivering withexcitement--unslung his handgun from his shoulder, and levelled itat the leader of the band. The next instant a sharp report rangthrough the silent forest. The robber chief flung up his hands witha stifled cry and sank down upon the ground; whilst the other men, astonished beyond measure at this sudden attack from they knew notwhat quarter, ceased to heed their prisoner, and turned round withloud execrations, laying their hands upon their weapons. 

But before they had time to draw these the horseman was upon them. He had his battle-axe in his hand--a light small axe, but one ofexquisite temper and workmanship--and dashing through the group, hedealt such a blow with it upon the head of one of the ruffians ascleft his skull in two; and the man dropped with never a groan, adead corpse upon the ground. 

"Two done for, " quoth the youth to himself as he wheeled about fora second encounter. "Well, a mounted man should be a match for twoon foot. 

"Ha! what is that?" for even as he spoke he felt a sharp, stingingpain in one shoulder, and simultaneously the report of firearmsrang out once more. His adversaries had not been slow to avenge thedeath of their comrade, and their aim was as true as his own. Thetraveller knew that his only chance was now to close with his foesand grapple with them before they could load their piece again. 

His right arm was partially disabled, as he felt in a moment. Hecould no longer swing the trusty little axe which had done goodservice before; but there was the deadly guisarme at his side. Sultan could be trusted to carry him straight to the foe withoutany guidance beyond that of the pressure of knee and foot; andgrasping the weapon in both hands, he gallantly charged back uponthe men, who stood grimly awaiting his next movement with everyintention of unhorsing and slaying him. 

The odds were heavy against him. The two ruffians who stood to barhis way were stalwart, powerful fellows, well inured to this kindof warfare; and the chief, who though wounded was not killed, hadstruggled to his feet, and was plainly endeavouring, though withdifficulty, to reach the handgun and reload it. The girl was stillencumbered by the heavy cloak which had been knotted about her headand hands, and was not at once thrown off. The traveller plainlysaw that there was no time to be lost if he was to escape with hisown life, or save the damsel from a fate perhaps worse than death. 

"Forward, Sultan!" he cried. 

And the good horse dashed back upon the enemy; and the youth, holding his weapon in both hands, strove as he passed to deal adeadly blow to one of his assailants. But the man was quick, andhis own strength impaired by the injury he had received. Thelance-like point of the weapon inflicted a deep gash upon the faceof one of his adversaries, causing him to yell with rage and pain, but no vital injury had been inflicted upon either; whilst a savageblow from the other upon the youth's left arm had broken the bone, and he felt as if his last moment had surely come. 

But it did not occur to him even then to save himself by flight, ashe could well have done, seeing that he was mounted and that therobbers were on foot. Disabled as he was, he wheeled about oncemore, and half maddened by pain and the desperation of his case, rode furiously upon the only man who had not yet received someinjury. The robber awaited his charge with a smile of triumph uponhis face; but he triumphed a little too soon. 

Sultan was a horse of remarkable intelligence and fidelity. He hadknown fighting before now--had carried his rider through many askirmish before this; and his fidelity and affection equalled hisintelligence. With the wonderful instinct that seems always toexist between horse and rider who have known each other long, heappeared to divine that his master's case was somewhat desperate, and that he needed an ally in his cause. And thus when the pairbore down upon the robber, who was coolly awaiting the charge, Sultan took law into his own hands, and overthrew the plan both ofattack and defence by a quick movement of his own. For he swervedslightly as he approached the man, and rising suddenly upon hishind legs, brought down all the weight of his iron shoe withtremendous force upon the head of the adversary, who fell to theground with a low groan, and lay as helpless as his former comrade. 

But excellent as this manoeuvre was in one aspect, it disconcertedthe rider by its suddenness; and when as the horse reared thesecond robber sprang upon the rider to try and drag him from hisseat, the effort was only too successful. The traveller was easilypulled away from the saddle, and fell heavily to the ground; whilstthe foe uttered a savage exclamation of triumph, and knelt with hisknee upon the chest of the fallen man, his bloody and distortedvisage bent over him in evil triumph. He was feeling in his beltfor his dagger; and the young man closed his eyes and tried tomutter a prayer, for he knew that his hour had come at last. 

He had sold his life dear, but sold it was, and the next moment hefelt certain would be his last; when all in a moment there wasanother of those loud reports of the gun. The man kneeling upon hischest fell suddenly backwards; and the youth, starting to his feet, was confronted by the spectacle of the maiden he had rescued, whiteand trembling, and almost overcome by her own deed, holding in herhand the still smoking gun, whilst her eyes, dilated with horror, were fixed upon the helpless creature in the dust. 

"Is he dead?" she asked in a hollow voice. 

"I cannot tell, " answered the youth hastily. "It were better not tolinger longer here. Their own band will come and look to them ifthey return not by sundown. Let us to horse and away before any ofthe gang come. Sultan will carry the pair of us well, and you willtell us which course to steer; for the night will be upon us erelong, and I am a stranger to these dark forests. "

Whilst thus speaking, the traveller was throwing keen glances roundhim, and saw that the men, though wounded, were not alldead--though one certainly was, and the other, whom Sultan hadattacked, was scarce likely to look again upon the light of day. The leader of the band had fallen again to the earth, and wasenveloped in the folds of the heavy cloak, from which he appearedto be feebly struggling to disentangle himself. The girl followedthe direction of the youth's glance, and explained the matter in afew short words. 

"He was loading the gun when I freed myself. I knew that he wasgoing to shoot you. I am very strong, and I saw that he wasbleeding and wounded. I sprang upon him and threw him down, andtied the cloak about him, as he had bidden his men bind it aboutme, By that time you were unhorsed, and I saw that the robber wasabout to kill you. The gun was loaded, and I took it and shot him. I never killed a man before. I hope it is not wicked; but he wouldhave killed you else. And you had risked your life a dozen times tosave me. "

"It was well and bravely done for me and for yourself, " answeredthe stranger, as he mounted the docile Sultan and assisted the girlto spring up behind him. 

Wounded and spent as he was, the excitement of the encounter hadnot yet subsided, and he was only vaguely conscious of his hurts, whilst he was very much in earnest in his desire to get away fromthis ill-omened spot before others of the band should return insearch of their missing comrades, and take a terrible vengeanceupon those who had slain or wounded them. 

His companion was no less anxious than he to be gone; and as thegood horse picked his way in the dim light through the intricateforest paths pointed out by the girl, who was plainly a native ofthe neighbourhood, she told him in whispers of the men from whomshe had escaped, and of the fate which had so narrowly overtakenher. 

"They are the robbers of Black Notley, " she said. "There are tworival bands of robbers here--one at White Notley and one at BlackNotley. We call them the Black or the White Robbers, to distinguishbetween them. The White are not so fierce or so lawless as theBlack; but both are a terror to us, for we never know what violencewe shall not hear of next. "

"And these Black Robbers would have carried you away with them, bywhat I gathered from their words, at least from the words of himthey looked to as their leader?"

The girl shuddered strongly. 

"Once he lived in our village--Much Waltham, as it is called. Hewas no robber then; but a proper youth enough; and although I wasbut a little maid, not grown to womanhood, he asked my hand of myfather in marriage. "

"And what said your father to his suit?"

"Why, that I was too young to be betrothed as yet; but that if hewere a steady youth, as time went on perchance it might be even ashe wished. But instead of growing up to the plough or the anvils asother youths of our village do, he must needs go off to seesomewhat of the wars; and when he returned it was as a swashbucklerand roisterer, such as my father and mother cannot abide sight of. When he came to Figeon's to ask me in marriage, he was turned fromthe door with cold looks and short words; but he would ever bestriving to see me alone, and swear that he loved me and would wedme in spite of all. I had liked him when I was but a child, but Igrew first to fear and then to hate him; and at last I spoke toWill Ives, the smith's son, of how he troubled me and gave me nopeace of my life. And forthwith there was a great stir through thevillage; and Will Ives set upon him and beat him within an inch ofhis life, for all he was so proud of his skill and strength. Andthe good brothers spoke to him seriously of his evil courses, and Iknow not what besides. So the end was that he ran away once moreand joined himself to the Robbers of Black Notley, and was taken insuch favour by the captain of the band that he is half a captainhimself; and many is the time he has ridden through our village, robbing his old neighbours, and doing more harm in a night thanmonths of hard work will put right; and often when I have chancedto meet him he has given me a look that has frozen the blood in myveins. I have always lived in fear of him all my life; but I wasnever in such peril before today. "

"Peril enough, in all sooth, " said the traveller. "How came it, pretty maiden, that you chanced to be all alone in the wood so nearto the haunts of the robbers?"

"Nay, I was far enough away from their regular haunts. I had butcome a short cut through the wood to see a sick neighbour, and Itarried beside her longer than I well knew. I will never do thelike again, but I have been used from childhood to roam theseforest paths unharmed. The wood is thick, and if I hear the soundof horse or man I always slip aside and hide myself. But today, methinks, they must have tracked me and were lying in wait; for thewood was silent as the church till I reached the clearing, and thenthe whole four sprang up from behind the pile of felled trees andset upon me. Had you not been at hand, by good providence; I shouldere this have been their helpless captive;" and again the girlshuddered strongly. 

By this time the trees were growing somewhat thinner, and lightsbegan to twinkle here and there, showing that some village was nighat hand. A bell for vespers began to ring forth, and the travellerwas glad enough to think his toilsome journey nearly at an end. Hardy as he was, and well inured to fatigues and hardship of allkinds, he was growing exhausted from his day's travel and his sharpfighting. He was wounded, too, and although there was no greateffusion of blood, his hurt was becoming painful, and his left arm, which was undoubtedly broken, required some skilled attention. 

"Is it here that you live, fair maid?" he asked. "I know not howyou are named; but I gather that you are directing our course toyour own home. "

"My name is Joan Devenish, " she answered, "and the lights you seeyonder are those of Much Waltham, and it is our church bell thatyou hear ringing out so sweetly. My father's farm is a mile beyond. But I beseech you ride thither with me. My mother would be illpleased did I not bring home the gallant stranger who had saved mefrom my foes. And Figeon's will be proud to shelter such a guest. "

"I give you humble thanks, Mistress Joan, and gladly would I findso hospitable a shelter. I am but a poor traveller, however, roaming the world in search of the fame and fortune that come not. I am one of those who have ever followed the failing fortunes ofthe Red Rose of Lancaster, and sorry enough has often been myplight. But if rumour speaks true, and the great Earl of Warwickhas placed King Henry once again on his throne, then perchance Imay retrieve the fallen fortunes of my house. My father andbrothers laid down their lives for his cause; his foes tookpossession of our fair lands, and I was turned adrift on the wideworld. But tell me, ere we journey farther, which Rose you and yourhouse favour; for I would not bring trouble upon any, and my rovinglife has taught me that the House of Lancaster has many bitterfoes. "

"O sir, be not afraid, " answered Joan eagerly; "we country folk arequiet and peaceable, and care little who wears the crown, so as wemay till our land in peace, and be relieved from the hordes ofrobbers and disbanded soldiers who have swarmed the country solong. We have called ourselves Yorkists these past years, sinceKing Edward has been reigning; but I trow if what men say is true, and he has fled the country without striking a blow for his crown, and the great earl has placed King Henry on the throne again, thatwe shall welcome him back. I know little of the great matters ofthe day. My father bids me not trouble my head over things too hardfor me. I tend the poultry and the young calves, and let thequestion of kings alone. "

The traveller smiled at this; but his companion was evidentlysomething of a talker, and endued with her full share of femininecuriosity. 

"I would gladly know your name, fair sir, " she said shyly, "for Ishall have to present you to my good father ere long. "

"My name is Paul Stukely, " he answered. "I am the youngest and onlysurviving son of one of King Henry's knights and loyal adherents. My parents are both dead, and I have long been alone in the world. I have little to call my own save my good horse and trusty weapons. But I sometimes hope that there may be better days in store, if therightful king gets back his own again. "

At that moment the travellers were passing by the village forge, and a bright gleam of light streamed across their path, revealingto a brawny young fellow at the door the weary horse and its doubleburden. He came one step nearer, and exclaimed:

"Why, Joan, what means this? You riding pillion fashion with astranger! What, in the name of all the saints, has befallen you?"

Sultan had paused of his own accord at the forge, and Joan waseagerly telling her story to a little crowd of listeners, andmaking so much capital out of the heroism of her gallant rescuerthat all eyes were turned upon the battered stranger; and whilstdeep curses went up from the lips of many of the men as they heardof the last attempt of the Black Robbers upon one of their ownvillage maidens, equal meed of praise and thanks was showered uponPaul, who leaned over his saddlebow in an attitude that bespokeexhaustion, though he answered all questions, and thanked the goodpeople for their kindly reception of him, whilst trying to makelight of his own prowess, and to give the credit of their finalescape to Joan, to whom, indeed, it was due. 

But the elder smith, John Ives, pushed his way through the littlegroup round the black horse, and scattered them right and left. 

"Good neighbours, " he said, "can you not see that this gentleman isweary and wounded, and that his good horse is like to drop as hestands?

"Go to, Will. Lift down the maid, and lead her yourself up toFigeon's. I will conduct the gentleman thither, and tend his hurtsmyself. 

"For, good sir, I know as much about broken bones as any leech inthe countryside; and if you will but place yourself in my hands, I'll warrant you a sound man again before another moon has run hercourse. 'Tis a farrier's trade to be a bit of a surgeon; and theIveses have been farriers in Much Waltham longer than any can mind. 

"On then, good horse. 'Tis but a short mile farther; and a goodstable and a soft bed, and as much fodder as you can eat, you willfind at Figeon's Farm. "

Paul was glad enough to have matters thus settled for him; and evenSultan seemed to understand the promise made him, for he pricked uphis ears, dropped his nose for a moment into the kindly hand of thesmith, and with the guiding hand upon his rein stepped brisklyforward up the dark rough lane, through the thick belt of trees oneither side. For in the days of which I write the great forest ofEpping extended almost all over the county of Essex, the villageswere scarcely more than small clearings in the vast wood, and onlyround the farms themselves were there any real fields worth callingby the name. 

Will and Joan tripped on ahead more rapidly than Sultan or hismaster cared to go. Paul did not trouble himself any longer aboutthe road he was traversing, leaving himself entirely in the kindlycare of the smith. He even dozed a little in the saddle as thehorse picked his way steadily through the darkness, and was onlyfully roused up again by the sight of lanterns dancing, as itseemed, over the ground, by the sound of rough yet pleasant voices, and the glimmer of steadier light through the latticed windows ofsome building near at hand. The next minute he was before thehospitable door of the old farmhouse. 

A ruddy blaze streamed out through that open door. Friendly handsassisted him to alight, and guided him to a rude oak settle placedwithin the deep inglenook, which was almost like a small innerchamber of the wide farm kitchen. Some hot, steaming drink was heldto his lips; and when he had drunk, the mist seemed to clear awayfrom his eyes, and he saw that he was the centre of quite a groupof simple rustics; whilst the pretty, dark-eyed Joan, in her gownof blue serge, with its big sleeves of white cloth, was eagerlywatching him, all the time pouring out her story, which everybodyappeared to wish to hear again and again. 

"Just to think of it!" cried a burly man, whose dress bespoke him afarmer no less than his ruddy cheeks and horny hands. "Would that Ihad been there! He should not then have escaped with his life. 

"Child, why didst thou not stab him to the heart as he lay?

"Well has he been called Devil's Own by his former comrades andplayfellows. A defenceless girl--my daughter! By good St. Anthony, if he crosses my path again it shall be for the last time. Iwill--"

"Hush, I pray you, good husband, " said his wife more gently, thoughfrom the way in which she clasped her daughter to her breast it wasplain she had been deeply moved by the story of her peril. "Remember what the Scriptures say: 'Thou shalt not kill, ''Vengeance is mine, ' and many like passages--"

But the woman stopped suddenly short, silenced by the grip of herhusband's hand upon her arm. A quick look was exchanged betweenthem, and she lapsed into silence. 

The farmer glanced round him, and dismissed the serving wenches andlabourers who had gathered round to their own quarters, and indeedin many cases to their beds; for early hours were all the fashionin those days. The farmer's wife beckoned her daughter, and went toprepare for the lodging of their guest; and before very long Paulfound himself in a bed which, however rude according to ournotions, was luxury itself to the weary traveller. 

The smith soon saw to his hurts, pronounced them only trifling, andbound them up as cleverly as a leech would have done. Indeed, hewas the regular doctor for most kinds of hurts, and could practisethe rude surgery of the day with as much success as a morequalified man. 

Paul had been weary enough half-an-hour before, but the good foodhe had taken and the hot spiced wine had effectually aroused him. He was very tough and well seasoned, and although glad enough tolie still in bed, was not particularly disposed for sleep; and whenthe smith was preparing to depart, he begged him to stay a whilelonger, and tell him something about the place and about the peoplehe had come amongst. The worthy man was ready enough to chat, though he had little notion of imparting information. Still, heanswered questions with frankness, and Paul was able to pick up agood deal of gossip as to public opinion in those parts and thefeeling of the people round. 

But what he heard did not give him pleasure. He had been in thenorth when he had heard of Warwick's sudden desertion of theYorkist cause, and before he had been able to reach London he hadheard the glad news that Henry of Lancaster was again on thethrone, placed there by the power of the King Maker, who haddethroned him but a few years back. Glad as Paul was, he yet wishedthat any other hand had been the one to place the crown upon thegentle monarch's head. He could not but distrust Warwick, and hewas eager to learn the feeling of the country, and to know whetheror not the people welcomed back the sovereign so long a captive. 

But in this place, at least, it seemed as if there was no pleasurein Henry's restoration. The smith shook his head, and said he hadno faith in his keeping the crown now he had got it. It seemed asif the love borne by Londoners to Edward of York had extended asfar as this remote village: the people had been enjoying again, under the later years of his reign, something of the blessings ofpeace, and were loath that their calm should be disturbed. 

The feeling might not be patriotic, but it was natural, and Pauladmitted with a sigh that the cause of the Red Rose was not likelyto find favour here. A king who could fight and who could govern, and hold his kingdom against all comers, was more thought of thanone who appeared a mere puppet in the hands of a designing noble ora strong-willed queen. The sudden desertion of Warwick from hisbanner had caused a momentary panic in Edward's army, and the kinghad fled with his followers beyond the sea; but, as the hardy smithremarked with a grim smile, he would not be long in coming back toclaim his kingdom. And if the country were again to be plunged intothe horrors of civil war, it would be better for the whole brood ofLancaster to seek exile or death. 

Paul had not energy to argue for his cause, and fell asleep withthese sinister words ringing in his ears. 

Chapter 2: A Hospitable Shelter. 

Figeon's Farm (the true spelling of the name should be Fitz-John's, but nobody ever thought of calling it so) was a prosperous andpleasant place enough. It had been in the hands of Devenishes eversince the Norman conquest--so at least the common belief went--andthere was no tradition of the house or lands having been in otherhands than those of the present family. 

When Paul Stukely awoke from the deep sleep of exhaustion intowhich he had fallen even while the worthy smith had been talking tohim overnight, his ears were assailed by the peaceful andcomfortable sounds inseparable from farmhouse life and occupation. He heard the cackling of hens, the grunting of pigs, and the roughvoices of the hinds as they got the horses out of the sheds, andprepared to commence the labours of the day with harrow or plough. These sounds were familiar enough to Paul; they seemed to carry himback to the days of his childhood, and he lay for several minutesin a state between sleeping and waking, dreamily wondering if thestrange events of the past year were all a dream, and if he shouldwake by-and-by to find himself a child once more, in his little bedin the old home, and receive his mother's kiss as his morning'sgreeting. 

But soon this sweet illusion faded, and the young man sat up in bedand looked quickly round him, trying to recollect where he was andwhat had brought him here. During the last two years, in which hehad been forced to lead the roving life of an adventurer--commonenough in those days, and by no means entirely distasteful to oneof his temperament and training--he had slept in many strangeplaces, and had known quarters far ruder than the unceiled, raftered room of the gabled farm. 

In time it all came back to him--the attack upon the helpless girlin the wood, his own successful defence, and the journey to thefarmhouse in the gathering darkness. Paul gave himself a shake tosee how he felt, and decided that although stiff and bruised, andcrippled in the left arm, he might yet make shift to rise and dresshimself. He saw his clothes all laid out in readiness for him, andit was plain that some good friend had sat up far into the nightbrushing and mending them; for they had been in somewhat sorryplight after his adventure of yesterday, and now they were freshand clean and almost smart looking, as they had not been for many along day before. 

As Paul was slowly dressing, he was suddenly aware of the sound ofa woman's voice speaking or reading--he fancied from its monotonouscadence that it must be the latter--in some room that could not befar away from his own chamber. In those days such an accomplishmentas reading was not at all common to the inhabitants of a farm, andPaul stood still in surprise to listen. 

Yes, there was no mistaking it, there was certainly somebody--somewoman--reading aloud in a chamber hard by. Presently the cadence ofthe voice changed, and Paul was certain that the reading hadchanged to prayer; but not the pattering Paternosters or Ave Mariaswith which he was familiar enough. This style of prayer was quitedifferent from that; and the young man, after listening for a fewmoments with bated breath, exclaimed to himself, in accents ofsurprise and some dismay:

"Lollards, in good sooth! By the mass, I must have stumbled into anest of heresy;" and he crossed himself devoutly, as if to shieldhimself from the evil of contamination. 

Paul had been born and bred a Papist, as indeed was the case withmost of his countrymen in those days. The House of Lancaster wasdeeply attached to the faith as they found it, and Henry the Sixthhad burned many a heretic at Smithfield; for he was at once a saintand a fanatic--a very common combination then, hard enough as itseems now to bracket the two qualities together--and led in allthings by his ghostly advisers. 

But the leaven of the new doctrines was silently working throughoutthe length and breadth of the land in spite of all repressivemeasures, and King Edward the Fourth, either from policy orindifference, had done little or nothing to check its spread. London--the place of all others which was ever loyal to him--was aperfect hotbed of heresy (in the language of the priests), and thatalone was enough to deter the Yorkist monarch from stirring upstrife and bringing down upon his head the enmity of the powerfulcity which served him so well. Now that the meek Henry wore thecrown again--if indeed he did wear it--the Lollards might welltremble for their liberties and lives. 

As for Paul, he had seen and heard little of the new religion, ashe called it, and looked upon it as a terrible and deadly sin. Atthe same time, he had knocked about the world enough to have won alarger toleration for all sorts and conditions of men than he wouldhave done had he remained master of the ancestral estates at home;and after a momentary thrill of dismay and repulsion, he decided totake no notice of what he had inadvertently overheard. 

These people had been kind and friendly. If they desired him toremain a short time beneath their roof until his wounds werehealed, he saw no particular reason against doing so. A spell ofrest and quiet would suit him and Sultan very well, and with theirprivate beliefs he had no concern; the less he knew of them thebetter. 

So he finished his toilet, whistling a gay tune to drown the soundof the unauthorized prayer nigh at hand; and when he had finishedhe opened his door, and made his way down the narrow, windingstairs, into the great kitchen he had entered the previous evening. 

The big place looked cheerful enough this bright morning: the doorstanding wide open to the October sunlight--the huge fire of logscrackling and blazing on the wide hearth and roaring up the vastopen chimney--the rude metal and wooden utensils as clean asscrubbing could make them--and the brick floor clean enough to eatoff, as the saying goes. And this cleanliness was not so common inthose days of partial civilization as it is now: there werefarmhouses enough and to spare in the England of that day where menand animals herded together amid filth that we should hardlycondemn pigs to in this enlightened age. Wherefore Paul was bothpleased and surprised by all he saw, and his dim misgivings fledaway promptly. 

In the wide inglenook before the oak settle a small table had beendrawn up, and upon this table stood one wooden platter, and somehomely viands sufficiently tempting to a hungry man, and a hugejoram of home-brewed ale. Paul did not doubt for a moment that thiswas his own breakfast thus temptingly spread for him; and he wasfully disposed to do it ample justice, for he had eaten littleduring the past four-and-twenty hours, and had ridden far and donesome good hard fighting to boot. But he did not like to sit downuninvited, and as he stood warming his hands at the pleasant blaze, there tripped into the room the girl he had last clearly seen, gunin hand, in the forest, and she greeted him with the prettiestsmile and blush. 

"Good morrow, fair sir. I am pleased indeed to see you thus afoot, and hope you feel little the worse for your brave encounteryesterday. We know not how to thank you; in truth, I scarce sleptall last night, thinking what my fate must have been but for yourtimely rescue. But I pray you be seated, and try this pie ofmother's own making, with a slice of home-cured ham (father is agreat rearer of pigs; and the brothers of Leighs Priory, who knowwhat good living is, always come to him for his primest bacon andham). You look as if you needed a good meal, for your face is butwan this morning. Mother scarce looked to see you on your feet sosoon. "

Paul laughed as he sat himself down to the hospi table board. 

"Nay, I scarce feel any ill effects from the knocks I got. A roverlike myself is tough and wiry, or should be. I fear this arm maynot be serviceable for a few weeks to come, but--"

"But if you will do us the pleasure to make this poor house yourhome until such time as you can go forth a sound man, you will begiving us great honour and pleasure; for I think that if harm hadbefallen our dear and only daughter, her father's heart would havebroken, and her mother's hairs have gone down with sorrow to thegrave. "

It was a fresh voice that spoke these words, and Paul roseinstinctively to his feet as he found himself face to face with hishostess. 

Mistress Devenish, as she was commonly called, was no ordinarybuxom, loud-tongued farmer's wife, but a slight, small woman, ofrather insignificant aspect, unless the expression of the face wastaken into account. Then indeed might be seen a refinement andintellect seldom found in persons of her class in those rough anduncultured times. Paul, who was a shrewd observer, detected at oncethat this was no ordinary woman before him, and saw from whom Joanhad inherited her graceful, refined bearing and sweet, low-tonedvoice. She was a much taller and finer woman than her mother hadever been, for she had something of her father's strength andstature; but for all that she owed much of her charm to her mother, and plainly regarded her with true filial devotion. 

"I thank you heartily, " answered Paul, as he held out his hand ingreeting. "I should be glad enough to rest, for a few days atleast, in such pleasant quarters; but I must not let myself becomea burden to you because that I have had the honour of rendering atrifling service to fair Mistress Joan here. "

"Nay, sir, it was no trifling service you did her; it was suchservice as must ever cause a mother's heart to swell with thankfuljoy. What would have become of the maid carried off by that evilman to his own secret haunts I dare not even think. Had they slainher before her parents' eyes, it would have been less terrible thanto know her utterly at their mercy. "

"Ay, indeed it would, " cried the girl, with dilating eyes. "Ah, fair sir, you know not what monsters these terrible robbers can be. Oh, I pray you go not forth again until you can go a hale and soundman; for you have incurred by your act of yesterday the fury of onewho never forgives, and who is as cunning as he is cruel. He mayset his spies upon you; and dog your steps if you leave this place;and if you were to be overcome by them and carried off to theircave in the forest, some terrible and cruel death would surelyawait you there. For they truly call him Devil's Own--so crafty, sobloodthirsty, so full of malice and revenge has he ever shownhimself. "

The girl's cheek paled as she spoke; but Paul smiled at her fears. Not that he was altogether foolhardy, or disposed to despisewarnings thus given him; but his life had taught him a certainhardihood and contempt of danger, and he and his good horse hadproved match enough for formidable antagonists before now. 

"I thank you for your kind thought for me, and I will use allprudence when I stir from the shelter of this hospitable roof. Butmy next journey will be to London, and there, methinks, shall Ifind more of law and order. It is a sad state of things when notforty miles from the king's own city bands of robbers abound andflourish, making honest folks tremble for their lives andliberties. "

"You speak truly; young sir, " answered Mistress Devenish, who hadnow sat down to her spinning wheel in the inglenook, whilst herdaughter still hovered about restlessly, and waited assiduouslyupon their disabled guest. "And had King Edward but kept histhrone, I verily believe he would have put down with a strong handthese same marauders who devastate the country more than waritself. Things were beginning to improve after the long anddisastrous civil strife, and we fondly told ourselves that theworst was over, and that the distracted country would tastesomething of the blessings of peace again. But since that haughtyearl men call the King Maker has gone to France to make his peacewith the Lancastrian queen, and has returned to place her husband(poor man, it is no fault of his that he cannot sway the sceptre, but can only submit to the dictates of others) on England's throne, we shall again be plunged, I know it well, in bloody and terriblestrife. The lion-hearted Edward will never resign his rightswithout a struggle. He will return and collect an army, and thecruel bloodshed will recommence. This bloodless victory will notlast. God alone knows how the struggle will end. We know but toowell that misery and desolation will be the fate of the countryuntil the matter is finally settled one way or the other; and whenwill that be?"

Paul listened in grave silence to these words, so foreign to hisown hopes and the confident expressions he had heard from time totime uttered by hot partisans of the Red Rose. He had hoped to findthe whole country rejoicing in the restoration of the gentlemonarch, whom he loved with the ardour of a generous and impetuoustemperament. But these simple folks, rustic and unlettered thoughthey were, managed somehow to throw a shadow over his spirit bytheir grave and doubting words. 

He realized that King Henry would have a hard struggle ere thewhole of England owned his sway. Edward was yet the king in many apart of the realm. He was more respected and beloved than thefeeble, monk-ridden monarch he had deposed; and if it came to be aquestion of abstract right, none could dispute the superiority ofthe claim of the House of York. Edward was the descendant of theelder branch of the family of Edward the Third. It was only thepolitic reign of the fourth Henry, and the brilliant reign of thefifth, which had given to the House of Lancaster its kingly title. Men would probably never have thought of disputing the sixthHenry's sway had he held the sceptre firmly and played the part ofking, to any purpose. But his health and temperament were alikefeeble: he inherited the fatal malady of his grandsire of France, and was subject to fits of mental illness which made him utterlyhelpless and supine. His strong-minded queen was detested by thenobles and unpopular with the mass of the people, whilst theambition of the powerful barons and peers had made civil strife aneasy and popular thing. 

There was no great issue at stake in these disastrous wars; noburning question was settled by the victory of either side; nogreat principle or national interest was involved. It was littlemore in reality than the struggle for supremacy and place amongstthe overbearing and ambitious nobles; hence the ease and readinesswith which they changed sides on every imaginable pretext, and thehopeless character of the struggle, which ruined and exhausted thecountry without vindicating one moral or national principle. 

But Paul Stukely, at twenty years of age, was not likely to takethis dispassionate view of the case. His whole heart was in thecause of the Red Rose, and he could scarce listen to these quietbut telling words without breaking out into ardent defence of thecause he had at heart. 

"But listen, good mistress, " he exclaimed eagerly, when she hadceased to speak: "there are better days dawning for the land thanthey have seen either beneath the rule of the gentle Henry or thebold but licentious Edward. His blessed majesty has no love for theoffice of king, and his long captivity has further weakened hishealth and increased his love for retirement. You speak truly whenyou doubt if he will ever rule this turbulent nation, so long tornwith strife and divided into faction. But think--he need not swaythe sceptre which has proved too heavy for his hands. He has ason--a fair and gallant prince--worthy of the royal name of Edwardwhich he bears. Men say that it will not be the feeble father whowill restore order to the country and bring peace again to itsshores, but that the task will be intrusted to the youthful Edward, who in his person combines the graces of his stately mother and thewarlike prowess of his great ancestor whose cognizance he bears. Trust me, good people, if you love not Henry you will love Henry'sson; and will it not be better to be ruled by him than by thatother Edward of York, the usurper, who, though I verily believe hecan be a lion in battle, yet spends his days, when not in arms, inlolling in idleness and luxury amid his fine court beauties, andbeseems himself rather as a woman than a man? I would fain serve aspotless prince, such as our noble Prince of Wales is known to be, than one whose life is stained by the debaucheries of a luxuriouscourt, and gluttony such as it is a marvel even to hear of. "

Joan's eyes lighted, as the youth spoke with all the ardour of ayoung and vivid imagination and a generous and undoubting love. Even the grave-faced woman at the spinning wheel smiled to herself, and though she heaved a little sigh, she answered gently enough:

"Ay, young sir, if that could be! If we could be ruled by one whowas brave, and stainless, and wise, and just, then England mightcount itself a happy land indeed; but I have lived throughtroublous times, and I have lost hope in such a speedy and happyconclusion to the matter. But we shall see--we shall see. "

"We have all favoured King Edward's cause here, as I told youyesterday, " said Joan; "for we seemed better off under his rulethan in the days before, when we were distracted by the war. Buttell us of this prince--the Prince of Wales, as you call him. Wouldhe be able to rule us wisely and well? Has he a strong arm and akind heart? And does he think for himself? or do the monks or thequeen direct him in all matters? Have you ever seen him? Do youknow what he is like?"

"I have not seen him since he was a child and I a child, too, "answered Paul, his face lighting at the recollection of the littleprince of his dreams, which had never faded or grown dim. "Insooth, he was the noblest, kingliest child the sun ever shone on. And men say he has grown up to fulfil all the promise of his youth. He is solemnly betrothed, so they say, to the Lady Anne, thedaughter of the proud Earl of Warwick, and it is into his handsthat the real government of the country will be intrusted. 

"Oh, you would love him if you could see him--I am sure of that. Iwould he could come himself now, for the hearts of the nation wouldsurely go out to him. Shall I tell you a story of him when he was achild--when we were children together? You will see how sweet andlovable he was even then, and I warrant that he has not changednow. "

Joan answered eagerly in the affirmative, and Paul told of hisadventure with the little prince in the forest hard by Lichfield;and mother and daughter as they heard the tale exchanged glances, as if it was not the first time they had heard something of thekind. He had hardly finished the narrative before Joan brokeeagerly in:

"O sir, was it in truth you that balked the robbers of their prey?I pray you never speak of this to any in these parts, for truly itmight cost you your life. You have heard us speak of the BlackNotley robbers, whose lawless band our neighbour joined--the onewho tried yesterday to get me into his clutches? Well, this samestory that you have told to us he has heard a dozen times from hischief--the chief of all the band--Fire Eater, as he is called intheir fierce language. It was he and his followers who hung uponthe royal party all those long years ago, and he who carried youoff in mistake for the Prince of Wales. He has often been heard toswear terribly over that great disappointment, and regret that hedid not run his sword through the body of the daring boy who hadoutwitted him. If he were to hear of your being here, he would moveheaven and earth to obtain your capture or death. 

"O sir, be advised, you are in more peril than you know. Go notforth from the shelter of these doors till you can do so a soundman, and then make hasty and swift flight for London, whereperchance you may be safe. These terrible robbers are not to besmiled at; they are cunning and cruel and crafty beyond belief. Ishiver even for myself whenever I think of that terrible SimonDowsett, whom they call Devil's Own. "

Paul was not a little surprised to hear that his childish exploithad been heard of here, and that the robber chief he had outwittedwas the real leader of the band some members of which he had slainthe previous day. He could not disguise from himself that he mighton this account be placed in a position of some danger. The manwhose villainous scheme he had frustrated would undoubtedly be hisdeadly enemy, and it was possible that if his name became known inthe place, it would draw upon him the vengeance of the whole band. True, the robber chieftain might have forgotten the name of thechild who had been carried off by him in mistake for the Prince ofWales; but Paul remembered how he had called it out when appealingto his friend the farmer for help, and it was possible that itmight be remembered against him. Certainly, in his present crippledstate, it seemed advisable to remain in hiding at the farm, as hewas so hospitably pressed to do; and after a short debate withhimself upon his position, he gratefully consented to do so. 

"That is right, that is right, " cried the farmer, when he came inat midday for the dinner that family and servants all sharedtogether; and presently, when the meal was over, and the women hadretired to wash up the platters in an adjoining room, whilst thelabourers had started forth for their labours, the master drew hisguest into the warm inglenook again, and said to him in a lowvoice:

"I'll be right glad to have a good Lancastrian abiding beneath myroof for awhile. The good brothers of Leighs are our bestcustomers, and one or another of them is always coming across onsome errand, and 'twill do us no harm in their eyes to find afollower of King Henry under our roof. I know not how it is, but oflate they have been somewhat changed toward us;" and the farmerlooked uneasily round, as if hardly knowing who might be listening. "We go to mass as regular as any; and my little girl there hasworked a robe for the reverend prior himself as cost me a prettypenny in materials, and half blinded her pretty eyes, she sat at itso close. They have no need to look askance at us; but there, there, I suppose they have had a deal of trouble with the hereticbooks and such like as have been getting about the country of late. They say they found a Wycliffe's Bible hidden under the hearthstone of a poor woman's cottage in Little Waltham, nigh at handhere; and if King Henry had been on the throne, she might have beensent up to Smithfield to be burned, as an example and warning toothers. But King Edward was on the throne then, and he cares not toburn his subjects for heresy--God bless him for that! But if KingHenry is coming back to reign, it behoves all good persons to becareful and walk warily. So, young sir, if you can speak a goodword for us to the holy brothers, I will thank you with all myheart. It's a bad thing when they get the notion that a house iscorrupted by heresy. "

The palpable uneasiness of the farmer betrayed to Paul full wellthat he was very much afraid of the orthodoxy of his wife, and itwas not impossible that he himself might not be secretly favouringthe new religion whilst conforming outwardly in all things. Suchcases were by no means rare, and this village appeared Yorkistenough in its sentiments to suggest suspicions as to its orthodoxy. 

But Paul was young and impressionable and generous; he liked thesegood folks, and knew nothing whatever to their discredit. He wassure that, whatever they might privately believe, they were goodand trustworthy folks, and he gave his word to do all that hecould, if chance offered, with an emphasis that won him the heartythanks of the farmer. 

Nor was the chance very long in coming: for only on the afternoonof the next day a portly monk jogged up to the farm on his sleekpalfrey; and Paul, who was seated near to the door, rose and benthis knee, asking the customary blessing; after which the monkdismounted, and made his way into the kitchen to give some order tothe good mistress of the house. 

The monks of those days were regular gossips, and loved a chat, asthey sat in the chimney corner enjoying a cup of the best wine thehouse afforded, or a substantial meal of the choicest products ofthe larder. Brother Lawrence was no exception to this rule; and thefarmer's wife bestirred herself to get him everything he couldfancy, whilst he sat and questioned Paul as to his history and theadventure which had brought him to this homestead. Very much did heenjoy hearing of the discomfiture of the robbers, and laughed quitemerrily to think how they had been overcome by the handsomestripling before him. 

Presently, when Mistress Devenish had gone away to make someinquiries respecting the flitches of bacon required for the Priory, Brother Lawrence beckoned Paul somewhat nearer, and said, in a lowvoice, in his ear:

"Be in no haste to depart from hence, my son. It may be that thereis work for you here for the Holy Church. It is whispered by oneand another that yon good woman, as I would fain believe her to be, is somewhat tainted with the damnable heresy they call Lollardism, and that she has in her possession one of those Bibles which thatarch-heretic Wycliffe translated into the vulgar tongue for theundoing of the unlearned, who think that they can thus judge forthemselves on matters too high for them. You, my son, as a true sonof the Church, may do us great service by keeping open both earsand eyes, and telling if you see or hear ought amiss. I would fainlearn that no such evil is done among these good folks; but if itbe that the leaven is working, it will be your duty to tell usthereof, and we will see if the evil may not be stamped out ere ithas spread to others, or much corrupted even them that are tainted. We trust that the days are dawning now when Holy Church will haveher ancient powers restored, and will be able to deal with hereticseven as they merit. But however that may be, be it your work towatch and listen with all the powers you have. I trust that therewill be nought you will hear save what is to the credit of theseworthy folks. "

Paul secretly in his heart vowed that no syllable which should hurthis hosts should ever pass his lips; but he bent his head with duereverence before the monk, who smiled and nodded cheerily to himbefore he went his way. It seemed strange that so jovial and kindlya man should so lightly speak of burning to death fellow creatureswhom he had regarded for years with kindly goodwill. But there werestrange anomalies in those days, even as there are in our own, andPaul saw nothing strange in this, nor in his own conduct, whichmade him appear submissive to the dictates of the Holy Church, ashe ever called her in his thoughts, whilst all the time he wasresolved neither to hear nor to see any of the things which would, if made known, injure his hosts in the eyes of the spiritualauthorities. The very teaching of those spiritual pastorsinculcated a certain amount of deceit and double dealing. Whatwonder if the weapon so freely used by themselves sometimes turnedits double edge against them in its turn?

Paul accompanied the monk to the gate which led to the so-calledroad by which Figeon's was approached. It was nothing but a rudecart track; and although well-tilled fields lay on one side of thistrack, the forest lay upon the other, stretching away black and diminto immeasurable distance. 

Paul lingered a little while beside the gate, watching the friardescend the sloping path; and he might have remained longer than heknew, for he was aroused from his day dream by the growl of one ofthe farm dogs, who stood at his side. Looking quickly round him, hefancied he detected amid the shadows of the trees across the road adark figure almost concealed behind a solid trunk, the face alonevisible--a dark, saturnine face, with a pair of eyes that gleamedlike those of some wild beast. 

The moment those eyes met Paul's the head was withdrawn, and theyouth stood asking himself if it were not all a dream; but if ithad been one, it was remarkably clear and vivid, and he walked tothe house with a look of deep thought upon his face. 

Chapter 3: A Strange Encounter. 

"Let me go, " said Paul; "I should like the walk through the wood. Iam quite strong again now, and I am weary of doing nothing frommorning to night. "

"Well, I don't know why you should not if it pleases your fancy, "said the farmer. "You will be welcome at the Priory, as all guestsare who come with news for the holy brothers from the worldwithout. 'Tis less than four miles away, and you have got the useof your legs. Go, and welcome, if you will. "

"I would go with you, were I not bound to go to Chelmsford myself, "quoth Jack, the farmer's ruddy-faced son, of whom mention has notyet been made. 

Paul had indeed seen but little of him so far, as his time wasmainly spent in the fields, and he had been absent from home on hisfirst arrival there, buying some fat sheep to be killed and salteddown for consumption in the winter. 

"I like well enough a visit to the Priory. There is always goodcheer there enough and to spare. They know what good living means, those holy men. If all other trades failed, I would not mindturning friar myself. "

"Nay, brother, jest not upon the holy men, " quoth his sister in atone of gentle reproof. Then turning to Paul, she added, withsomething of pleading in her tones, "But, sir, why peril yourselfby venturing into the forest alone? You have still but the use ofone arm, and were the robbers to be on the watch for you, you wouldfall an easy prey into their hands. "

But Paul laughed, as also did Jack. 

"I trow the robbers have something else to do than to play the spycontinually on me and my movements, " he said. "They cannot alwaysbe on the watch, and the wood is dark and full of hiding places. Were I to hear the sound of pursuit, I warrant me I could hidemyself so that none should find me. I have done the like many atime before now. In this part of the country one must needs go intothe forest if one is ever to leave the shelter of the house at all. Have no fear for me; I will take care not to run into danger. "

Joan looked as if hardly satisfied, though she was unable to upholdher case by argument; for it was very true that if their guest wasto be anything but a close prisoner, he must adventure himself fromtime to time in the forest. Jack, however, broke into one of hishearty laughs, as he looked at Paul, and said:

"Those same robbers are not such bad fellows, after all, as some ofour good folks would make out. True, they help themselves to ourgoods from time to time; but they are capital company if you chanceto fall upon their haunts, and they make you welcome. I've spentmore than one night amongst them, and never a bit the worse. Menmust live; and if the folks in authority will outlaw them, why, they must jog along then as best they may. I don't think they domore harm than they can well help. "

Mistress Devenish shook her head in silence over the rather wildtalk of her son, but she said nothing. She was used to Jack's ways, and she was proud of his spirit, though afraid sometimes that itwould lead him into trouble. She had noted of late that he had beenunwontedly absent from home during the long evenings of the summerjust gone by, and had wondered what took him off, for he seldomgave account of himself. She noted, too, that he spoke in a verydifferent fashion from others of the robber band that was such aterror to the village folks. She did not know whether or not to putthese two facts together as connected with each other; but shelistened eagerly to all he said on the subject, trying to discoverwhat might be the meaning of this strange leniency of opinion. "It is different for you, brother--they owe you no grudge, " saidJoan, with a slight shiver; whilst the farmer broke in roughly:

"Tut, tut, Jack! what mean you by trying to make common cause withthe ruffians who would have carried your sister off as a prey ofthat graceless scamp well-called Devil's Own? I marvel to hear suchwords from you. You should know better. "

"They are not all brutes like Devil's Own, " muttered Jack in a lowtone; but he did not speak aloud, for the fashion of the dayforbade the young to argue with the old, or children to answer backwhen their parents spoke to them in reproof. 

But Paul was still resolved that he would be the messenger to carryto the Priory that day the two fat capons the worthy mistress hadin readiness for the prior's table. They had been bespoken sometime, and could be no longer delayed. Paul was weary of an idlelife, and eager to see something of the country in which he foundhimself. He was in comfortable quarters enough at the farm; but hewas growing stronger each day, and was beginning to fret againstthe fetters which held him from straying far from the farm. 

He did not much believe in the lasting anger of the robber band. Heknew that those gentlemen would have other matters on hand thanthat of revenging themselves upon him for his frustration of theircaptain's design. He was content to rest yet awhile beneath thehospitable roof of the Figeons, so long as he knew that hispresence there might be something of a protection and gain to itsinmates; but he had no intention of being a prisoner. His youngblood stirred within him, and he longed to be out in the free airof heaven again. His strength had all come back, and even thebroken arm was mending so fast that he felt it would not be longbefore he should gain its full use again. The love of adventure, strong within him, made him fearless even of a second encounterwith the robbers. He felt certain he could hold his own against oneor two, and a whole band would never take him unawares. He shouldhear or see them in plenty of time to hide away in some tree orthicket. It was absurd to be chained within doors any longer. 

Paul was looking now a very different object from the battered andway-worn traveller who had rescued Joan from the robbers. A coupleof weeks' rest and good feeding had given a healthy glow to hischeek, had brightened his eye, and brought back the nativeboyishness and brightness to his face. He was stronger, gayer, blither than he had been since the never-to-be-forgotten day whenhe had closed his dead mother's eyes, and been obliged to fly forhis life from his ancestral halls, ere the rapacious scions of theHouse of York fell upon him there, to take into their ownpossession all that should have been his. For his father andbrothers lay in a bloody grave, killed in one of those many risingsand insurrections scarce mentioned in history, whereby theadherents of the Red Rose sought to disturb Edward's rule inEngland, and incite the people to bring back him they called theirrightful king. 

Those days had changed Paul, a mere lad of seventeen, into a graveand sad-faced man; but the impression had gradually worn somewhatfaint during the three years in which he had been a wanderer and anoutcast from his home. Of late it had seemed to him that his lostyouth was returning, and certainly there was that in his brightglance and erect and noble bearing which won for him universaladmiration and affection. 

He was, in truth, a right goodly youth. His features were veryfine, and the dark-gray eyes with their delicately-pencilled browswere full of fire and brilliance. The lips readily curved to abright smile, though they could set themselves in lines of resolutedetermination when occasion demanded. The golden curls clusteredround the noble head in classic fashion, but were not suffered togrow long enough to reach the shoulders, as in childhood's day; andthe active, graceful, well-knit figure gave indication of greatstrength as well as of great agility. 

Paul's dress, too, was improved since we saw him last; for one ofthe travelling peddlers or hawkers who roamed the country withtheir wares, and supplied the remote villages with the greater partof those articles not made at home, had recently visited Figeon'sFarm, and Paul had been able to supply himself with a new andserviceable suit of clothes, in which his tall figure was set offto the best advantage. 

It was made of crimson cloth and the best Spanish leather, and wascut after one of the most recent but least extravagant fashions ofthe day. Paul had been able to purchase it without difficulty, forhe had by no means exhausted the funds he had in his possession, and the leather belt he wore next his person was still heavy withbroad gold pieces. 

Lady Stukely had seemed to have a prevision of coming trouble forher youngest-born son for many long years before the troublesactually came, and she had been making preparation for the samewith the patience and completeness that only a mother's heart wouldhave prompted. She had made with her own hands a stout leatherbelt, constructed of a number of small pouches, each one of whichcould contain a score of broad gold pieces. She knew full well thatlands might be confiscated, valuables forfeited, houses taken inpossession by foes, but the owner of the current gold of the landwould never be utterly destitute; so for years before her death shebad been filling this ingeniously contrived belt, and had storedwithin its many receptacles gold enough to be a small fortune initself. This belt had been in Paul's possession ever since the sadday when she had kissed him for the last time and had commended himto the care of Heaven. He had by no means yet exhausted itscontents, for he had often won wages for himself by following oneor another great noble in his private enterprises against somelawless retainer or an encroaching neighbour. 

A little money went a long way in those days, when open house waskept by almost all the great of the land, and free quarters andfood were always to be had at any monastery or abbey to whichchance might guide the wanderer's feet. So Paul had not been forcedto draw largely upon his own resources, and was a man of somesubstance still, although his compact little fortune was so wellhidden away that none suspected its presence. 

And now, his health restored, his strength renewed and his outerman refurbished in excellent style, Paul began to weary of theseclusion and monotony of the farm, and was eager to enjoy even themild relaxation of a walk across to the brothers of theneighbouring Priory. The basket was soon packed, and was intrustedto his care; and off he set down the easy slope which led fromFigeon's to Much Waltham, whistling gaily as he moved, and swinginghis heavy burden with an ease that showed how little he made of it. 

Will Ives, the blacksmith's son, was looking out from the rudeforge as he passed, and came out to speak a friendly word to thefine young gentleman, as he now looked to rustic eyes. HonestWill's face had grown somewhat gloomy of late, though Paul did notknow it, and he was suffering, if the truth must be told, from thekeen pangs of jealousy. For he had long been courting JoanDevenish, and hoped to make her his wife before the year's end, andhe fancied that she was disposed to his suit, although she hadnever given a direct reply to his rather clumsy but ardent wooing. 

Of course it seemed to the young smith that every man in the worldmust be equally enamoured of his sweetheart, and he was terriblyafraid that this fine young gentleman, with his handsome face andgraceful figure, and pleasant voice and ways, would altogether cuthim out with saucy Mistress Joan, who, it must be confessed, wasfond of teasing her faithful swain, and driving him to the verge ofdistraction. So it showed Will's good-heartedness that he did notshun and dislike his rival, but rather, when he found him bent onan errand into the forest, offered to go with him part of the way, to make sure that all was safe. 

"We haven't seen anything of the robbers round here lately, andthey always give the Priory a wide berth, being half afraid ofincurring the ban of Holy Church, though they care little aboutanything else. Anyway, I'll walk a part of the way with you, andcarry the basket for a spell. Not but what you look brave andhearty again, in good faith. "

Paul was ready enough for company, and Will soon got talking of hisown private affairs, and presently it all came out--how he hadloved Joan ever since they had been children together; how he hadworked hard these past three years to save money to furbish up alittle home for her; and how he was now building a snug littlecottage under shelter of his father's larger one, so that he mighthave a little place for her all her own, seeing that she had beenused to the space and comfort of the farm. To all this Paullistened with good-humoured interest, only wondering why Will'sface kept so lugubrious, as if he were speaking of something whichhe had hoped for, but which could never be. 

"You will have to look a little brighter when you come a-wooing, "he said at length, "or Mistress Joan will be frightened to look atyou. And why have you kept away so much these last days? She hasbeen quite offended by it, I can tell you. It's always being saidthat you are sure to come today; and when the day goes by and youcome not, she pouts and looks vexed, and casts about for all mannerof reasons to account for it. You had better not be too slack, oryou will offend her altogether. "

Will's face brightened up marvellously. 

"Then you think she cares?"

"Why, of course she does. She's forever talking of you and all youhave done, and what a wonderful Will you are. When she sits at herwheel and chatters to me as I lounge by the fire, she is alwaystelling of you and your sayings and doings. Why, man, did you notknow that for yourself? Did you think all the love was on yourside?"

"I daresay I was a fool, " said Will, getting fiery red. "But Ithought, perhaps, she would not care for a clumsy fellow like meafter she had seen a gentleman like you. You saved her life, youknow, and it seemed natural like that you should care for eachother afterward. I know I'm nothing like you. "

"No, indeed. I'm a mere wanderer--here today and gone tomorrow; asoldier and an outcast, who could never ask any woman to share hislot. My good sword is my bride. I follow a different mistress fromyou. I may never know rest or peace till the House of Lancaster isrestored to its ancient rights. You need not fear me as a rival, good Will; for no thought of marriage has ever entered my head, andsometimes methinks it never will. "

The smith's face was a study as he listened to these welcome words, and Paul laughed as he read the meaning of those changingexpressions. 

"Give me the basket, and get you gone to Figeon's, and make yourpeace with your offended lady, " he said, laughing. "You are but asorry wooer if you yield so soon to depression and despair. But Iwarrant she will forgive you this time; and if you will but pleadyour cause in good earnest, it may be that I shall yet have thepleasure of treading a measure at your wedding feast. "

The blushing smith was easily persuaded to this course, and badefarewell to his companion in eager haste. He was clad only in hisworking apron, and his hands were grimy from his toil; but his openface was comely and honest enough to please the fancy of anymaiden, and Paul thought to himself that Mistress Joan would scarcereject so stalwart a champion after the fright and the shock of theprevious week but one. As Will Ives's wife she would be safer andbetter protected than as Farmer Devenish's unwedded daughter. 

As for himself, thoughts of love and marriage had seldom enteredhis mind, and had always been dismissed with a light laugh. As hehad said to Will, he was wedded to a cause, to a resolute aim andobject, and nothing nearer or dearer had ever yet intruded itselfupon him to wean away his first love from the object upon which ithad been so ardently bestowed. The little prince--as in histhoughts he still called him sometimes--was the object of hisloving homage. King Henry was too little the man, and QueenMargaret too much, for either of them to fulfil his ideal or winthe unquestioning love and loyalty of his heart; but in Edward, Prince of Wales, as he always called him, he had an object worthyof his admiration and worship. 

Everything he heard about that princely boy seemed to agree withwhat he remembered of him in bygone years. He and not the gentleand half-imbecile king would be the real monarch of the realm; andwho better fitted to reign than such a prince?

The kindly welcome he received at the Priory from Brother Lawrenceand the prior himself was pleasant to one who had so long been amere wanderer on the face of the earth. The beautiful medievalbuilding, with its close-shorn turf and wide fish ponds, was astudy in itself, and lay so peacefully brooding in the paleNovember sunshine, that it was hard to realize that the countrymight only too soon be shaken from end to end by the convulsions ofcivil war. 

Paul was eagerly questioned as to what he knew of the feeling ofthe country, and he could not deny that there was great discontentin many minds at the thought of the return to power of theLancastrian king. The monks and friars shook their heads, andadmitted with a sigh that they feared the whole county of Essex wasYorkist to the core, and that it was the leaven of hereticalopinions which was at the root of their rebellion against theirlawful king. It was difficult to believe that the warlike Edwardwould long remain an exile, content to deliver up a kingdom whichhad once been his without striking a single blow, especially whenhis own party was so powerful in the land. . London, a hotbed ofLollardism, would soon raise its voice in the call for Edward ofYork. The present hour was calm and bright, and Henry of Windsorwore his crown again; but the mutterings of the coming storm seemedalready to be heard in the distance, and the brothers of themonastery did not blind their eyes to the fact that the wheel offortune might still have strange turns in store. 

"Wherefore we must walk warily, and not stir up strife, " quoth therubicund prior, who looked at once a benevolent and a strong-willedman. "We will pray for the restoration--the permanent restorationof the good king; but we must avoid stirring up the hearts of hissubjects in such a way as will make them his foes. 

"Young sir, what think you of your hosts at the farm? Are theyquiet and well-disposed people, seeking in all things the good ofthe people, and giving due reverence to Holy Church?"

Paul answered eagerly in the affirmative. He had heard or seennothing of a suspicious character of late, and had grown very fondof the kindly folks, who made him so welcome to the best of whatthey had. His reply was considered very satisfactory, and the priordismissed him with his blessing; for Paul had no wish to be belatedin the forest, and proposed to return immediately after the middaymeal which he had shared with the brothers. 

It was in somewhat thoughtful mood that he pursued his way throughthe woodland paths. Conversation about the burning questions of theday always left him with a feeling akin to depression. He longedfor the restoration of the house he loved and served, but knew thata transitory triumph was not a true victory. There was still muchto be done before Henry's seat upon the throne could be calledsecure; and what would be the result of the inevitable struggle ofthe next months?

He had unconsciously stopped still in deep thought as he askedhimself this question, and was leaning in meditation against agreat oak tree, when he suddenly became aware of a rapid treadapproaching along the narrow track. It seemed as if some youth wereadvancing toward him, for he heard the clear whistle as of a boyishvoice, and the springy tread seemed to denote youth and agility. 

Although Paul was by no means afraid of a chance encounter in theforest, he was well aware that it was possible to be overreachedand taken prisoner by some of the robbers, and that he was anobject of special hatred to some amongst them. He decided, therefore, to act with caution; and as the spot in which he hadhalted was rather an open one, through which meandered a littlebrook, he resolved to slip silently into the thicket hard by, andwatch from that place of security what manner of person it wasadvancing. 

A moment later he had effectually concealed himself, and hardly hadhe done so before a figure came into view through the dim aisles ofthe wood. 

The figure was that of a tall, slim, graceful youth of singularlywinning aspect. His frame displayed that combination of strength, lightness, and agility which is the perfection of training, and hisface was as full of beauty as his frame of activity and grace. Thefeatures were exceedingly noble, and the poise of the head upon theshoulders was almost princely in its unconscious majesty. The eyeswere a deep blue gray, and looked out upon the world as if theirowner were born to rule. The hair was golden in hue, and clusteredround the head in manly fashion, not in the flowing love locks thatsome in those days affected. The dress he wore was very simple, andsomewhat faded, and in his cap a little silver swan was fastened, forming the only adornment on his person. 

Paul, as he lay in his ambush, gazed and gazed as if fascinatedupon the figure now standing stationary in the midst of the greenspace. Instinctively he felt for the little silver swan in his owncap, and looked to see if he had on by mistake the faded dress hehad previously worn, so like the one he now gazed upon. For itseemed to him as though he saw his own double--or someone closelyresembling himself--and his heart began to beat almost tosuffocation; for had not this same experience been his before? andcould there be another, a third youth in the realm, whose face andfigure he had so accurately copied? Paul had not the royal mien ofthis wanderer--he had not even the same absolute beauty of featureor peculiar delicacy of colouring; but for all that the likenesswas so striking that it was bewildering to him to see it, and theimages and visions at once conjured up before his mind's eye wereof a nature to excite him beyond the bounds of consecutive thought. Holding his breath, and still uncertain if he might not bedreaming, he fastened his eyes upon the apparition, and waited forwhat should happen. 

The youth paused and looked round him, and then spoke aloud:

"Have I come on a fool's errand after all? Shall I ever accomplishmy object? Methinks if I had but a trusty comrade at hand somewhatmight be done; but I fear my poor Jacques never reached the landalive, and I had trusted to him to be my guide and counsellor in myquest. Alone I feel helpless--stranded--bewildered. 

"Ha! what is that? Who comes this way?"

"Your faithful servant, gracious prince, " cried Paul, springing outof his concealment and throwing himself at young Edward's feet. "Mydear, dear lord, how come you here alone, unarmed, defenceless, inthe midst of a hostile country? Methinks I do but dream; but yetthe face, the voice--I cannot be mistaken. O sweet prince, did wenot truly say that we should meet again? Do you remember me?"

"Remember you, good Paul? Of a truth I do, and that right well; andit is indeed a happy chance that has thrown you across my path thisday. But Paul, on your life, on your loyalty as a subject, call menot prince again. It might cost me my life, and you yours. 

"Hush! I will be obeyed, and I will explain in brief. I am hereunknown to all. I stole away from my mother's side, even as I stoleinto the forest with you when we were but boys together. She thinksme with her sister, the Princess Yolande. But I had my own purposein coming thus alone and disguised to our royal realm of England. They say my father reigns here once again. The crown has beenplaced upon his head by one I have almost the right now to call myfather-in-law. But what rule has he, in truth, who reigns not inhis people's hearts? What use to seek the empty glory of a goldencrown, who wins not the priceless guerdon of a nation's love?

"Listen then, Paul. They tell me that in my hands will the kinglypower soon be placed. If that is to be so, I would fain learn formyself the temper of my people. And this is not to be learned byEdward, Prince of Wales, seated in the midst of proud nobles at hisfather's court; but it may be learned by a humble wayfarer, whotravels from place to place seeking information from whence it maytruly be culled--namely, from the artless sons of the soil, whospeak not to please their listener but as their heart dictates. 

"Paul, tell me I have done well--smile upon me again; for I am verylonely, and my heart sometimes sinks. But I love my people, andwould be loved by them, only I needs must grow to know them first. "

"O my lord, " cried Paul enthusiastically, "how can they help lovingyou when they see you? But how come you alone, and in these wildwoods, too, infested by fierce robber bands? It is not meet thus toperil your royal life. "

The prince placed his hand smilingly on Paul's lips. 

"Use not that word again, " he said smilingly, yet with a certainimperiousness of manner that became him well. "I am thus solitarythrough the untoward accident that drowned the faithful followerwho alone shared my design, and I knew not that I was in peril fromthese lawless men in one part of the realm more than the other. Paul, if I ever wield the kingly power, I will put down these bandsof marauders with a strong hand. My peaceful subjects shall not goin terror of their liberties and lives. I would learn all theirwrongs that I may right them. They shall know at last that a princewho loves them has been in their midst. "

"And, my lord, if you are thus alone and unattended, take me withyou on your travels. Did you not promise me long years ago that theday would come when we should roam the world together? and has notthe time come now?"

"Why, verily I believe it has, " cried Edward, with brighteningeyes. "But, Paul, I have not asked you of yourself. Have you noother tie--no stronger claim? And how comes it that you are here, so far away from your home? I have asked not your history, though Ihave told mine own. "

"Mine is soon told, sweet prince, " said Paul. "I crave your pardon, but I know not how else to frame my speech. "

Then in a few graphic words he sketched the history of himself andhis kindred during those troubled years of civil strife and ofEdward's reign; and young Edward listened with a sorrowful air anddrooping mien, and heaved a deep sigh at the conclusion. 

"Another faithful house ruined--another tale of woe for which itseems we unhappy princes are the cause. Nay, Paul, I know what youwould say, brave loyal heart; but it lies heavy on my soul for allthat. And having suffered thus, why tempt your fate anew by linkingyour fortunes with those of the hapless House of Lancaster? Whynot--"

"My lord, break not my heart by rejecting my poor services, " criedPaul, plunging anew into the tale of his longing and ambition to beone day called the servant of the Prince of Wales; and then as bothwere young, both ardent, hot-headed, and hopeful, all stern andsorrowful thoughts were laid aside, and the two youths began toplan with eager vehemence the future of adventure which lay beforethem. 

"And first, Paul, this you must learn once and for all: I am princeno more, but Edward alone, Edward Stukely--for I will e'en borrowyour good name--your younger brother, who seeks his fortune withyou. I will pass as cousin here, where you are known, but elsewhereit shall be as brothers we will travel. This strange likeness willbe my best safeguard, for none will doubt that we are close akin. Not as knight and squire, as once we thought, will we roam theworld in search of adventure. This little realm of England willsuffice us, and hand in hand as brothers will we go. But methinkswe shall surely meet as many strange adventures as in our dreams;and if I ever sit at last on England's throne, this journey ofthine and mine will be for years the favourite theme of minstrelsto sing in bower and hall. "

Chapter 4: Paul's Kinsman. 

"Kinsman--marry, a brother in very sooth!" cried the hospitablefarmer, eying Paul's young companion with a glance of shrewdadmiration and surprise; "and right welcome shall he be to suchgood cheer as my poor house can afford. 

"And how found you your brother, fair youth?--for it can scarcehave been chance that led you here. My guest spoke not of bringingyou home when he started forth today. "

"Nay, he knew it not himself, " answered the prince, laughingmerrily. "Nor is he my brother, good mine host: our kinship is aless close one than that, for all that we favour each other sowell. He had no thought of the encounter when he started forthtoday, but kind fortune guided us to the meeting. As children weloved each other and played together, but for years we have notmet. I am nought but a solitary wanderer, without friends or home. It has been a happy chance that has brought to me this trustycomrade and the welcome of this hospitable home. "

There was something so attractive in the aspect and speech of theroyal youth that all who heard him felt their hearts go out to him, they knew not why. The farmer laid his horny hand on the lad's arm, and cried in his jovial way:

"All travellers, be they gentle or simple, are welcome at Figeon'sFarm, and doubly so anyone who claims kinship with our guest andvery good friend Paul Stukely. And you come at a good time, too, young sir; for we have a wedding feast in prospect, and we shallwant all the blithe company we can assemble to make merry at it. 

"Come, my wench; you need not run away. You are not ashamed ofhonest Will; and these gentlemen will doubtless honour our poorhome by remaining our guests a while longer, that they may tread ameasure at your marriage feast. "

Paul looked smilingly at the blushing Joan, whose face was alightwith happiness, and her father continued laughingly:

"Oh ay, they have made it up together this very day; and poor Will, who has been courting her these three years and more, cannot seewhat there is to wait for--no more can I. For my part, since thatrascally Simon tried to carry off the girl, I have known no peaceabout her. Figeon's is a lonely place, and the young know not howto be cautious, and it's ill work for young blood to be cooped upever between four walls. Down in the village, with neighbours abouther, the wench will be safe enough, and Will's sturdy arm will beher best protection. Simon might think twice about assaulting awedded woman to carry her away, when he would count a maid fairspoil, seeing that he ever claimed to be called a lover of hers. Soall ways she will be safer wed, and I see no cause for them towait. "

And indeed in those unsettled and troubled times fathers were gladenough to get their daughters safely married at the firstreasonable opportunity. Farmer Devenish had another reason inwishing Joan to leave her home. He was afraid that she might imbibethe views her mother had embraced, and which he and his son couldnot but give credence to, whilst they made no protest of havingaltered their old way of thinking. But he had always forbidden hiswife to disturb Joan in her pious faith in the old religion. Suchhard matters, he said, were not for young wenches; and the perilwhich menaced those who embraced the reformed doctrines wassufficiently terrible for the mother to be almost glad of theprohibition. It would be an awful thing for her if her daughterfell under the ban of the law, and was made to answer for her faithas some had been in so cruel a fashion before now. 

So that there was no wish on the part of any at the old home tohinder her marriage, and as soon as the young people had come to anunderstanding with one another, their way was made perfectly plainby those in authority. 

Joan looked shyly at Paul as he crossed the kitchen with somepleasant word of congratulation, and said:

"In faith, kind sir, I think we owe it all to you. Will tells me itwas you who sent him hither today. He had got some foolish notionin his head which kept him away; but he said it was you who bid himtake heart and try his luck. "

"And very good luck he has had, it seems, " answered Paul, laughing. "And so the marriage is to be next week?"

"My father and mother wish it so, " answered the blushing Joan; "andmy mother has long had all my household linen spun against thewedding day. I trust you will stay, and your kinsman also. Perchance you have never before seen a rustic wedding. "

"Not for many years now, " answered Paul, with a smile and a sigh;"and I would fain be a witness of yours, fair mistress. But I mustask my young companion there. We have linked our lives together forthe nonce. "

But young Edward was perfectly willing to be the farmer's guest forawhile. Nothing could better have fitted in with his own wishesthan to have stayed in such unquestioned fashion beneath the roofof one of his humble subjects. At the supper table that night hewon all hearts by the grace of his manners, the sweetness of hissmiles, his ready courtesy to all, and the brilliant sallies thatescaped his lips which set the whole table sometimes in a roar. Hepossessed that ready adaptability to circumstances which is oftenan attribute of the highest birth. The motherly heart of MistressDevenish went out to him at once, and she would fain have knownsomething of his history, and how it came that so fair and gentle ayouth was wandering thus alone in the wide world. 

Paul had told her all his story without the least reserve; but thiskinsman of his was more reticent, and if asked a question, contrived to turn the edge off it without appearing to avoid givinga direct answer. But Mistress Devenish was acute enough to perceivethat he did not intend to speak of his own past; and noting theunconscious deference paid by Paul to one whom seniority would havegiven him the right to dictate to and lead, she came to theconclusion that, kinsfolk or no, the newcomer was of a more exaltedrank than his comrade, and that some romantic history attached tohim, as it did only too often, to wanderers in those days. Herinterest in him only deepened as she reached this conclusion, andshe wished that she knew how to help the two lonely youths whosefates seemed now to be linked together. 

Supper was in course, and the whole party assembled round thetable, when a knock at the outer door, heralded by a great barkingof dogs without, caused one of the men to start to his feet; whilstJoan turned red and pale, as she had had a trick of doing of late;and the farmer looked a trifle uneasy, as a man may do who is halfafraid of some domestic visitation of an unpleasing kind. 

But when the door was opened, brows cleared and anxious looksvanished; for the visitor was none other than the peddler of a fewdays back, who, contrary to custom, had paid a second visit to thevillage within a week of the first. 

"Good even, good folks, " he said, stepping in with his heavy bags, which he deposited with a grunt upon the floor. "You will wonder tosee me so soon again, but I was turned from my course by thebreaking down of the bridge at Terling, and so I thought I wouldtramp back the way I had come. Reaching the village at sundown, Iheard the news of the wedding that is to be up here; and, thoughtI, surely where a wedding is to be the peddler is always welcome. So here I am, and I doubt not you will give me a night's shelter;and the pretty maid is welcome to turn over my packs at herleisure, whilst I take my ease in yon cozy inglenook. "

The peddler was always a welcome guest in those days, and Peter waseagerly welcomed by all. He was speedily seated at the board, thebest of everything heaped upon his trencher; whilst as he talkedand ate at the same time, doing both with hearty goodwill, Joan andone of the serving wenches slipped away to the tempting packs andundid the strings, handling the wares thus exposed with tender careand delighted curiosity. 

The father laughed as he saw his daughter thus employed, but bidher choose the finest stuff to make herself a wedding kirtle;whilst he himself turned again to the peddler, asking news of therealm; and young Edward leaned his elbows on the table with hishead in his hands, listening eagerly to every word that passed. 

Paul almost wished he would not thus listen, for it was the sameold story everywhere: discontent at the present state of things;longing for "the king"--by which was meant Edward the Fourth--tocome back and reclaim the kingdom; gloomy prognostications of civilwar; hopes that the proud Earl of Warwick would change sides oncemore--a thing many quite expected of him. 

And invective against the feeble Henry and the warlike andrevengeful Margaret of Anjou, scornfully called "the Frenchwoman, "ran so high that Paul presently drew his kinsman away, and tried tointerest him in other matters. 

"Heed them not, my lord, " he whispered. "We know there have everbeen two factions in the kingdom, and in these parts they are allfor the House of York. But the coming of this peddler may be goodfor you. Said you not that you wished to purchase a riding dress?His wares are good and not too costly for narrow purses. Since wemean to ride to London shortly, this were no bad time to furnishyourself with such things as you need for the journey. "

Edward roused himself with an effort, and shook off the melancholywhich had crept over his face as he listened to the talk round thetable. The peddler's wares were being unpacked and handed round forinspection in a free and easy fashion enough; but the man made noobjection, and only kept a pretty keen watch upon his property, glancing from time to time at the stranger youth with rather markedscrutiny, which, however, the latter did not observe. 

There was a riding dress amongst the goods of the peddler somewhatsimilar to the one recently purchased by Paul, and Edward decidedupon the purchase of it, if he could come to terms with the man. Heand Paul both desired to make some present to the bride, and pickedout, the one an elegant high-peaked headdress, such as the ladiesof the day loved to wear, though satirists made merry at theexpense of their "exalted horns;" the other, some of the long goldpins to fasten both cap and hair which were equally acceptable asan adjunct to a lady's toilet. 

Edward brought his purchases over to the corner where the peddlerhad ensconced himself, and addressed him in a low tone:

"See here, my good fellow. I am a wanderer from foreign parts; andmy servant, who had charge of my moneybag, lost his life, I fearme, in trying to effect the landing on these shores, which I waslucky enough to manage in safety. Thus it comes about that I havebut little gold about me. But your trade is one that barters allkinds of gear, and I have this pearl clasp to offer to you in partexchange for what I wish to take of you, so doubtless you willfurnish me over and above with money to put in my gipsire: for theclasp is a valuable one, as any one who knows gems can see at aglance; nor would I part with it, but that necessity compels me. "

The peddler looked at the clasp attentively, and then gave such aquick, keen look at the prince as would have aroused Paul's anxietyhad he been near at hand. But he had not observed his comrade'slast move, and was still patiently holding out stuffs in goodnatured if rather clumsy man fashion for the farmer's wife anddaughter to take stock of and compare one with another. 

"Hum--yes--a pretty trinket and a costly one, I doubt not, forthose that have a market for such things, " returned the peddler. "And how came you by it, young sir? It scarce seems in accord withthe simplicity of your dress and appointments. "

Edward flushed slightly. He was not used to being taken to task, and that by a common peddler; but his common sense told him that hemust expect such treatment now, and not be over ready to takeoffence, so he answered quietly enough:

"It has been in our family these many years. I know not how it camethere first. I trow I am not the only youth who has jewels by himin these days little in keeping with the bravery of his othergarments. "

The peddler nodded his head with a smile. 

"True, true, young sir; I meant no offence. Fortunes are lost andwon but too quickly in these times, and will be again, I misdoubtme, ere England sees peace and prosperity once more. But at leastthe vultures fatten if honest folks starve; and what care princeshow their subjects suffer, so as they and their nobles divide thespoil?"

"Nay, now, you wrong them, " cried the lad with sudden heat. "He isunworthy the name of prince who could thus think or act. "

Then pulling himself up quickly, as if afraid he had said too much, he returned to the matter of the bargain, and asked what thepeddler would allow for the jewel. 

The offer was not a very liberal one, but the man professed thatjewels were difficult to get rid of, and Edward was no hand atmaking a bargain. However, when he had paid for his purchases hehad a few gold pieces to put in his pouch, and he reflected that inLondon he should be able to dispose of the other jewels in hispossession to better advantage. He had enough now to purchase ahorse to take him to London, and for the present that was all herequired. 

He and Paul shared the same room at night, and talked in low tonesfar on into the small hours. Edward, who had suffered manyhardships and privations since leaving the French court, was gladenough of a few days' rest in the hospitable farmhouse, and of theopportunity of hearing all the village gossip which the weddingfestivity would give him. But after that event he desired to pushon to London, to learn what he could of public feeling in the greatmetropolis. 

"For, Paul, " he said, gravely and almost sadly, "the city of Londonis like the heart of the nation. If that beat with enmity to ourcause and love to our foes, I fear me all is lost before a blow hasbeen struck. I know we have loyal friends in the west, and in someof those fair towns like Coventry and Lichfield; but if London beagainst us, that rich merchant city, the pride and wonder of theworld, I have little heart or hope of success. Folks ever talk asif London were Yorkist to the core; but I yet have hopes thatamongst her humbler citizens there may beat hearts warm in Henry ofLancaster's cause. At least I will go thither and see with my owneyes, and hear with my own ears. Disguised as we shall be, we shallhear the truth, and all men who are lukewarm will be incliningtoward the cause that has the mighty King Maker, as they call him, in its ranks. We shall hear the best that is to be heard. If thebest be bad, I shall know that our cause is hopeless indeed. "

Paul pressed the hand he held, but said nothing. He feared only toowell what they would hear in London. But yet, inasmuch as he wasyoung and ardent, he hoped even whilst he feared; and talking andplanning their future in glowing colours, both the lads fellasleep. 

The following days were bright and busy ones at the farm. Thepeddler had vanished ere the travellers were downstairs nextmorning; but they had bought all they required overnight, and didnot trouble about that. There was a great stirring throughout thehouse, and the needles of mistress and maid were flying swiftlywhilst the short daylight lasted. 

Edward and Paul spent the morning hours in the selection of a horsefit to carry the prince on his journey to London, and the farmer'sson brought all the spare colts and lighter steeds into the strawyard for their guest to try and select for himself. There was nohorse quite so handsome or well bred as Sultan, and Paul was eagerfor Edward to accept his steed in place of another. But the princeonly laughed and shook his head, in the end selecting a finechestnut colt only just broken to the wearing of the halter; andthe kinsmen spent the best part of the next days in teaching themettlesome though tractable creature how to answer to the rein andsubmit to saddle and rider. It was shod at Ives's forge, andchristened by the name of Crusader, and soon learned to love thelads, who, whilst showing themselves masters of its wildest moods, were yet kindly and gentle in their handling. 

The young prince was in great spirits during these days. He hadbeen all his life somewhat too much under the close restraint of anaffectionate but dictatorial mother, and had been master of none ofhis own actions. Such restraint was galling to a high-spiritedyouth; and although the sweetness of disposition inherited from hisfather had carried the prince through life without rebellion orrepining, yet this foretaste of liberty was very delightful, andthe romance of being thus unknown and obscure, free to go where hewould unquestioned and unmarked, exercised a great fascination overhim, and made him almost forget the shadow which sometimes seemedto hang over his path. 

Paul was as light hearted as his companion in the main, thoughthere were moments when his joy at having his adored prince underhis care was dashed by the feeling of responsibility in such acharge, and by the fear of peril to the hope of the House ofLancaster. He wondered if it were his fancy that the farm waswatched; that there were often stealthy steps heard without in thenight--steps that set the dogs barking furiously, but which nevercould be accounted for next day; that if he rode or walked down thecart road to the village alone or with his comrade, their movementswere followed by watchful eyes--eyes that seemed now and again toglare at him, as in the dusk that first evening, but which alwaysmelted away into the shadows of the forest if looked at closely orfollowed and tracked. 

He was disposed to think it all the trick of an excitedimagination, but he began to be not sorry that the day fordeparture was drawing near. If he had provoked the enmity of therobber chief, or if by a remoter chance the identity of hiscompanion had been suspected, it would be better to be off withoutmuch more delay so soon as the wedding should be over. 

Joan herself was nervous and fearful, and seldom set foot outsidethe door of her home. She sometimes said with a shiver that she wascertain there were fierce men hiding about the house ready to carryher off if she did; and though her father and brother laughed ather fear, they humoured her, and were willing enough to let herkeep safe at home: for Simon Dowsett was not a man to be trifledwith, and he might very likely have heard before now that the womanhe had vowed to make his wife was to be given in marriage to hisrival. 

The days, however, fled by without any event to arouse realdisquiet, and on the morrow Joan would pass to the sturdy keepingof the young smith, whose new house stood well flanked between hisfather's dwelling and the forge in the heart of the village wherelaw-abiding persons dwelt in fair security. 

The eve of the marriage day had come and gone. The household hadretired to rest. Paul and Edward were in their raftered room, whichwas better lighted by the fire of logs than by the feeble rushlight glimmering on the table. Fuel was so plentiful in that woodedcountry that all the hearths blazed in cold weather with thesputtering pine logs, which gave out an aromatic scent pleasant tothe nostril. 

As they closed the door behind them, Edward laid a hand upon hiscompanion's arm and said:

"Good Paul, shall we two hold a vigil this night? I misdoubt methat some mischief is meditated toward Mistress Joan this night. Iwould that we might keep watch and ward. "

"With all my heart, " answered Paul readily, instinctively layinghis hand upon his poniard. "But what makes you think that evil isintended?"

"I scarce know, but so it is. Noted you not how quiet and sluggishthe dogs were at suppertime tonight? They would scarce come toreceive a morsel of meat, and as often as not turned away inindifference, and curled themselves to sleep again. Indoors and outthey are all alike. And did you not hear Jack Devenish say as hecame in from his last round that he feared the great black watchdogin the yard would not live till morning, he seemed so sick and outof sorts? I wondered then that no one thought strange hands hadbeen tampering with them; but all the farmer said was that hesupposed they had gorged themselves upon the refuse meat of thesheep they had been killing--and I liked not to say ought to alarmthem, for it may be as they say, and surely they ought best toknow. "

"Nevertheless we may well make ourselves watchdogs for tonight, "said Paul. "If evil is meant against the girl, this is the lastchance that bold Devil's Own, as they call him, will have ofgetting her into his power. They all call him a desperate fellow, and he will know that after the hard day's toil to have all inreadiness for the morrow the household will sleep sound tonight. Why, even the maid had sleeping draught of spiced wine given her byher mother, that she might look her best in her bridal kirtletomorrow. I think they all pledged themselves in the same bowl. 

"I warrant there will be no watchers but ourselves tonight. Whatsay you to look to our weapons and take the task upon ourselves?"

Edward's eyes gave ready response. What youths do not love the ideaof facing the foe, and outwitting the cowardly cunning of those whohave planned an attack upon a sleeping household? Paul thought hehad been right now in fancying the house watched; but probably thehope of the watchers had rather been to find and carry off the girlthan to take vengeance upon himself. He understood it all now, andwas eager to defeat them a second time. 

The nights were almost at their longest now, and the cold was verygreat; but the watchers piled fresh logs upon the fire, and talkedquietly to each other as they sat in the dancing glow--for therushlight had long since gone out. Midnight had passed. All wasintensely still, and sleep seemed disposed to steal upon theirsenses in spite of their resolution to banish his presence. Paulwas just about to suggest to his companion that he should lie downawhile on the bed and indulge in a nap, whilst he himself keptwatch alone, when the prince laid a hand upon his arm, and grippedhim tight in a fashion which told that his quick ears had heardsomething. 

The next moment Paul heard the same himself--stealthy sounds as ofapproaching footsteps, which paused beneath the window and thenseemed to steal round the house. It was useless to look out of thewindow, for the night was dark as pitch, and they themselves mightbe seen; but they glanced at each other, and Paul whisperedexcitedly:

"It is to Mistress Joan's room they will find their way. I heard asound as though a ladder was being brought out. They will climb toher window, force it open, and carry her away. 

"Hark! that was the whinny of a horse. They are mounted, and thinkto baffle pursuit by their speed and knowledge, of the wood. Thereis no time to lose. Call up the farmer and his son. I know which isMistress Joan's room. I will keep guard there till you come. "

Paul knew every inch of the house by heart; but Edward was lessfamiliar with its winding passages and crooked stairs. However, heknew the position of the rooms occupied by the farmer and his son, and groped his way thither; whilst Paul, with more certain step, sped lightly along another passage toward the room in which he knewJoan slept, not far from the serving wenches, but by no means nearthe men of the place. 

All seemed profoundly quiet as he moved through the sleeping house;but he had scarce reached the door of the maiden's room before heheard the sound of a startled, muffled cry. 

In a second he had burst open the door and had sprung in. The sightwhich met his gaze showed how truly he had guessed. The window wasopen, and upon a ladder, with his body half in the room, was asooty-faced man, holding in his hand a flaring torch to light themovements of his companion. This companion was already in the room;he was in the very act of lifting from the bed the form of thebride elect, who was so wrapped and smothered in the bed clothesthat she was unable either to cry aloud or to resist. Paul couldnot see the face of the ruffian who was thus molesting her, andknew not whether it was Simon Dowsett or another in his employ; buthe was disposed to think it was the captain himself, from thestalwart proportions of his frame and the gigantic strength heplainly possessed, of which he had heard so many stories told. 

This man was so engrossed in his efforts of lifting and carryingaway the struggling girl that he did not know it was any voice butthat of his companion which had uttered the exclamation he hadheard; and Paul, seeing that his presence was undetected, rushedstraight across the room toward the window, grasped the ladder inboth hands, and before the astonished ruffian upon it had recoveredhis surprise sufficiently to grapple with him, had flung the ladderand its occupant bodily to the ground, where the man lay groaningand swearing on the frost-bound stones beneath. 

The torch had fallen within the room, and Paul snatched it up andstuck it in a crevice of the boards, for he did not wish his otheradversary to escape in the darkness. The man had uttered a greatoath as he became aware that his occupation had been interrupted, and dropping his burden upon the bed, he turned furiously upon hisopponent, so quickly and so fiercely that Paul had barely time todraw his poniard and throw himself into an attitude of defencebefore the man was upon him. 

"You again!" he hissed between his teeth, as his well-directedblows fell one after the other, taxing Paul's strength and agilitynot a little in evading or diverting them. "Have I not enoughagainst you without this? Do you know that no man thwarts Devil'sOwn who lives not bitterly to rue the day? I have your name down ina certain book of mine, young man, and some day you will learn themeaning of that word. If I kill you not now, it is but that I maytake a more terrible vengeance later. Let me pass, I say, or I maylose patience and cleave your skull as you stand. "

But Paul had no intention of letting this dangerous foe escape him. He stood directly before the door, and barred the robber's way. Itmight have gone ill with the lad in spite of his courage andaddress, for he was but a stripling and the robber a man ofunwonted strength, and full of fury now at being thus balked; butthe sound of hurrying feet through the house toward the scene ofconflict told both the combatants that an end to the struggle wasapproaching. 

Paul shouted to them to take care the prey did not escape by way ofone of the many crooked stairways, with which doubtless he wasfamiliar enough; and he, seeing that all hope of escape through thehouse was now at an end, and knowing that he should inevitably beoverpowered by numbers if he waited longer, suddenly sprangbackwards and rushed to the window. Although it was high above theground, and the stones below were both slippery and hard, hevaulted out like a deer, landing on the prostrate body of hiscompanion, who received him with an execration and a groan; and asPaul rushed after him, intensely chagrined at this unexpectedescape, he was only in time to see him dash off into the forest, orrather to hear his steps crashing through the thicket, until thesound of a horse's steady gallop showed that he was off and away. 

The whole household was crowding into the room in various stages ofdishabille. The terrified Joan and the disappointed Paul had eachto tell their tale. But whilst the parents bent over theirdaughter, soothing her terrors and calming her fears, Jack drewtoward Paul and his comrade, and said in low tones:

"Simon Dowsett is not a foe to be set at defiance. I would counselyou to take horse with the first gleam of day, and gain anotherparish or the protection of London, at least, before he hasrecovered from his discomfiture. I say this not without regret, asI would fain keep you over our feast today; but--"

The comrades exchanged glances, and spoke in one breath:

"We understand: you have spoken kindly and well, " they said. "Ifyou can have the horses in readiness, we will ride off with thefirst streak of dawn. It will be best so for all. "

And though Joan Devenish and Will Ives were made man and wife thatvery morning, Paul and the prince were not there to grace theceremony, but were far on their way to London. 

Chapter 5: In Peril. 

"Edward, I am glad to see you back. Where have you been these manyhours? I have been watching and waiting, hoping you would comebefore nightfall. I am very anxious. I much fear that we aresuspected--spied upon. "

"Nay, now, what makes you think that?" asked young Edward, as helet himself be drawn within the small attic bedchamber in theriver-side inn, which he and his comrade had shared ever since theyhad arrived in London; now some three weeks back. Paul had closedthe door before he began to speak, and now stood with his backagainst it, his face looking pale and anxious in the fading lightof the winter's day. 

"What makes me think it? Why, more things than one; but mainly thefact that the peddler we bought our clothes of is here. "

Edward smiled and laid a hand on Paul's shoulder. 

He was growing used to the anxieties of his elder comrade, whodeeply felt his responsibility in having the heir of England underhis care, and had begun to treat his words of warning with somelightness. 

"And why should not the old man be here? The world is as free tohim as it is to us. Rather I should have looked upon him as afriend. For did he not eat at the same board with us, and share thehospitality of the same roof?"

"Yes, yes, " answered Paul quickly; "but so do all men of hiscalling. They are always welcome wherever they appear. But I willtell you why I misdoubt this man. He first came in whilst we of thehouse were sitting at dinner, and his eye roved round the room tillit fell upon me, and I saw in it then a gleam of recognition whichI did not like. He went out then, and anon returned with a greatbearded fellow of sinister aspect. And I was certain that hepointed me out to him; for though I would not raise my eyes, orseem to notice, I knew that they whispered together, and that thisother man's black eyes were fixed full on my face. "

"That might well be, " answered Edward lightly, "you are a rightgoodly youth, made to find favour in all eyes. "

But Paul proceeded without heeding the interruption. 

"Presently the peddler shuffled round the table, and took thevacant seat beside me--the seat that should have been yours, Edward. He pretended that he had only just recognized me, and beganto talk in friendly fashion enough. He asked after you; but I saidwe had little companionship now--that you had your own concerns toattend to in the city, and that we might part company at any time. I would have disclaimed you altogether, save that those at the inncould have told him that I had a brother or comrade with me. Hekept his eye warily on me the whole time. I know that he was on thewatch for news of you. "

"And wherefore not? Methinks you are over fearful, good Paul. "

"Nay, Edward, think but a moment--What care would any feel for newsof you did they not suspect something? Who cares whither I go orwhat I do? If you were but the obscure stranger you pass for, whowould trouble to heed whither your steps were bent or how your timewas passed? As you came in just now, did any man see you pass thethreshold?"

"Nay, I know not. I was heeding little in the street. It was darkenough in the narrow alley, darker than it is up here; but--"

"Wait, Edward, answer me one question yet. Is it possible that thepeddler can have any clue by which he may know you? Did you betrayaught to him that evening when you bartered with him for your suitof clothes? How did you pay him? Was it in French gold?"

"Nay, I paid him no money at all. I gave him a pearl clasp which Ihad, and he furnished me with funds for the journey to London. Imade a villainous bad bargain, it seems. The other jewels I havedisposed of in London I have got far better price for. 

"Now, Paul, why look you so troubled and wan? Have you yet anotherlecture in store for your luckless comrade?"

"O Edward, Edward, " cried Paul in anxious tones, "is it really so?Have you been mad enough to sell jewels which may be known andtraced? Did I not tell you from the very first that I had moneyenough for both? You should not have done it. And why, if done itmust be, did you not tell me, and let me do the trafficking?"

Edward smiled as he laid his hand upon his comrade's shoulder. 

"Good Paul, did you think that I would trade upon your love, tofilch from you the remains of that poor fortune which is all youhave left of the world's goods? I knew how readily your all wouldhave been laid at my feet; but it was not for me to accept thesacrifice when I had means of raising money myself. And what dangercan there be? My mother's jewels can scarce be known here. I fearyour courage is but a sorry thing, you are so prone to idle fearsand gloomy portents. "

"Heaven grant I may be deceived; But the pearl clasp of which youspeak--tell me what it was like. "

"Why, a fine pearl set in a clasp of chased gold with an eagle inrelief, the claws forming the catch of the clasp. My royal motherhad a pair of them once; what befell the other I remember not. Itwas lost, I have heard her say, long years ago. "

Paul clasped his hands closely together. 

"Edward, " he said, "it was just such a clasp as that which fastenedthe jewelled collar of the little Prince of Wales on the day whenhe, in play, fastened that collar about my neck, which collar fella prey to certain robbers who carried off the humble knight's sonin mistake for the prince. 

"And listen further, Edward. Those same robbers who dogged yoursteps years ago are now in hiding in the fastnesses of that greatEpping Forest through which we have lately journeyed. The peddlerknows them and traffics with them; that have I heard from others. Most likely he has himself suspected something, and has gone withhis clasp to consult with the chieftain, who is a sworn foe to theHouse of Lancaster. And having made out that the clasps arefellows, and having their suspicions fully aroused, they havefollowed on our trail--we made no secret that London was ourgoal--and are seeking to get you into their power. "

Edward's face was grave now. It seemed as if Paul's fears were notunfounded. 

"Yet what good would come to them by that?" he questionedthoughtfully; and Paul had the answer only too ready. 

"Marry, every good in the world! Dear my lord, forgive the plainspeaking of one who loves you well; but we have not lived in thisgreat city all these weeks for nought. You know how it is with thepeople of this land. They will never be ruled long by your saintlyfather. They know his strange malady, and they think him more fitfor a monk's cell than a royal throne. Your mother--"

"Ay, they hate her, " answered Edward mournfully. "They cannot speakher name without all manner of insulting epithets, which have mademy blood boil in my veins. "

"It is so, dear my lord; they have never loved her, and evil reportwill spread and gather head, You see that they would never accepther rule in your royal father's name. It would raise sedition andtumult at once. The house and faction of York know this. They knowthat their power would be secure were King Henry and his queenalone in the matter; but there is still one more--the Prince ofWales, against whom no man speaks evil, even the most rancorousenemies of the House of Lancaster. All who have seen him love him;all speak of his noble person, his graces of body and mind, hisaptness to rule, his kingly qualities. 

"You smile, but in truth it is so. The nation might rally beneaththe banner of such a prince; and the proud nobles of the rival kingknow it well, and could they get the prince into their own power, they know that victory is from that moment theirs. Wherefore, Edward, if it be true that you are known, we must fly, and thatinstantly. These lawless men will not quit the trail till they haverun the quarry down, and delivered you dead or alive into the handsof the foe. They know well the value of the prize, and they willnot let it escape them. "

Edward felt the truth of these words. Paul had been anxious andalarmed before, but never with the same cause. He had always beenfearful that the young prince might be recognized by some wayfarer, who might have chanced to see him in past days or at the Frenchcourt; but he had never before made sure that this recognition hadactually taken place, and the likeness between the supposedbrothers, though more a likeness now in figure and colouring andexpression than actually in feature, was as great a safeguard ascould have been devised. 

Moreover, not a rumour of any kind had come over from Francereporting the escape or absence of the Prince of Wales, and it wasfar fetched to imagine that anybody would suspect the identity ofthe yellow-haired youth. But the occurrences of this day, combinedwith Edward's admission about the clasp, had roused Paul's worstfears, and it did indeed seem as if there were some watch set upontheir movements now. 

He looked earnestly into the flushed face of the fair young prince, and then said thoughtfully:

"Edward, I have a plan whereby I think you can escape thisthreatened danger. Leave this house tonight--at once, if the coastbe clear--and go as fast as your steed can take you to your royalfather, and claim the protection of his state, and that of the earlyour future father-in-law. Tell all your story, and it will make ofyou the idol even of this wayward city of London. All men willdelight in the presence of the Prince of the Silver Swan; andmethinks a happy end may be the result of the journey which seemslike to end in peril and gloom. 

"Good my lord, it is a joyous welcome you would receive. It wouldrejoice the whole heart of the nation to have you back. "

Edward hesitated for a moment, but finally shook his head. 

"Nay, Paul, I will not do that, though I grant the scheme has itsattractions. If what you say be true and my presence in this cityis suspected, be sure that every alley to the palace is watched andguarded by foes who would find a speedy way of preventing myentrance there--ay, or thine, were that tried. 

"And over and above the danger, I am yearning to see the face of mysweet bride again, my gentle Anne, whom I have loved right wellthese many years, even whilst her father seemed our bitterest foe. My return will be looked for ere the glad Christmas season, and ifI am not missed before, I shall be then, and I would not that mygood mother were kept long in anxiety as to what has befallen me. Ihave been now four weeks absent. I laid careful plans whereby abrief absence might not be discovered, but it is time I returnednow. 

"Moreover, my quest is done. I have learned all and more than Icame to do. My heart is heavy within me as I think on all I haveheard. Ere I come as prince to this realm, I would fain see andhave earnest speech with my mother. There are moments when methinksit would be the wiser and happier thing to talk no more of rulinghere, but rather of securing to my father liberty and honour, andsuch titles and estates as he can claim through his duchy ofLancaster, and letting the crown remain on the head of him whocould have claimed it with a better right than we, were it not forthe kingly rule of my grandsire and his sire before him. "

Paul made no reply save what was expressed in a deep sigh. His hopeof the permanent restoration of the House of Lancaster had receivedsome rude shocks during the past weeks; but he had never beforeheard Edward speak in this key, and he wondered if it were but theexpression of a passing emotion, or the result of a deeply-seatedconviction. 

"I trow my mother will call me craven-hearted, " said the lad with aslight smile, after a moment's silence, "and I myself may thinkdifferently anon. But tonight all seems wrapped in gloom, and Iwould I were far away from this city, which seems to breathe hatredto all of our name and race. Paul, we had better linger here nolonger. Let us away the route we came, so shall we soonest reachthe coast; and we will pass together to the French court, and youshall see the reception which will await us there from my motherand my sweet betrothed. 

"Ah, I would the day had come! I long to see kindly faces onceagain. And they will love you ever for the love you have borne tome. "

The lad's face flushed with excitement at the bare thought, and theprospect was welcome enough to Paul, who was sick at heart, andweary with the strain of continual watchfulness; but he lowered hisvoice to a mere whisper as he said:

"Hist, sweet prince! speak not so loud. There may be spies withoutthe very door. We will indeed make shift to start the very firstmoment we may. I shall not draw another easy breath till we are faraway from here. But think you it will be wise to go the way wecame? May not those roads be watched more closely there thanelsewhere?"

"I think not so. I think they will guess that we shall make for oneof the southern ports, by which France can be the more easilyreached. If these wild robbers have left their former haunts topursue us, we may well be safest nearest to their lair. And we knownot the country to the south, whilst this great forest seems like afriend to us; and we have sturdy friends within its shelteringaisles if we are hard pressed. We can quicker reach the coast, too, that way than any other. And the good brothers you have spoken ofat Leighs Priory will give us shelter tomorrow night, if we cannotmake shift to push on to the coast in one day. "

There seemed sound sense in the counsel thus offered by the prince, and Paul was ever ready to obey his wishes, if he saw no objectionto them. They appeared to be menaced by peril on all sides, and hewould have been thankful if the prince would have thrown himselfinto the keeping of his kingly sire; but as he had declined to dothis, and was not of the stuff to be balked of his will, the nextbest thing was to slip off in silence and secrecy, and Paul thoughtit quite probable that the route least watched and guarded mightwell be the one which led back through the forest again. 

But it would not do to appear as if suspicious; and leaving Edwardlocked up in the attic chamber--hoping that no one had observed hisentrance into the inn--he went down into the common room, wherepreparations for supper were going on. 

There were a larger number of persons collected in the inn thanusual that night, and Paul fancied that many sharp glances werefastened upon him as he entered the room. But he kept command overhis countenance well, and walked forward toward the fire with anair of easy assurance. The peddler was sitting in the warmestcorner, and pushed away his next neighbour to make room for Paul, who took the vacant seat readily. The man very quickly led up tothe subject of his companion and kinsman (laying an apparent andrather suspicious emphasis on that word), asking if he did not meanto come to supper, since he had seen him enter the inn at dusk. 

Paul replied that his comrade was unwell, and that he would retireearly to bed, and have something hot to take there. He was resolvedthat Edward should not be exposed to the gaze of these rough men, whose faces inspired him with the greatest uneasiness. 

Edward should be supposed to be sick, and that might divertattention from his movements for the time being; and, long beforethe morning dawned, he hoped that they might both be far away fromthis ill-omened spot. 

"Ill!" quoth the peddler; "no doubt a colic or a chill, taken inthis villainous cold weather. I have a draught here that acts likea charm in all such cases. If you will permit me, I will mix it foryou in a stoup of hot spiced wine, and I warrant he will sleep likea dormouse all night, and wake in the morning as well as ever. "

Paul thanked the peddler, and the ingredients of the draught werecalled for. He watched its preparation keenly, and noted thatseveral meaning glances were exchanged between the peddler and hisassociates--as he now believed half the men in the inn to be. Hetold the landlord to prepare two trenchers to be carried upstairs, as he would sup with his friend that night; and he presentlycarried up the hot and steaming tankard, together with the plattersof the savoury viands for which London was famous. 

Edward had meantime kindled the rushlight and set light to a smallfire on the hearth, for the weather was bitterly cold. The peddlerhad advised Paul to partake of the hot draught also, and thelandlord had not heeded his request to place a tankard of ale onthe tray also: so that if either of the youths were to drink atall, it must be of the potion concocted by the peddler. 

This fact greatly increased Paul's suspicions, which were quicklyshared by Edward. 

"We will not touch a drop of it, " he said, "although it is temptingenough this cold night. It is either drugged or poisoned, and givenus to keep us a certain prey for tonight. Perhaps in the end itwill prove our best friend; for if they think us tied by the heel, they may be less vigilant in the watch they keep upon us. "

It was not with much appetite that the comrades ate their supper, but they knew that they might need all their strength before thenext hours had passed, and they ate heartily from that motive. Their trenchers had been so liberally piled, however, that therewas plenty of broken meat and bread left when they had finished, and this was first allowed to grow cold, and then packed away intoone of their wallets, as it might be some considerable time beforethey tasted food again, save such as they had with them. 

Paul made several excursions from the room to ask for this thing orthat, keeping up the fiction that his comrade was sick; and eachtime he did so he found some person or another guarding thedoor--at least watching hard by--though apparently bent upon someprivate errand. He came to the conclusion at last that theirmovements were most certainly spied upon, and that to attempt toescape through the house that night would be impossible. A fewcautious words (which he caught as he entered the room where thepeddler and his companions were sitting) confirmed his impressionthat Edward was certainly suspected, if not actually identified, and that he would not be allowed to pass out of sight untilsuspicion was either verified or laid at rest. He fancied, from thefew words he heard, that these men were awaiting a companion whowould be able absolutely to identify the prince, if it were reallyhe, and that meantime they did not intend that either of the youthsshould escape their surveillance. 

It was with a sinking heart that Paul returned to Edward with thisnews. But peril seemed only to act like a tonic upon the nerves ofthe younger lad; and springing to his feet with energy andresolution, he cried with flashing eyes:

"And so they think to make a prisoner of the eaglet of England'sroyal house! Let them try. Let them do their worst. They shall seethat his wings are strong enough for a higher and more daringflight than they dream of; that he will not be fettered by a cageof their treacherous making! Paul, it is not for nothing that Ihave lain awake long nights dreaming dreams of peril and escape. Iknow how we will outwit our pursuers this very night. Say, can yonswim, as you can do all else that a brave Englishman should?"

"Like a fish, " answered Paul, who had many a time terrified andastonished his mother by his feats in the salmon pool at home, andhad never lost the skill and strength to battle with wind or wave. 

"Good! I was sure of it; and I can do the same. Paul, come here tothe window. See you no means of escape as you look down into thatdark, sullen water below?"

Paul started and looked eagerly out. The inn, as has before beensaid, stood on the banks of the great river Thames. Indeed, it wasbuilt so close to the waterside that the walls were washed by thelapping waves on the backside of the house, and the windows lookedsheer down into the turbid, sullen stream. No watch could be kepton this side, nor did it seem to be needful; for the old inn was alofty building of its kind, and the black water lay some sixty feetbelow the small window of the room in which Paul and his companionlodged. No man in his senses, it seemed, would hazard such a leap, and none but an expert swimmer would care or dare to trust himselfto that swiftly-flowing flood, which might so easily sweep him tohis doom. And on a freezing December night the idea of escape insuch a fashion seemed altogether madness itself. 

Even Paul, menaced by a danger that might be worse than death, drewin his head with something of a shudder; but Edward had dived intoa little press that stood in the room, and brought out a coil ofstout, strong rope. Paul gave a cry of surprise and pleasure. 

"Some instinct warned me it might be wanted. See here, Paul. We cantie one end to this heavy bedstead, knotting it also around thebolt of the door, and we can glide down like two veritable shadows, and drop silently into the river: Then we must swim to one of thosesmall wherries which lie at anchor beside the sleeping barges. Iknow exactly what course to steer for that; and once aboard, we cuther loose, and row for dear life down with the tide, till we canfind some deserted spot where we can land, and thence we make ourway back to the coast through the friendly forest, as we planned. "

"On foot?"

"Ay, we must leave our good steeds behind; it would be madness toseek to take them. We are young and strong, and this frost makeswalking easy. We shall speed so well that we may chance to reachthe shelter of the Priory ere night falls on us again, and then theworst of our troubles will be over. Say, Paul, will you come withme? Will you follow me?"

"To the death, my prince, " answered Paul with enthusiasm; yet evenas he spoke a sort of shiver came over him, as though he hadpronounced his own doom. But he shook it off, and fell to upon thesimple preparations to be made. 

These were very simple, and consisted of rolling up into a compactbundle their outer dress and a change of under tunic, which theyfastened, together with their food wallet and arms, upon theirheads, in the hope that they might keep them from the water. Theyslung their boots about their necks, and then, with as littleclothing as possible upon them, commenced their stealthy descentdown the rope, which had been firmly attached as suggested by theprince. Edward went first, whilst Paul remained in the room toguard against surprise, and to hold the end if it slipped or gave. But no such casualty befell; and the moment he heard the slightsplash which told that the prince had reached the water, he swunghimself lightly down the rope, and fell with a soft splash besidehim. 

But oh, how cold it was in that dark water! Hardy though the pairwere, it seemed impossible to live in that fearful cold; but theystruck out valiantly into midstream, and presently the exercise ofswimming brought a little life into their benumbed limbs. But gladindeed was Paul to reach the side of the little wherry which theyintended to purloin, and it was all that their united efforts coulddo to clamber in and cut the cord which bound it to the barge. 

"We must row hard, Edward, " said Paul, with chattering teeth; "itis our only chance of life. We shall freeze to death if we cannotget some warmth into our blood. I feel like a block of ice. "

They were too much benumbed to try and dress themselves yet, but asthey rowed their hardest along the dark, still water, the life cameebbing back into their chilled limbs, and with the welcome warmthcame that exultation of heart which always follows escape fromdeadly peril. With more and more vigour they bent to their oars, and at last Edward spoke in a natural voice again. 

"Let us float down quietly with the stream a while, Paul, whilst wedon our dry garments, if indeed they are dry. It will be betterhere than on shore, where we might chance to be seen and suspected. I am glowing hot now, freezing night though it be; but I confess Ishould be more comfortable rid of these soaking clothes. "

So stripping off these, they found, to their great satisfaction, that the leather jerkins in which the other clothing had beenwrapped had kept everything dry, and the feel of warm andsufficient clothing was grateful indeed after the icy bath they hadencountered. Their boots were wet, but that mattered little to thehardy striplings; and when, dressed and armed, they bent to theiroars again, it seemed as if all their spirit and confidence hadcome back. 

"We have made so good a start that we shall surely prosper, " criedEdward boldly. "Our good friend the peddler will look blank enoughwhen morning comes and they find the birds are flown. "

But Paul could not triumph quite so soon; he was still far fromfeeling assured of safety, and feared their escape might be quicklymade known, in which case pursuit would be hot. The best hope layin getting into the forest, which might give them shelter, andenable them to baffle pursuit; but responsibility lay sore uponhim, and he could not be quite as gay as his comrade. 

The moon shone out from behind the clouds, and presently theyslipped beneath the arches of the old bridge, and past the grimfortress of the Tower. Very soon after that, they were glidingbetween green and lonely banks in a marshy land, and they presentlyeffected a landing and struck northward, guiding themselves by theposition of the moon. 

It was a strange, desolate country they traversed, and glad enoughwas Paul that it was night when they had to cross this unprotectedfiat land. By day they would be visible for miles to the trainedeye of a highwayman, and if pursued would fall an easy prey. But bycrossing this desolate waste at night, when not a living thing wasto be seen, they might gain the dark aisles of the wood by the timethe tardy dawn stole upon them, and once there Paul thought hecould breathe freely again. 

All through the long hours of the night the lads trudged onwardsside by side. Paul was more anxious than weary, for he had beeninured to active exercise all his life, and had spent many longdays stalking deer or wandering in search of game across the bleakhillsides. But Edward, though a hardy youth by nature, and notaltogether ignorant of hardship, had lived of late in the softerair of courts, and as the daylight struggled into the sky he was soweary he could scarce set one foot before another. 

Yet even as Paul's anxious glance lighted on him he smiled bravelyand pointed onwards, and there before them, in the rising sunlight, lay the great black forest, stretching backwards as far as eyecould see; and Edward, throwing off his exhaustion by a manfuleffort, redoubled his speed, until the pair stood within theencircling belt of forest land, and paused by mutual consent at thedoor of a woodman's cabin. 

Travellers were rare in that lone part, but the good folks of thehut were kindly and hospitable and unsuspicious. Paul produced somesmall pieces of silver and asked for food and shelter for a fewhours, as he and his comrade had been benighted, and had beenwandering about in the darkness many hours. The fare was verycoarse and homely, but the famished lads were not disposed to findfault; and the cabin, if close, was at least warm, and, when a peatfire had been lighted, was a not altogether uncomfortable place forwanderers like themselves. 

As soon as his hunger was satisfied, Edward lay down upon the floorand was soon sound asleep; but Paul had no disposition for slumber, and sat gazing into the glowing turves with earnest, anxious eyes. The heir of England was in his care, and already probably sought inmany directions by cruel and implacable foes. Until Edward were insafety, he himself should know no peace. And as if suddenlyinspired by some new thought, he started up and went in search ofthe good woman of the cabin, with whom he held a long and earnestconversation. 

When he came back to the other room, it was with a smile ofsatisfaction on his face and a queer bundle in his arms, and theold woman was looking with great wonderment at a gold piece lyingon her palm, and marvelling at the strange caprice of the young andrich. 

Chapter 6: In The Hands Of The Robbers

"But wherefore should I disguise myself rather than you?" criedEdward, resisting Paul's efforts to clothe him in a long smockfrock, such as the woodmen of those days wore when going abouttheir avocations. "Our peril is the same, and it is I who have ledyou into danger. I will not have it so. We will share in all thingsalike. If we are pursued and cannot escape, we will sell our livesdear, and die together. But let it never be said that I left myfriend and companion to face a danger from which I fled myself. "

The boy's eyes flashed as he spoke--he looked the very image of aprince; and Paul's heart swelled with loving pride, although hestill persisted in his design. 

"Listen, Edward, " he said, speaking very gravely and resolutely. "It is needful for our joint safety that we be not seen together, now that we are entering a region of country where we may easily berecognized, and where watch may be kept for us. Yes, these woodsmay be watched, although, as you have said, it is probable theywill watch even more closely the other routes to the coast. But wehave come slowly, toiling along on foot, and there has been ampletime for a mounted messenger to ride back and give the warning tosuch of the robbers as are yet here. They know that the twain of usare travelling together. Wherefore, for the few miles that separateus now from the kindly shelter of the Priory, it will be betterthat we journey alone. This smock and battered hat will protect youfrom recognition, the more so when I have blackened your face withcharcoal, as I have means to do, and have hidden away all yourbright curls so that none shall see them. Walk with bent shouldersand heavy gait, as the aged country folks do, and I warrant nonewill guess who you are or molest you. Tonight, when we meet tolaugh at our adventures over the prior's roaring fire, we shallforget the perils and the weariness of our long tramp. "

"But, Paul, I love not this clumsy disguise. It befits not a princethus to clothe himself. Wear it yourself, good comrade, for yourperil is as great as mine. "

"Nay, Edward, speak not thus idly, " said Paul, with unwontedgravity. "Princes must think not of themselves alone, but of thenation's weal. Edward, listen. If harm befalls you, then farewellto all the fond hopes of half of the people who obey the sway ofEngland's sceptre. You are not your own master; you are the servantof your loyal and true-hearted subjects, who have suffered alreadyso much in the cause. To throw your life away, nay, even to runinto needless peril, were a sin to them and to the country. I saynothing of your mother's despair, of the anguish of your bride, ifharm befell you: that you must know better than I can do. But I ama subject. I know what your subjects feel; and were you to neglectany safeguard, however trivial, in these remaining hours ofthreatened danger, you would be doing England a wrong which mightbe utterly irreparable. "

Edward was struck by this argument, and hesitated. 

"I only wish to do what is right; but I cannot bear to play thecoward's part, and save myself when you are still in peril. "

"Tush!" answered Paul lightly, "I am tougher than you, Edward; youare so footsore and weary you can scarce put one leg before theother. If foes were to spring upon us, you would fall an easy preyat once. I am strong and full of life. I could lead them a finechase yet. But we may never sight an adversary. These woods arestill and silent, and we have heard no sounds of dread import allthese long, weary miles. It may well be that we shall reach thePriory in safety yet; but it were better now to part company andtake different routes thither. And you must don this warm thoughclumsy dress; it will keep you the safer, and shield you from thepiercing cold, which you feel more than I do. "

In truth, the youthful prince was nigh worn out from fatigue, notwithstanding the fact that Paul had contrived to give him almostthe whole of their scanty provision, and had helped him tenderlyover the roughest of the way. It was true, indeed, that had theybeen attacked Edward would have fallen an easy prey; but alone inthis disguise, hobbling along with the heavy gait of an agedrustic, he would attract no suspicion from any robber band. AndPaul was eager to see him thus equipped; for they had reached thepart of the wood which was familiar to both, and the prince couldeasily find the shortest and most direct way to the Priory, whilsthe himself would make a short circuit and arrive from another pointwith as little delay as possible. 

A strong will and a sound argument generally win the day. Edwardsubmitted at last to be arrayed in the woodman's homely garments, and was grateful for the warmth they afforded; for he was feelingthe bitter cold of the northern latitude, and was desperately tiredfrom his long day and night of walking. There was no pretence aboutthe limping, shuffling gait adopted; for his feet were blisteredand his limbs stiff and aching. 

Paul watched him hobbling away, his face looking swarthy and oldbeneath the shade of the hat, his shoulders bent, and his blackenedhands grasping a tough ash stick to help himself along; and a smileof triumph stole over his own countenance as he heaved a long sighof relief--for he felt quite certain that in the gathering dusk noone would suspect the true character of the weary pedestrian, andthat he would reach the shelter of the Priory in safety. 

It seemed as if a millstone were rolled from Paul's neck as heturned from contemplating that retiring figure. The strain upon hisfaculties during the past twenty-four hours had been intense, andwhen it was removed he felt an immense sensation of relief. Butwith that relief came a greater access of fatigue than he had beenconscious of before. He had been spurred along the road by thesense of responsibility--by the feeling that the safety and perhapsthe life of the young Prince of Wales depended in a great measureupon his sagacity, endurance, and foresight. To get the prince toLeigh's Priory, beneath the care of the good monks who were stanchto the cause of the saintly Henry, was the one aim and object ofhis thoughts. He had known all along that the last miles of thejourney would be those most fraught with peril, and to lessen thisperil had been the main purpose on his mind. Having seen the princestart off on the direct path, so disguised that it was impossibleto anticipate detection, he felt as though his life's work for themoment were ended, and heaving a great sigh of relief, he sank downupon a heap of dead leaves, and gave himself up to a brief spell ofrepose, which his weary frame did indeed seem to require. 

The cold, together with the exhaustion of hunger and fatigue, sealed his senses for a brief space, and he remembered nothingmore. He fancied his eyes had been closed but for a few seconds, when some noise close at hand caused him to raise his head with astart. But the dusk had deepened in the great wood, and he saw thathe must have been asleep for quite half an hour. 

He started and listened intently. Yes, there was no mistaking thesounds. A party of mounted horsemen were approaching him along thenarrow track which wandered through the wood. Paul would havestarted to his feet and fled to the thicket, but his benumbed limbsrefused their office. It was freezing hard upon the ground, and hehad lain there till his blood had almost ceased to circulate, andhe was powerless to move. 

Yet even then his thoughts were first for Edward, and only secondfor himself. He rapidly reviewed the situation. 

"They are on the path that he has taken. He has the start, but theyare mounted. Are they in pursuit of anyone? They have dogs withthem: that looks as if they were hunting something. It were betterthat they should not come up with Edward. In another half hour hewill be safe at the Priory, if he make good speed, as methinks hewill; for with the hope of speedy ease and rest, even the weariesttraveller plucks up heart and spirit. If they are following him, tofind even me will delay them. If not, they will pass me byunheeded. I am not likely even to attract their notice. I cannotescape if I would. I am sore, weary, and chilled beyond power offlight, and the dogs would hunt me down directly. My best chance isto rest quiet and tranquil, as if I knew not fear. Perchance theythen will let me go unscathed. "

Possibly had Paul's faculties been less benumbed by fatigue and thebitter cold, he would scarce have argued the case so calmly; but hewas calm with the calmness of physical exhaustion, and in truth hischance of escape would have been small indeed. He could have madeno real effort at flight, and the very fact of his trying to hidehimself would have brought upon him instant pursuit and capture. 

So he lay still, crouching in his nest of leaves, until one of thedogs suddenly gave a deep bay, and came rushing upon him, as ifindeed he had been the quarry pursued. 

"Halt there!" cried a deep voice in the gloom; "the dogs havefound. They never give tongue for a different trail than the rightone. 

"Dicon, dismount and see what it is; there is something movingthere be neath that bush. "

Seeing himself discovered, Paul rose to his feet, and made a stepforward, though uncertainly, as if his limbs still almost refusedto obey him. 

"I am a poor benighted traveller, " he said; "I pray you, can youdirect me where I can get food and shelter for the night? I havebeen wandering many hours in this forest, and am weary well-nigh todeath. "

"Turn the lantern upon him, fellows, " said the same voice that hadspoken before; and immediately a bright gleam of light was castupon Paul's pale, tired face and golden curling hair. 

"Is this the fellow we are seeking?" asked the leader of hisfollowers; "the description seems to fit. "

"If it isn't one it is the other, " answered the man addressed. "Ihave seen both; but, marry, I can scarce tell one from the otherwhen they are apart. What has he done with his companion? Theyhave, been together this many a day, by day and by night. "

"You were not alone when you started on this journey last night, "said the robber, addressing Paul sternly. "Where is your companion?You had better speak frankly. It will be the worse for you if youdo not. "

Paul's heart beat fast; the blood began to circulate in his veins. He tried hard to keep his faculties clear, and to speak nothingwhich could injure the prince. 

"We parted company. I know not where he is, " he answered slowly. "Itold him to go his own way; I would not be a source of peril tohim. I bid him adieu and sent him away. "

It suddenly occurred to Paul that if, even for an hour, he couldpersonate the prince, and so draw off pursuit from him, his pointmight be gained. He had not forgotten the episode of the firstadventure they had shared as children; and as we all know, historyrepeats itself in more ways than one. 

The man who appeared the leader of the band, and whose face was notunkindly, doffed his hat respectfully at these words, and said, "Itis true, then, that I am addressing the Prince of Wales?"

Paul said nothing, but bent his head as if in assent, and the mancontinued speaking, still respectfully. 

"It is my duty then, sire, to take your sacred person under myprotection. You are in peril from many sources in these lone woods, and I have been sent out on purpose to bring you into a place ofsafety. My followers will provide you with a good horse, and youwill soon be in safe shelter, where you can obtain the food andrest your condition requires, and you will receive nothing butcourteous treatment at our hands. "

To resist were fruitless indeed. Politely as the invitation wastendered, there was an undertone of authority in the man's voicewhich convinced Paul that any attempt at resistance would be met byan appeal to force. And he had no disposition to resist. The longerthe fiction was kept up, the longer there would be for the princeto seek safe asylum at the Priory. When once those sanctuary doorshad closed behind Edward, Paul thought it mattered little whatbecame of himself. 

"I will go with you, " he answered with simple dignity; "I presumethat I have indeed no choice. "

A draught from a flask tendered him by one of the men did much torevive Paul, and the relief at finding himself well mounted, instead of plodding wearily along on foot, was very great. He wasglad enough to be mounted behind one of the stout troopers, for hewas excessively drowsy, despite the peril of his situation. He hadbeen unable to sleep, as Edward had done, in the woodman's hut, andit was now more than thirty-six hours since sleep had visited him, and those hours had been crowded with excitement, peril, andfatigue. The potent liquor he had just drunk helped to steal hissenses away, and as the party jogged through the dim aisles of thewood, Paul fell fast asleep, with his head resting on the shoulderof the stalwart trooper, and he only awoke with a start, half offear and half of triumph--for he knew the prince was safe enough bythis time--when the glare from the mouth of a great cavern, and theloud, rough voices of a number of men who came crowding out, smoteupon his senses, and effectually aroused him to a sense of what waspassing. 

"Have you got them?" cried a loud voice, not entirely unfamiliar toPaul, although he could not for the moment remember where he hadheard it before. 

"We have got one-got the most important one, " answered the man whohad been leader of the little band. "The other has got off; butthat matters less. "

"By the holy mass, it was the other that I wanted the more, " criedthe rougher voice, as the man came out swearing roundly; "I had anaccount of my own to square with him, and square it I will one ofthese days. But bring in the prize--bring him in. Let us have alook at him. He is worth the capture, anyhow, as the Chief will saywhen he returns. He is not back yet. We have all been out scouringthe forest; but you always have the luck, Sledge Hammer George. Isaid if any one brought them in it would be you. "

Paul had by this time recognized the speaker, who was standing inthe entrance of the cave with the light full upon his face. It wasnone other than his old adversary, Simon Dowsett, whom he had twicedefeated in his endeavour to carry off the lady of his choice; andwho was, as he well knew, his bitterest foe. His heart beat fastand his breath came fitfully as he realized this, and he lookedquickly round toward the black forest, as if wondering if he couldplunge in there and escape. But a strong hand was laid upon hisarm, and he was pushed into the cave, where the ruddy glow of thefire fell full upon him. 

Simon Dowsett, who in the absence of the Chief, as he was called, acted as the captain of the band, strode forward and fixed his eyesupon the lad, his face changing as he did so until its expressionwas one of diabolical malice. 

"What?" he cried aloud; "at the old game again? You thought totrick us once more, and again to get off with a sound skin?--Lads, this isn't the prince at all; this is the other of them, who hasfooled you as he fooled the Chief himself long years ago. What wereyou thinking of to take his word for it? And you have let the realone slip through your fingers. 

"Ha, ha, Sledge Hammer George! you are not quite so clever as youthought. Why did you not wring the truth out of him, when the otherquarry could not have been far off? You have been pretty gulls tohave been taken in like this!"

The other man, who had now come up, looked full into Paul's face, and asked, not savagely though sternly enough:

"Which are you, lad? speak the truth. Are you the Prince of Wales, or not?"

It was useless now to attempt to keep up the deception. Paulcarried the mark of Simon Dowsett's bullet in his shoulder, and hewas too well known by him to play a part longer. Looking full atthe man who addressed him, he answered boldly:

"I am Paul Stukely, not the prince at all. He is beyond the reachof your malice. He is in safe shelter now. "

"Where is he?" asked the man quietly. 

"I shall not tell you, " answered Paul, who knew that these robberswere so daring that they might even make a raid on the Priory, orwatch it night and day, and to prevent the escape of the princefrom thence, if their suspicions were once attracted, to the spot. 

Sledge Hammer George laid a hand upon the young man's arm. 

"Now don't be a fool, lad; these fellows here will stand no morefrom you. A valuable prize has escaped them, and they will wringthe truth out of you by means you will not like, but will not beable to resist. You have a bitter enemy in Devil's Own, as he iscalled, and he will not spare you if you provoke. I will stand yourfriend, if you will but speak out and tell us where the prince isto be found; for he cannot be very many miles away from this place, as we are well assured. If you are obstinate, I can do nothing foryou, and you will have to take your chance. 

"Come, now, speak up. Every moment is of value. You will be made todo so before long, whether you wish or not. "

Paul's lips closed tightly one over the other, and his handsclasped themselves fast together. He thought of the vow he hadregistered long years ago in his heart, to live or to die in theservice of his prince; and though what he might be called upon tosuffer might be far worse than death itself, his will stood firm, and he gave no sign of yielding. The man, who would have stood hisfriend if he would have spoken, looked keenly at him, and thenturned away with a slight shrug of the shoulders, and Simon'striumphant and malicious face was looking into his. 

"Now, lad, once more: will you speak, or will you not? It is thelast time I shall ask you. "

"I will tell you nothing, " answered Paul, raising his head andlooking at his old enemy with a contempt and lofty scorn whichseemed to sting the man to greater fury. 

"You will not! very good. You will be glad enough to speak before Ihave done with you. I have many old scores to settle with you yet, and so has the Chief when he comes back; but the first thing is towring from you where the prince is hiding himself. 

"Strip off his fine riding dress and under tunic, lads (it is apity to spoil good clothes that may be useful to our own bravefellows), and string him up to that beam. 

"Get out your hide whips, Peter and Joe, and lay it on well till Itell you to stop. "

With a brutal laugh, as if it were all some excellent joke, the menthrew themselves upon Paul, and proceeded to carry out theinstructions of their leader, who seated himself with a smile oftriumph where he could enjoy the spectacle of the suffering heintended to inflict. Paul's upper garments were quickly removed, and his hands and feet tightly bound with leather thongs. Anupright and a crossway beam, supporting the roof of the cave, formed an excellent substitute for the whipping post not uncommonin those days upon a village green; and Paul, with a mute prayerfor help and courage, nerved himself to meet the ordeal he wasabout to undergo, praying, above all things, that he might not inhis agony betray the prince to these relentless enemies. 

The thick cow-hide whips whistled through the air and descended onhis bare, quivering shoulders, and he nearly bit his lips throughto restrain the cry that the infliction almost drew from him. Buthe was resolved that his foe should not have the satisfaction ofextorting from him any outward sign of suffering save theconvulsive writhings which no effort of his own could restrain. Howmany times the cruel whips whistled through the air and descendedon his back, he never knew--it seemed like an eternity to him; butat last he heard a voice say:

"Hold, men!

"Dowsett, you will kill him before the Chief sees him, and that hewill not thank you for. He is a fine fellow, and I won't stand byand see him killed outright. Take him down and lock him up safelytill the Chief returns. He will say what is to be done with himnext. It is not for us to take law into our own hands beyond acertain point. You will get nothing out of him, that is plain; heis past speech now. "

"The Chief will make him find his tongue, " said Dowsett with acruel sneer; "this is only a foretaste of what he will get when theFire Eater returns. 

"Take him down then, men. 'Twere a pity to kill him too soon. Keephim safe, and we will see what the Chief says to him tomorrow. "

Paul heard this as in a dream, although a mercifulsemi-consciousness had deadened him to the worst of the pain. Hefelt himself unbound and carried roughly along down some darkpassage, as he fancied. There was a grating noise, as if a door hadturned on its hinges, and then he was flung down on what seemedlike a heap of straw, and left alone in pitchy darkness. 

For a time he lay just as he had been thrown, in the same trance ofsemi-consciousness; but after what had appeared to him a very longtime, he beheld as if a long way off a glimmering light, whichapproached nearer and nearer, though he was too dizzy and faint toheed its movements much. But it certainly approached quite close tohim--he saw as much through his half-closed eyelids--and then avoice addressed him, a soft, sweet voice, strangely unlike those hehad just been hearing. 

"Are you indeed Paul Stukely?" asked the voice. 

The sound of his name aroused him, and he made a great effort tosee through the mists that seemed to hang over his eyes. A sweetand very lovely face was hanging over him. He thought he must bedreaming, and he asked faintly, hardly knowing what he said:

"Is it an angel?"

"Oh no, I am no angel, but only the daughter of the Chief; and Iwant to help you, because I have heard of you before, and I cannotbear that they should kill you by inches, as I know they will do ifyou stay here. See, they are all fast asleep now, and there is nochance of my father's return tonight. I have brought you yourclothes, and Madge has given me some rag steeped in a concoction ofherbs of her own making, which will wonderfully ease your wounds ifyou will let me lay it on them. Old Madge is a wonderful leech, andshe cannot bear their cruel doings any more than I can, and shesaid you were a brave lad, and she made you some soup, which I willfetch for you to hearten you up for your journey. For you must getaway from here before morning, or nothing can save you from aterrible fate. 

"See now, do not your poor shoulders feel better for this dressing?If you can put your clothes on whilst I am gone, I will bring yousomething that will go far to help you over your ride tonight. "

It was a great effort to Paul to collect his wandering faculties, and get his lacerated and trembling limbs to obey his will; but hewas nerved to his utmost efforts by the dread of what might befallhim if he could not avail himself of this strange chance of escape. By the time the fair-faced girl had returned with a steaming basinin her hands, he had contrived to struggle into his garments, andthough quivering in every fibre of his being, was more himselfagain, and able to understand better the rapid stream of wordspoured out by the eager maiden. 

"Drink this, " she said, giving him the basin. "It is very good. Ithas all kinds of ingredients in it that will ease your pain andgive you strength and courage; but that you have without. Oh, Ithink you are the bravest lad I ever knew. But listen, for I amgoing to tell you a strange story. I told you that I was the, daughter of the robber chief, did I not? Well, so I am; and myfather loves me the more, I think, that he never loved any otherbeing save my mother, and she died in this very cave when I wasborn. He has always loved me and given me my own way; but theselast weeks a change seems to have come over him, and he talks ofgiving me in wedlock to that terrible man T hate worse than themall--the one they call Devil's Own. He has never spoken a soft wordto me all these years; but the past three weeks he has tried to woome in a fashion that curdles the very blood in my veins. I wouldnot wed him were I heart whole as a babe; and I am not that, for myhand and heart are pledged to another, whose wife I will surelybe. "

The girl's eyes flashed, and it was plain that the spirit of thesire had descended to her. Paul was slowly swallowing the contentsof the basin, and feeling wonderfully invigorated thereby; indeed, he was sufficiently restored to feel a qualm of surprise at beingthus intrusted with the history of this young girl, and she seemedto divine the reason of his inquiring look. 

"I will tell you why I speak thus freely; and I must be brief, forthe moments fly fast, and it is time we were on our way. The man Ilove is one Jack Devenish, of a place they call Figeon's Farm; andthis very night, ere my father returns, I am to meet him; and hewill carry me to his home and his mother, and there shall I lie hidin safety until such time as the priest may wed us. And, Paul, itis a happy chance that brought you hither this night instead ofanother; for we will fly together, and you will be safe at Figeon'sas I. For they will not suspect whither we have fled, nor wouldthey dare to attack a peaceful homestead near the village if theydid. They have made this country almost too hot to hold them as itis, and are ever talking of a flight to the north. Methinks theywill soon be gone, and then I can draw my breath in peace. "

Paul listened in amaze. It was an effort to think of moving againtonight, so weary and worn and suffering was he; but anything wasbetter than remaining behind in the power of these terrible men, and he rose slowly to his feet, though wincing with every movement. 

"I know it pains you, " cried the girl compassionately; "but oh, what is that pain to what you would have to endure if you were tostay? And you will not have to walk. My palfrey is ready tied up inthe wood, a bare stone's throw from here. You shall ride her, and Iwill run beside you, and guide you to the trysting place, where myJack will be awaiting me, and his great roan will carry the pair ofus. Now silence, and follow me. There is a narrow exit from thisinner recess in the cave known only to me and to Madge. Not one ofthe robbers, not even my father himself, knows of it. They thinkthey have you in a safe trap, and will not even keep watch tonightafter their weary search. 

"Tread softly when you reach the open, lest our footsteps be heard. But it is far from the mouth of the cave, and I have never raisedan alarm yet, often as I have slipped out unawares. Give me yourhand--so; now stoop your head, and squeeze through this narrowaperture. There, here are we beneath the clear stars of heaven, andhere is my pretty Mayflower waiting patiently for her mistress. 

"Yes, pretty one; you must bear a heavier burden tonight, but youwill do it gladly for your mistress's sake. 

"Mount, good sir; we shall soon be out of reach of all danger. "

It must be a dream thought Paul, as, mounted on a light palfrey, hewent speeding through the dun wood by intricate paths, a fairy-likefigure springing through the gloom beside him, and guiding thehorse, as he was utterly unable to do. 

It seemed as if his strength had deserted him. His hands had losttheir power, and it was all he could do to maintain his seat on theanimal that bounded lightly along with her unaccustomed burden. Atlast they reached an open glade; a dark, motionless figure wasstanding in the moonlight. 

"It is he--it is my Jack!" cried the fairy, springing forward witha faint cry of welcome. 

"O Jack, I have brought your old friend Paul Stukely back to you. You must take care of him as well as of me, for he has been indeadly peril tonight. "

Chapter 7: The Protection Of The Protected. 

"Nay, wife, why sit up for him? Since he has taken to these rovinghabits at night there is no depending upon him. I must put an endto them if they are to disturb you so. The boy is safe enough. Whyare you anxious about him tonight?"

It was Farmer Devenish who spoke these words to his wife, half anhour after the rest of the household had retired to rest, and hefound her still sitting beside the fire, which she had piled uphigh on the hearth, as if she meant to remain downstairs for sometime; which indeed she distinctly told him was her intention, asshe did not wish to go to bed until Jack had come in. 

"He asked me to sit up for him tonight, " she answered, "and henever did so before. I was glad of it; for I have been uneasy forthe boy, wondering what could take him out so often at night. "

"Oh, he's going courting, you may depend upon it, " laughed thefarmer in his hearty way; "and courting some young lass not of ourvillage, but one who lives a pretty step from here, I'll be bound. I've held my peace, and let the boy go his own way. He'll speak outwhen the time comes, depend upon it. "

"I believe he will speak out this very night, " answered the mother. "He told me he had a surprise in store for me, and begged that Iwould sit up till his return, and stand his friend with you, if youshould be displeased at his choice. One might have thought he wasbringing his bride home with him, to hear him talk; but he wouldnever get wedded without speaking first. He is a good lad and adutiful, and his parents have the right to be told. "

The farmer's curiosity was piqued by what he heard, and he resolvedto share his wife's vigil. Jack, their only son, was very dear tothem, and they were proud of him in their own hearts, and thoughtsuch a son had never lived before. Both were anxiously lookingforward to the day when he should bring home a wife to brighten upthe old home, since it had lost the sweet presence of the daughterJoan; and they neither of them believed that Jack's choice wouldfall upon anyone unworthy of him. 

The farmer dozed in his chair by the glowing hearth. The woman gota large book from some secret receptacle upstairs, and read withdeep attention, though with cautious glance around her from time totime, as if half afraid of what she was doing. It was long beforethe silence outside was broken by any sound of approachingfootfalls; and when the ring of a horse hoof upon the frosty groundbecame distinctly audible through the silence of the night, thefarmer would not unbar the door until his wife had glided away withthe volume she had been reading. 

A minute later and the parents both stood in the doorway, peeringout into the cloudy night, that was not altogether dark. 

"By holy St. Anthony, there are two horses and three riders, " saidthe farmer, shading his eyes from the glare of the lantern as hepeered out into the darkness beyond. 

"Jack, is that you, my son? And who are these that you have broughtwith you?"

"Friends--friends claiming the shelter and protection of your roof, father, " answered Jack's hearty voice as he rode up to the door;and then it was seen that he was greatly encumbered by some burdenhe supported before him on his horse. But from the other lighterpalfrey there leaped down a small and graceful creature offairy-like proportions, and Mistress Devenish found herselfsuddenly confronted by the sweetest, fairest face she had ever seenin her life, whilst a pair of soft arms stole caressingly about herneck. 

"You are Jack's mother, " said a sweet, soft voice in accents ofconfident yet timid appeal that went at once to her heart. "He hastold me so much of you--he has said that you would be a mother tome. And I have so longed for a mother all my life. I never had one. Mine own mother died almost ere I saw the light. He said you wouldlove me; and I have loved you long. Yet it is not of myself I musttalk now, but of yon poor lad whom you know well. We have broughtPaul Stukely back to you. Oh, he has been sorely handled by thosecruel robbers--the band of Black Notley! He has been like a deadman these last miles of the road. But Jack says he is not dead, andthat your kindly skill will make him live again. "

And before Mistress Devenish was well aware whether she were not ina dream herself, her husband had lifted into the house theapparently inanimate form of Paul Stukely, and had laid him downupon the oak settle near to the hospitable hearth. 

Jack had gone to the stable with the horses; but one of the servingmen having been aroused and having come to his assistance, he wasable quickly to join the party beside the fire, and coming forwardwith a glad and confident step, he took the hand of the fairy-likegirl in his own, and placed it within that of his mother. 

"Father, mother, " he said, "I have brought you home my bride thatis to be. Listen, and I will tell you a strange story, and I knowyou will not then withhold your love from one who has known littleof it, and who has led a strange, hard life amid all that is badand cruel, and is yet all that you can wish to find in woman--allthat is true and pure and lovely. "

And then Jack, with the sort of rude eloquence sometimes found inhis class, told of his wooing of the robber's daughter; told of herhatred and loathing of the scenes she was forced to witness, of thelife she was forced to lead; told of her fierce father's fiercelove gradually waning and turning to anger as he discovered thatshe was not pliable material in his hands, to be bent to his sternwill; told how he had of late wished to wed her to the terribleSimon Dowsett, and how she had felt at last that flight alone withher own lover could save her from that fate. 

Then he told of Paul's capture upon the very night for which theflight had been planned; told how gallantly he had defied thecruelty of the robber band, and how his Eva had effected hisliberation and had brought him with her to the trysting place. Theyhad planned before the details of the flight, and it would be deathto her to be sent back; but after her liberation of the captive, the thought of facing that lawless band again was not to be thoughtof. 

And the farmer, who had listened to the tale with kindling eyes andmany a smothered ejaculation of anger and pity, suddenly put hisstrong arms about the slight figure of the girl, and gave her ahearty kiss on both cheeks. 

"Thou art a good wench and a brave one, " he said, "and I am proudthat my roof is the one to shelter thee from those lawless men, whoare the curse of our poor country. 

"Jack, I told the mother that you must be going courting, and thatI should be right glad when you brought a bride to the old home. And a bride this brave girl shall be as soon as Holy Church canmake you man and wife; and we will love her none the less for whather father was. I always heard that the Fire Eater, as they callhim, had carried off and married a fair maiden, too good by athousand times for the like of him; and if this is that poor lady'sdaughter, I can well believe the tale. But she is her mother'schild, not her fierce father's, and we will love her as our own. 

"Take her to your heart, good mother. A brave lass deserves a warmwelcome to her husband's home. "

The gentle but high-spirited Eva had gone through the dangers ofthe night with courage and resolution, but tears sprang to her eyesat hearing these kindly words; and whilst Jack wrung his father'shand and thanked him warmly for his goodwill. The girl buried herface upon the shoulder of Mistress Devenish, and was once morewrapped in a maternal embrace. 

And then, having got the question of Eva's adoption as Jack'sbetrothed bride so quickly and happily settled, they all turnedtheir attention to poor Paul, who for a few minutes had been almostforgotten. 

There was a warm little chamber scarce larger than a closet openingfrom the room where the farmer and his wife slept, and as there wasa bed therein always in readiness against the arrival of someunlooked-for guest, Paul was quickly transported thither, andtenderly laid between the clean but coarse coverings. He onlymoaned a little, and never opened his eyes or recognized where hewas or by whom he was tended; whilst the sight of his laceratedback and shoulders drew from the woman many an exclamation of pity, and from the farmer those of anger and reprobation. 

It was some time before they understood what had happened, orrealized that the young kinsman (as they had called him) of Paul'swas really the Prince of Wales, the son of the now reigning Henry, and that the two lads had been actually living and travellingtogether with this secret between them. But Eva had heard muchabout both, and told how the presence of the prince in the countryhad become known to her father and his band first through thesuspicions of the peddler, who had seen the one pearl clasp stillowned and kept by the robber chief, and had at once recognized itsfellow; and secondly, from the identification of Paul's companionwith the Prince of Wales by one of the band who had been over toFrance not long ago, and had seen the prince there. 

The old likeness between the two youths was remembered well by theband, who had been fooled by it before; and they had been for weeksupon the track of the fugitives, who had, however, left Figeon'sbefore their enemies had convinced themselves of their identity;and in London they were less easily found. Eva did not know thewhole story--it was Paul who supplied the missing links later; butshe told how a great part of the band had gone forth to seek themin the city--how word had presently been brought by a mountedmessenger that the fugitives had escaped, just when they werecertain they had them fast--that all roads were being watched forthem, but that those who still remained in the forest were to keepa close lookout, lest by some chance they should return by the waythey had come. 

The band had been scouring the woods all that day in differentdetachments, and they had brought in Paul just before dark. Theprince had escaped their vigilance, and Paul had maintained silenceunder their cruel questioning. Eva knew no more of him than thefarmer, but all were full of hope that he had escaped. Well indeedfor both--if Paul knew his hiding place--that he was out of thepower of the robbers. They would scarce in any case have let himescape with his life, after the ill will many of them bore him; buthad he continued to set them at defiance by his silence, there isno knowing to what lengths their baffled rage might not have gone. Eva had heard of things in bygone days which she could not recallwithout a shudder, and the farmer and Jack, with clenched hands andstern faces, vowed that they would leave no stone unturned untilthe country was rid of these lawless and terrible marauders. 

"We have stood enough; this is the last!" cried the burly owner ofFigeon's. "We will raise the whole countryside; we will send adeputation to the bold Earl of Warwick; we will tell him Paul'shistory, and beg him to come himself, or to send a band of fivehundred of his good soldiers, and destroy these bandits root andbranch. If these outrages are committed in the name of the House ofYork, then I and mine will henceforth wear the badge of Lancaster. What we simple country folks want is a king who can keep order inthis distracted land; and if that brave boy who dwelt beneath ourroof, and was kindly and gracious to all, is our future king, well, God bless and keep him, say I, and let the sceptre long be held inhis kindly hands!"

In the village of Much Waltham next day the wildest excitementprevailed. Jack was down at his sister's house with the dawn totell how Paul had been rescued from the hands of the robbers theprevious night, and what cruel treatment he had received at theirhands. He was going off on a secret errand to the Priory that veryday on Paul's behalf, to ask for news of the prince; and when itwas known that the bright-haired lad (Paul's kinsman, as he hadbeen called) who had won all hearts was none other than theirfuture Prince of Wales, a great revulsion of feeling swept over thehearts of the simple and loving rustics, and they became as warm intheir sympathies for Lancaster as they had been loyal hitherto toYork. 

But the burning feeling of the hour was the desire to put down by astrong hand the depredations of these lawless robber hordes. Not ahouse in the place but had suffered from them, not a farmer but hadcomplaints to make of hen roost robbed or beasts driven off in thenight. Others had darker tales to tell; and Will Ives clenched hisfists and vowed that he would be glad indeed to see the day when heand Simon Dowsett might meet face to face in equal combat. But itwould be impossible to attack the robbers in their forestfastnesses unless they had military help; and a deputation was tostart forthwith to London, to lay before the mighty earl the storyof the ravages committed, and the deadly peril which had justthreatened the heir of England, from which he might not yet haveescaped. 

Jack was in hopes that he might still be at the Priory, and that hemight bring him back and set him at the head of a party of loyalrustics, who should escort him in triumph to his royal father inLondon. But that hope was of short duration; for the news hereceived at the Priory told that the prince was already far away, and safe at sea on his way to France. 

He had arrived just at dusk the previous evening, and when he hadtold his adventures and proved his identity to the satisfaction ofthe Prior, strenuous efforts were made to convey him safely awaybefore further peril could menace him. It chanced that one of thebrothers was about to start for the coast on a mission for thePrior; and disguised in a friar's gown, Edward could travel withhim in the most perfect safety. Stout nags were in readiness forthe pair; and after the lad had been well fed, and had enjoyed acouple of hours' sleep beside the fire, he was sufficientlyrefreshed to proceed on his way, only charging the Prior either tosend Paul after him if he should arrive in time, or to keep him insafe hiding if that should not be possible. 

Before Jack left the place, the brother who had been the prince'scompanion returned with the news that Edward had been safelyembarked in a small trading vessel bound for France, the captain ofwhich, an ardent Lancastrian, would defend his passenger from everyperil at risk of his own life if need be. The wind was favourableand light, and there was every hope of a rapid and safe passage. Before nightfall this very day Edward would probably be landed uponFrench soil, out of all chance of danger from foeman's steel. 

As to the purposed overthrow of the robber band, the brothers mostheartily approved of it. They too, though in some sort protected bythe awe inspired by Holy Church, suffered from the bold dealings ofthese lawless men, and gladly would they see the band scattered orexterminated. 

The Prior shook his head somewhat as Jack explained how he wishedto wed the daughter of the chief of the crew; but when the loverpleaded his cause with all the eloquence at his command, andpainted in piteous words the misery the gentle girl had endured inthe midst of her unhallowed surroundings, the kind-heartedecclesiastic relented, and forthwith despatched Brother Lawrence toexamine and counsel the maid, hear her confession, and absolve herfrom her offences, and then, if all seemed well, to perform therite of betrothal, which was almost as binding as the marriageservice itself, and generally preceded it by a few weeks or months, as the case might be. So Jack rode off in high feather, and talkedso unceasingly of his Eva the whole way to the farm, that the goodbrother was almost convinced beforehand of the virtue and devotionof the maid, and was willing enough a few hours later to join theirhands in troth plight. After that, unless the father were preparedto draw upon himself the fulminations of the Church, he could notlay claim to his daughter, or try to give her in wedlock toanother. Her place was now with her betrothed's kindred, where shewould remain until the marriage ceremony itself took place, andmade her indeed the daughter of the farm. 

Meantime Paul lay for a while sorely sick, and was tended withmotherly devotion by good Mistress Devenish, who learned to lovehim almost as a son. Hardy and tough as he was, the fatigue andsuffering he had undergone had broken him down, and a fever set inwhich for a time made them fear for his very life. But his hardyconstitution triumphed over the foe, and in a week's time from thenight he first set foot across the threshold of Figeon's Farm hewas held to be out of danger, though excessively weak and ill. 

During the long nights when his hostess had watched beside him, thinking that he was either unconscious or delirious, Paul had seenand heard more than she knew. He had heard her read, as if toherself, strange and beautiful words from a book upon herknee--words that had seemed full of peace and light and comfort, and which had sunk into his weary brain with strangely soothingpower. Some of these same words were not quite unfamiliar tohim--at least he knew their equivalents in the Latin tongue; butsomehow when spoken thus in the language of everyday life, theycame home to him with tenfold greater force, whilst some of thesweetest and deepest and most comforting words were altogether newto him. 

And as his strength revived, Paul's anxiety to hear more of suchwords grew with it; and one forenoon, as his nurse sat beside himwith her busy needle flying, he looked up at her and said, "You donot read out of the book any more, and I would fain hear thosewonderful words again. "

"I knew not that you had ever heard. "

"Yes, I heard much, and it seemed to ease my pain and give me happythoughts. It is a beautiful and a goodly book. May I not hearmore?"

"I would that all the world might hear the life giving words ofthat book, Paul, " said the good woman with a sigh. "But they comefrom Wycliffe's Bible, and the holy brothers tell us that it is awicked book, which none of us should read. "

"It cannot be a wicked book which holds such goodly words--wordsthat in the Latin tongue the Holy Church herself makes use of, "said Paul stoutly. "It may be bad for unlettered and ignorant mento try to teach and expound the words they read, but the wordsthemselves are good words. May I not see the book myself?"

"You know the risk you run in so doing, Paul?"

"Ay; but I am a good son of the Church, and I fear not to see whatmanner of book this be. If it is bad, I will no more of it. "

The woman smiled slightly as she rose from her seat and touched aspring in the wall hard by the chimney. A sliding panel sprang backand disclosed a small shelf, upon which stood a large book, whichthe woman placed in Paul's hands, closing the panel immediately. 

He lay still, turning the leaves with his thin hands, andmarvelling what the Church found to condemn in so holy a book asthis seemed, breathing peace and goodwill and truest piety; but aslight stir without the house, and the trampling of horse hoofs inthe court below, caused the woman to raise her head with aninstinct of caution, and Paul to thrust the volume hastily butcautiously deep beneath the pillows on which he lay. 

There were strange voices in the house, and the door was opened byBrother Lawrence, who came in with a troubled look upon his face. He was followed by three tall monks in a different habit, and withnone of the rubicund joviality upon their faces that was seen inthose of the brothers of Leighs Priory; whilst last of all, with acunning and malicious leer upon his face, followed the littlepeddler, who, when he met the steady glance of Paul's eyes, shrankback somewhat and looked discomfited. 

But the foremost of the tall monks, scarce heeding the respectfulsalutation made him by Paul and the mistress, turned upon thepeddler and said:

"Fellow, come forward and bear your testimony. It was, you who laidthe information that heretical books were hidden in this house, andthat you knew the hiding place. Make good your words, now that youhave brought us to the spot; for our worthy brother here speakswell of those that live beneath this roof. "

"May it please your reverence, I know the place well, and thatthere are heretical books concealed there always. If you will pressthat spring in the wall here, you will see for yourself. If youfind not the forbidden Bible there, call me a prating and a lyingknave. ", Brother Lawrence was looking both troubled and curious, but theface of Mistress Devenish was perfectly calm, and Paul commandedhis countenance to a look of simple wonderment and surprise. 

The monk obeyed the direction of the peddler; the secret spring, gave a sharp click, and the door flew open. But the little shelfwas bare, and told no tales, and the face of the peddler fell. 

"It has been removed--they have had notice of this visitation, "stammered the discomfited man; but Brother Lawrence cut him short. 

"Your reverence knows that that is impossible, " he said, addressingthe tall monk: "no word of this visitation had reached even ourears till your arrival this very morning. This house has ever beenwell thought of by our fraternity, and pays its dues to Holy Churchas I would all other houses did. I trust your mind is satisfied. "

The monk bent his head; but before he could speak, Paul had raisedhimself on his pillows, and was speaking in quick, earnest tones. 

"Holy father, listen, I pray you, to me, " he said, "and trust notthe testimony of yon traitorous fellow, who, if he had had hiswill, would have done to death the son of our sainted monarch KingHenry. 

"Nay, let him not escape, " he cried, as he saw the man make anattempt to reach the door, which was promptly frustrated by thesudden appearance of Jack Devenish, who had heard of this suddenincursion of monks, and had rushed to the house in some fear ofwhat might be happening there. 

"Hold him fast, Jack, " cried Paul, with increasing energy, "till Ihave told my tale;" and forthwith he described in graphic words howthis man had identified the prince, and had striven to sell him tothe enemy, that the House of York might triumph in his death, or inpossession of the heir whose life alone could redeem the cause ofLancaster from destruction. The story was listened to with deepattention and no little sympathy, for the visit, the peril, and theflight of the prince were becoming known in this part of thecountry, and the clergy of all degrees were thankful indeed thatthe heir of England was safe, as they were all deeply attached tothe cause of the Red Rose. 

So Paul's story roused a great wave of anger against the meanfellow, who would thus earn his own living by betraying those whosebread he had eaten, or one whose life it should be his care toprotect; and scarce had Paul done speaking before Brother Lawrencetook up the gauntlet, and addressing himself to the tall monk, pointed to Paul, as he lay still white and weak upon his pillows. 

"And hear farther, reverend father: this youth who now speaks toyou is he of whom I told you as we rode along, who bore torturewithout yielding up the name of the hiding place to which he knewthe prince had escaped. But for him young Edward might yet havefallen into the hands of these robbers; for they would have watchedour Priory and have set upon all who went or came, and ravaged thewhole country, so that even the habit of the monk would not haveprotected or disguised him. And these good folks here at this farmwere they who rescued him from the hands of the robbers; for themaiden alone, without the help of this stalwart youth, could nothave brought him, ill and fainting as he was, all these long wearymiles. And they took him in; and this woman, whom yon informerwould have you believe is a vile heretic, has nursed him like hisown mother, and brought him back from the very jaws of death. Andis she who has done a service that royal Henry will one day thankher for publicly (for this pallid youth is as a brother in love toyoung Edward, and his especial charge to us till he comes again toclaim him and bestow his well-earned knighthood upon him)--is sheto suffer from the unproven charges of a base spy and Yorkist toollike yon fellow there, who would have betrayed his own king's sonto death? Away with such a fellow from the earth, I say; and letthose who have sheltered England's heir, and rescued this boldyouth from worse than death--let them, I say, live in peace andhonour for the service they have done their country! For I wot thatwhen young Edward comes in his own proper state again, his firstcare will be for those who befriended him in his hour of need, hisfirst chastisement against those who have done aught to harm them, if they be still cumbering the earth. "

And with that the usually jovial brother, moved now by a greataccess of wrath, which had given him unwonted eloquence, pointed afinger significantly at the trembling peddler; and Jack, who heldhim by the collar, gave him a shake and said:

"Give me leave to carry him to the village green and tell the goodfolks there the tale, and I warrant that he will not cumber theground much longer. "

"Do with him as you will, " said the tall monk, "he is no charge ofmine; and if all be true that is said, he well deserves his fate. "

The peddler was borne away, crying and entreating, and before anhour had passed, his dead body was hanging on an oak tree nigh tothe blacksmith's forge--a warning to all informers; and when he hadgone the tall monk turned to Paul with a more benign air, and laidhis hand upon his head as he said:

"Thou art a stanch lad; and for their care to thee these honestfolks deserve the gratitude of the Church. I believe none of theaccusations of that lewd fellow. I trow this is a godly house, where the Lord is rightly honoured in His holy ordinances. "

"That indeed is so, " answered Paul fervently. 

The visitors departed well satisfied; whilst Paul heaved a greatsigh of relief, and wondered if he had in any way sinned by thoughtor word or deed. But his conscience was clear; he could not seethat there was sin in reading holy words from God's own Book. Suchmatters of dispute were too hard for him, and he closed his tiredeyes and was soon sound asleep. He saw the great Bible no morewhilst he remained beneath that roof; but many of its words wereengraved upon his heart, and were a guide to his steps and a lightto his path throughout his subsequent life. 

"You have saved us from a great peril this day, Paul, " said thefarmer that night, with a moisture in his eyes and a gravity uponhis jolly face. "If we have given shelter and protection to you, your protection of us has been equally great. You must make thisyour home, my boy, so long as you need one. "

The next days were full of excitement for Much Waltham. The requestmade by the people of Essex had been listened to by the great earl, and though he could scarce credit the fact that the king's son hadbeen so near, he was convinced at last, and burned to avengehimself on those who had tried to take him captive. A band of armedmen was sent down, and the forest swept clear of the marauders--atleast for a while. Will Ives had his wish, and met Simon Dowsettface to face in a hand-to-hand struggle; and although the latterdid all to deserve his undesirable sobriquet, he was overpowered atlast and slain, and his head carried in triumph to his nativevillage, where, after the savage custom of the day, it was exposedon a pike on the village green. 

Paul heard of this fight by report alone, for he was able to getonly as far as the great kitchen fire, where he and Eva spent agreat part of their time in eagerly discussing the questions of theday. Her father, the chief of the band, made his escape with somefew of his followers, and was heard of no more in those parts. Hisdaughter was glad he was not killed, though she could not desire tosee him more; and in a short time she and Jack were married, andshe almost forgot that she had been for so many years livingamongst the robbers of Black Notley. 

Chapter 8: The Rally Of The Red Rose. 

"Paul! Is it really you? Now indeed I feel that I have reached mynative land again. O Paul, I have wearied sorely for you. Whyfollowed you not me to France, as we planned? Every day I lookedfor tidings of you, and none came. But this meeting atones forall. "

It was the bright dawn of an Easter day, and Paul, after a night'shard riding, stood within the precincts of the Abbey of Cerne, notfar from the seaport of Weymouth. His hands were closely grasped inthose of young Edward, who was looking into his face with beamingeyes. 

It was no longer the fugitive Edward of the winter months, but aroyally equipped and accoutred youth, upon whose noble face andfigure Paul's eyes dwelt with fond pride. Weary and tempestuous ashad been the voyage from France to England--a voyage that hadlasted seventeen days, in lieu of scarce so many hours--yet thebright face of the Prince of Wales bore no signs of fatigue ordisappointment. The weary days of waiting were over. He and hismother had come to share his father's royal state, and drive fromthe shores--if he came--the bold usurper who had hitherto triumphedin the strife of the Roses. His heart beat high with hope and loftypurpose; and in joy at the eager welcomes poured upon him by thefriends and warriors who came flocking to his standard he forgotall the doubts and fears of the past, and looked upon himself asthe saviour of his country, as indeed he was regarded by all hisparty. 

The old comrades and friends looked each other well over withsmiling glances, and it seemed as if Edward marked in Paul as muchchange in the outward man as he had done in the prince. 

"By my troth, Paul, fair fortune has smiled upon you since last wemet. And the gold spurs of knighthood too--nay, now, what meansthat, good comrade? Were we not to have knelt side by side toreceive that honour? Have you outstripped me from the first?"

"Pardon, my dear lord, " answered Paul, blushing and smiling; "Iwould sooner have received the honour at your hands than at thoseof any other. But I was summoned to London, so soon as my woundswere healed, by the great earl; and your royal father himself gaveme audience, to ask news of you (for it became known that you hadvisited the realm by stealth); and after I had told him all mytale, he with his own hand bestowed that honour upon me. Then thenoble earl made over to me a fair manor in the west country, whichI have not yet visited, but which has put money once more into mypurse. And here am I, your grace's loyal servant, to ask no betterthan to follow and fight for you until the crown is safely placedupon your head. "

And he bent the knee and pressed his lips upon the prince's hand. 

But Edward raised him, and linked his arm within that of his oldcompanion, walking with him along the pleasant green pathway of theAbbey mead, not content till he had heard every detail of thatwhich had befallen Paul, from the moment they had parted up tillthe present, and listening with intense excitement to his accountof what had befallen him in the robbers' cave, and how he hadescaped from thence, and had been tended and protected at Figeon'sby the kindly and honest folks there. 

"When I am king, " said young Edward, with flashing eyes, "I will gothither again, and reward them royally for all they have done foryou and me. I am glad they loved me still, Lancastrian though theyknew me at last to be. Oh, if they were willing to follow myfortunes and own me as their king, methinks others will not be farbehind! And, God helping me, I will try to show them what manner ofman a king should be. "

For it had been fully recognized upon all hands now that theprince's father was absolutely incapable of more than the name ofking, and it was well known that the prince was to be the realruler, with the name of regent, and that it would be his hands orhis mother's that would sway the sceptre of power, should theLancastrian cause triumph in the struggle. 

And no thought of aught but victory had as yet found place in youngEdward's heart. Was not the great invincible earl fighting on theirside? And had he not already placed Henry once more upon thethrone, not to be again deposed so long as he had a soldier left tofight for him?

But Paul's heart was scarce so light, although the sight of theprince awakened his loyal enthusiasm. 

"O my lord, if you had but come sooner--had come before the proudson of York had landed, and drawn to his standard a host ofpowerful followers! I know not how it is, but his name is a magnetthat strangely stirs the hearts of men. Ere I left London I heardthat the rival armies were closely approaching each other, and thatthe battle might not be much longer delayed. I knew not whether tofly to welcome you, or to stay and draw the sword on your behalf, and strive to be the one to bring to you the glorious news ofvictory. I cannot think but what the great earl will again bevictorious; but the despatches he intrusted to me, with commands tohasten westwards to try and meet you on your landing, will tell youmore of the chances of war than I can do. Men's mouths are full ofrumours. One knows not how to sift the false from the true. But themen of London--ay, there is the peril--they all stand sullen whenwe of the Red Rose pass by, and scarce a voice calls 'God save theking. ' If Edward of York were to succeed in reaching the city--"

"But he must not--he shall not--he cannot!" cried young Edward, with flashing eyes. "What! shall the proud crest of my greatfather-in-law stoop before the traitorous host of York? Fie onthee, Paul! talk not to me of defeat. Nay, after we have heard theholy mass of this glad Easter day, let us rather to horse andaway--you and I together, Paul, as we have done times before--andlet us not draw rein till we ride into the victorious camp of theking my father, and hear the glad welcome we shall receive from hisbrave host. 

"O Paul, I have had my moments of doubt and desponding, but theyare all past now. I come to claim my kingdom, and to place a crownupon the brow of my lovely bride. Ah, I must present you to her--mygentle Lady Anne. I wot she will not be far off She will be seekingfor me, as is her fashion if we are long apart. She must thank youherself for all that you have done and suffered for me. You willfeel yourself a thousandfold repaid when you have heard her sweetwords of recognition. "

And in effect, as they turned once more toward the Abbey, Paul sawapproaching them the slight and graceful figure of a young girl, inthe first blush of maiden bloom and beauty, her face ethereallylovely, yet tinged, as it seemed, with some haunting melancholy, which gave a strange pathos to its rare beauty, and seemed almostto speak of the doom of sorrow and loss already hanging over her, little as she knew it then. 

The solemn troth plight which had passed between her and youngEdward was almost equivalent to the marriage vow that would shortlybind them indissolubly together, and their love for each other wasalready that of man and wife. As the gentle lady listened to theeager tale poured out by Paul, she stretched out her hand to him, and when he would have bent the knee she raised him up with sweetsmiles, and told him how her dear lord had always praised him as avery brother, and the type of all that was faithful and true incomrade. Such words from such lips brought the boyish blush toPaul's cheeks, and he stumbled bashfully over his undyingprotestations of loyalty. 

Then, as they reached the refectory, which had been allotted by themonks to their noble guests, he stopped short and fell upon hisknees; for in a tall and stately figure advancing to meet them herecognized the great queen he had not seen since he was a child, and scarce dared to raise his eyes to note the ravages that sorrowand care had made upon that princely visage, or the silverwhiteness of the locks, covered for the most part by the tall, peaked headdress of the day. 

The queen recognized Paul at once from the strange likeness to herown son, and her welcome was kindly given. But she was anxious andpreoccupied, having but risen from the perusal of the despatchesPaul had brought; and although her natural courage and hopefulnesswould not permit her to despond, she could not but admit thatdanger menaced the cause of the Red Rose, whilst she realized, asher young son could not do at his age, how utterly disastrous wouldbe a single victory of the enemy at such a juncture. 

The fortunes of the rival houses were trembling in the balance. Thefirst decisive, advantage to either would give a prestige andfillip to that cause which might be absolutely fatal to the hopesof the other. If it were true that some battle were being fought orabout to be fought that very day, such a battle might be either thedeath blow to all their hopes or the earnest of a final triumphnigh at hand. 

It was a strange Easter Day for the party at the Abbey. The masswas quickly followed by the arrival of loyal adherents from thesurrounding country, who had heard of the landing of thelong-expected party from France, and flocked eagerly to pay theirhomage to the queen and the prince, and look upon the fair face ofthe Lady Anne, whose position as Warwick's daughter and Edward'sbride alike made her an object of the greatest interest and aperson of importance. Paul was deeply enamoured of the gentle andlovely lady, and received many marks of favour from her hands. Hewas given a post about the young prince, and kept close at his sidethe whole day. 

It was inspiriting indeed to hear the loyal protestations of thefriends who kept flocking all day to join their standard, and therewas no riding forth to London for prince or attendant so long asthe light lasted. 

"But tomorrow morn we will sally forth ere it well be day, " saidEdward, in low tones, as they parted for the night. "My heart tellsme that something of note has occurred this very day. We will bethe first to bring the news to my mother. Be ready with a couple ofhorses and some few men-at-arms ere the sun be well risen over yonridge, and we will forth to meet the messengers of victory, andbring them back with us to tell their welcome news. "

Paul had forgotten his vague fears in the gladness of the present, and scarce closed his eyes that night, thinking of the comingtriumph for the prince he loyally loved. He was up and in thesaddle with the first glimmering light of day, and by the time thatthe rosy glow of dawn was transforming the fair world of nature andclothing it with an indescribable radiance of gossamer beauty, heand the prince were already a mile from the Abbey, galloping alongin the fresh morning air with a glad exultation of spirit thatseemed in itself like a herald of coming triumph. 

"The very heavens have put on the livery of the Red Rose!" criedEdward gaily, as he pointed to the vivid red of the east; and Paulsmiled, and tried to banish from his mind the old adage learned athis nurse's knee, to the effect that a red morn was the herald of adark and dreary day. 

They had ridden a matter of some five miles forth in the directionof the great road to London--as it was then considered, though weshould scarce call the rude tracks of those days roads--when thequick eye of Paul caught sight of a little moving cloud of dust, and he drew rein to shade his eyes with his hand. 

Edward followed his example, and together they stood gazing, theirhearts beating with sympathetic excitement. How much might the nextfew moments contain for them of triumph or of despair! for from thehaste with which these horsemen rode, it was plain they were thebearers of tidings, and if of tidings, most likely those of somebattle, in which the King Maker and the king he had first made andthen driven away would stand for the first time in hostile ranks. Together they had been victorious; what would be the result whenthey met as foes?

Nearer and nearer came the riders, looming through the uncertainmorning mist, and emerging thence two jaded, weary figures, theirhorses flecked with foam, nostrils wide, chests heaving, showingevery sign of distress; and Paul, recognizing in one of the ridersa follower of the Earl of Warwick, called upon him by name, and bidhim speak his tidings. 

"Lost--lost--all lost!" cried the man, addressing himself to Paul, unconscious of the identity of his companion; "the battle is foughtand lost. The armies met on Barnet Heath. The Earl of Warwick, thegreat earl, was there slain. His Majesty King Henry is again aprisoner in the hands of Edward of York. Today he makes histriumphant entry into London, which will open its gates to him withjoy and receive him as king. "

Paul sat rigid and motionless as he heard these words. He did notdare to look at young Edward, who sat beside him as if turned tostone. The second messenger, who had had a moment to draw breathwhilst his fellow had been speaking, now broke in with his share ofthe terrible news. He had seen the prodigies of valour performed bythe mighty earl. He had witnessed the death of that warrior--such adeath as was fitting for one of his warlike race. The testimony ofeyewitnesses could not be doubted. The fatal day had again beenhostile to the cause of the Red Rose, and the mournful cry of thosewho had seen and shared in the fight, as they fled pellmell fromthe field, had been, "Lost--all lost! the House of Lancaster isutterly overthrown!"

Mournfully the little procession turned itself and rode back to theAbbey. Edward had not spoken one word all this time, and themessengers, who had now learned who he was, fell to the rear, andobserved an awed silence. But their tale had been told. They hadsaid enough. The worst was made known, and not even Paul daredventure a word of consolation, or seek to know what was passing inthe mind of the prince, whose fair inheritance seemed thus to beslipping away. 

Excitement, uncertainty, and suspense seemed in the very air, andeven before the silent little troop reached the courtyard of theAbbey eager forms were seen hurrying out, and the tall and statelyfigure of the royal Margaret stood outlined in the doorway. Perhapssomething in the very silence and confused looks of the littlegroup told a tale of disaster, for the queen came hurrying down thesteps with whitening face, and her son sprang from his saddle andput his arm about her, as if to support her in the shock whichcould not but fall upon her now. 

"Tell me all, " she whispered hoarsely. "Do not keep me in suspense. Speak, I command you, my son. "

"A battle has been fought--and lost, " answered Edward, speakingmechanically. "Our ally and friend the Earl of Warwick was killedin desperate fight. My father is a prisoner in the enemy's hands. Edward of York is even now making his triumphant entry into London, which will receive him with open arms. "

Edward said no more; he had indeed told all his tale, and it hadbeen enough for the unhappy woman, who had landed on English soilso confident of victory. She gave one short, low cry, a convulsiveshudder passed through her limbs, and she fell senseless to theground. That cry found its echo upon the pale lips of another--onewho had closely followed the queen to learn the tidings of thetravellers; and Edward turned to catch his bride in his arms, whilst her tears rained down fast as she heard how her noble fatherlay dead upon the fatal field that had lost her lord his crown, andhad dashed to the ground the warmest hopes of the Red Rose. 

"Let us to ship again, " said Margaret, as she recovered from herlong swoon. "The cause is lost without hope. Warwick is slain. Whomhave we now to trust to? Let us back to France, and hide ourdishonoured heads there. My father's court will receive us yet, andperchance we may in time learn to forget that we were ever princesand sovereigns. "

Strange words, indeed, from the haughty and warlike Margaret; butat that moment her proud spirit seemed crushed and broken, and itwas young Edward who answered her with words of hope and courage. 

"Nay, mother, " he said, "let it not be said of the House ofPlantagenet that they turned their backs upon the foe, and fleddisgracefully, leaving their followers to butchery and ruin. Itmight have been well for us never to have disturbed again the peaceof this realm; but having summoned to our banner the loyaladherents of the Red Rose, it is not for us to fly to safety, andleave them to the wrath and cruelty of Edward. No; one battle--onedefeat--does not lose us our cause. My father lives; shall we leavehim to linger out his days in hopeless captivity? I live; have Inot the right to strike a blow for the crown to which I was born?

"Courage, sweet mother. You are a king's daughter. You have led mento victory before. Say not--think not--that all is lost. Let us winthe crown of England by the power of the name and of the righteouscause we own, and henceforth shall no man say that a subject crownsand dethrones England's monarch at his will. "

These words, seconded and echoed by those of many a gallant knightand noble, raised Margaret's broken spirit, and she began once moreto hope. That day they journeyed by rapid stages to Beaulieu Abbey, a very famous sanctuary in those days, the ruins of which may stillbe seen in the New Forest; and there the party found the widowedCountess of Warwick, who had landed at Portsmouth before the royalparty had reached Weymouth, and had just heard of her terribleloss. To have her daughter with her once again, and to mingle theirtears together, was some consolation, both for the countess and theLady Anne; but others had sterner work before them than weepingover past misfortunes, and as soon as the retreat of the royalLancastrian became generally known, many stanch adherents flockedto tender their allegiance and promise fealty to the cause. 

Foremost amongst these was the young Duke of Somerset, whose familyhad ever been stanch to the Red Rose, as well it might. Some of theunpopularity Margaret of Anjou had early won for herself at theEnglish court was due to her confidence in and affection forSomerset, and his son might well be ardent in her cause. 

Margaret herself was still sunk in unwonted depression, but therepresentations of the fiery young duke did much to give her heart. With him came Jasper Tudor, the king's half brother, and they drewglowing pictures of the loyalty of the western counties; and ofWales, where a large band of troops was mustering for her support;and represented that if she could but effect a junction with them, the whole country would soon be hers, and she would be able todictate terms to the enemy at the gates of London. 

Margaret's elastic temper rose with the encouragement thusreceived, and Edward's heart beat high with hope. The party begantheir westward march, and through the bright days of April and Maythey rode through the smiling land, receiving welcome and adulationfrom all, and reinforcements to their little band from every townthrough which they passed. Small wonder was it that they learned tofeel confident of ultimate success. The young prince, with Paul athis side, would ride through the ranks of his followers day by day, speaking bright, brave words to all he passed, and winning thehearts of his troops as perhaps only the young and frank-heartedand unspoiled can do. To him it seemed almost more like a triumphalprogress than a recruiting march. 

But Margaret's brow was often dark with anxiety. She knew thetemper of the bold Edward of York, as she called him, whom theworld still spoke of as king; and she knew that he would be upontheir track. Any day they might see his banners threatening theirrear, and still the Welsh army was at some distance; and until ajunction could be effected, even their lives could scarce be calledsafe. 

Then at Gloucester a serious check met them. The place was held forthe king's brother, and the gates were resolutely closed againsther. It was here that she had reckoned upon crossing the deep andtreacherous waters of the Severn, and to be thus foiled might meanthe ruin of the enterprise. The sheltering mountains of Wales werealready in sight; but how was she to reach them if the passage ofthe river were denied her?

Paul had gone forth alone that day, and had not been present whenthe queen had ridden herself to the fortified gates to demand anentrance, which had been firmly and respectfully declined her. Buthe had learned tidings which disquieted him not a little, and itwas at full gallop that he dashed back into the ranks, and soughtthe prince himself, who was looking with darkening brow upon thefrowning battlements of the unfriendly city. 

"My liege, it brooks not this delay, " he cried, reining up besideEdward, and speaking in rapid whispers. "The army of York is scarcea score of miles away, and in hot pursuit after us. They have hadcertain news of our movements, and unless we can push on across theriver and meet our friends there, we shall be taken in the rear, and at sore disadvantage. It behoves us to strain every nerve toreach our friends before our foes are upon us. "

"I doubt not that, " answered Edward calmly, yet with a look whichPaul did not understand; "but the wide river runs before us, andthe bridge is barred to us. Unless we reduce first this noble city, we must turn and face the foe and fight him at sore odds. "

A look of dismay crossed Paul's face as he heard this piece ofnews, and he silently followed the prince at his bidding to thespot where the leading nobles and generals were gathered togetherin warm debate. The news that Edward was just upon them ran likewildfire through the ranks, and all the most experienced leaders, including the royal Margaret herself, were of opinion that it wouldbe better not to run the risk of a battle, but retire rapidly andstealthily from their present position, and not encounter the onsetof Edward's veteran troops, flushed with victory and thirsting forblood, until their hardy mountain allies had contrived to jointhem. 

But there is something revolting to young and ardent spirits in thethought of flight, and the Duke of Somerset was eager for the fray. He argued that an easy victory must be theirs if they did but actboldly and hastened to the attack. To fly were fatal; their troopswould become disheartened and melt away. Their foes would openlytriumph, and all men would be drawn to them. Edward's soldiers, weary with long marching, would be taken by surprise. It were athousand times better to risk the fight than to play the coward atso critical a juncture. 

And these impetuous words carried the younger spirits along withthem. The prince drew his sword, and riding through the ranks, asked if the soldiers would choose to fight or fly. There couldscarce be more than one reply to such an appeal so made. They drewtheir swords and vowed to live or die with him, and the enthusiasmof the moment was such that all were carried away; and orders wereinstantly given for a march upon Tewkesbury, where it was thoughta spot might be found which would give them advantages for thecoming struggle. 

The troops had had a long march earlier in the day, but theytraversed the ten miles which lay between them and Tewkesbury withcheerful alacrity. Paul and the prince rode side by side in the vanof the advancing host, and Edward looked straight before him withglowing eyes, as if he felt that a crisis of his fate were at hand. 

"At last, my good Paul, we are riding forth to try conclusions withthe world, as we have purposed so long to do, " he said, with astrange, flashing smile. "In faith I am glad that the hour ofaction is come. Ere another sun is set some blow shall have beenstruck which shall set the crown of England upon some one head morefirmly than ever it has been set before. God grant the cause ofright may triumph! But whichever way the conflict goes, I pray thatthis distracted land may find peace and rest, and that I may beeither a victor in the strife, or may find a soldier's grave. Paul, will you give me your promise, trusty comrade, that ere I fallalive into the hand of the foe, you will bury your knightly swordin my heart yourself? It were the part of a true brother to save mefrom the fate of my patient father. He has borne dethronement andcaptivity; but methinks I should pine and die, and I would farrather--"

He gave Paul an expressive glance; but the young knight answeredgravely and steadfastly:

"My liege, ask me not that beyond my power to grant. We may notwithout sin raise our hands against the Lord's anointed, and I maynot do the thing you ask. Death or captivity I will gladly sharewith you, or spend every drop of my blood to save you; but morethan this no loyal knight may promise. Forgive me, my liege, if Ioffend in this. "

But Edward held out his mailed hand with his own bright, sweetsmile, grasping that of Paul, which he held in his own as he spoke. 

"You are in the right, Paul, you are in the right. Perchance itwere a coward thought; for should not a prince be ready for anyblow of adverse fortune? But ride you into the battle beside me. Let us fight side by side, even as we have always hoped to do. Iwould that you were in very truth my brother, as in love you havelong been. And if I fall whilst you escape, be it your office tobreak the tidings to my mother and my gentle Anne; for methinks, were it told them suddenly or untenderly, their hearts would breakwith the sorrow. "

Paul gave this pledge willingly, though it scarce seemed possibleto him that he should live to carry such tidings, seeing he woulddie a thousand deaths to save his prince from the foeman's steel. And then, with grave faces but brave hearts and unclouded brows, the comrades rode side by side into the town of Tewkesbury, whilstthe army intrenched itself on the summit of a small eminence calledthe Home Ground, not half a mile away. 

Already the rival army was mustering, and the Yorkist troopsoccupied the sloping ground to the south, that went by the name ofthe Red Piece. The Lancastrians had the best of the situation, asthey were established amongst trenches and ditches, partly real andpartly artificial; which would render any attack by the enemydifficult and dangerous. 

"I trow it would be hard to drive from this ground these brave menthus posted, " said Edward to Paul, as the two rode round the campat the close of the day. "They have only to stand firm and holdtheir position, and all will be well. Oh that the night were past, and that a new day had come! I would I could see the end of thisstruggle. I would the veil of the future might be for one momentlifted. "

But the future keeps its secrets well--well for us it is so--andthe youthful and high-spirited young prince saw not the black cloudhanging already upon him. The soldiers greeted him with cheers andblessings; the generals bent the knee to him, and vowed to die towin him back his crown. The light of the setting sun illumined thefield so soon to be red with human blood, and the vesper bell fromthe church hard by rang out its peaceful summons. 

Edward looked round him, and laid his hand affectionately on Paul'sshoulder. 

"This is a fair earth, " he said dreamily. "I wonder what the worldbeyond will be like, for those who leave this behind, as so manywill do tomorrow. "

Paul spoke not a word, but returned the look with one infinitelyloving, and together the two rode back to the town. 

Chapter 9: The Tragedy Of Tewkesbury

How the battle of Tewkesbury was lost and won is too well known toneed description in detail here. Whether the Lancastrian army couldhave held the field before the Yorkist veterans had they beenskilfully generalled will never now be known; but the fiery andimpetuous Duke of Somerset, whose ill-judged ardour had forced thebattle upon his followers, undoubtedly lost the day for them by hisintemperate and reckless disregard of the dictates of commonprudence. After opening the fight by a discharge of ordnance, hewas mad enough to leave his intrenched position on the Home Ground, and carry his men into the open for a charge upon the opposingarmy. Here they were not only confronted by Edward's compact army, but were taken in the flank and rear by a company of spearmen whohad been told off to guard against a possible ambush in a littlewood; which, however, the hot-headed Somerset had never thought toplace. 

Thrown into confusion, the Lancastrians were routed, and confusionwas rendered worse confounded by another impetuous act on the partof the fiery young duke. As he and his flying soldiers fell backupon the town of Tewkesbury, and reached the market place, theyfound Lord Wenlock and his men sitting idle and motionless there, as if there was no work for them to do. 

The reason for this extraordinary apathy on the part of one of theleaders will never now be known. It was the curse of the strife ofthe Roses that treachery and a change of sides was alwayssuspected, and too often with good cause, between men who had beenfriends and allies heretofore. The Duke of Somerset at onceconcluded that Lord Wenlock had turned traitor to the cause, andriding furiously up to him as he sat, he dashed out his brains withhis battle-axe, without so much as pausing to ask a singlequestion. 

The followers of both leaders who saw the deed were struck with newterror. With loud cries of "Treason, treason!" they threw downtheir arms and fled they knew not whither, and the retreat became aconfused rout, in which the thought of each man was to save his ownlife. 

Such, in brief, was the deplorable story of the battle ofTewkesbury. But we are concerned less with the main course of thefortunes of the day than with the individual adventures of certainpersons concerned, who, if isolated acts of gallantry and devotioncould have saved the day, would have turned the fortunes of eventhe fatal field of Tewkesbury. 

The prince was stationed in the main body of the army, under thecare, as was supposed by his anxious mother, of the military Priorof St. John's Longstruther. And by his side was his faithfulshadow, Paul, whose solemn purpose that day was to keep beside theprince throughout the course of the battle, and shield him fromharm even at the cost of his own life. Some strange foreboding hadfallen upon Paul, and he scarce expected to see the light ofanother day; but this presentiment of coming ill he bravely hidfrom his companion, and the two rode into the ranks with smilingfaces, and looked across at the opposing lines of the enemy with asteadfast and lofty courage. Then the prince turned to hiscompanion. 

"Our first battle, good Paul; for though as a child I saw fighting, I never took part in it before. I am glad that we ride side by sidethis day. Let us show our loyal people, whatever be the fortunes ofthe field, that Englishmen can strike hard blows, and that theynever turn their backs upon the foe. If we ride not to victory, Paul, let us ride to death with a courage that shall not disgracethe kingly blood that both of us can boast in some measure. "

Then they looked to their weapons, and sat very silent, waitingwhat would befall. 

Perhaps those that take part in a fierce fight know less about thedetails than any others. Paul was presently aware that he and themen about him, the prince still at his side, were charging down thelittle eminence upon which they had been posted, straight at theserried ranks of the Yorkist army, which kept its position, andawaited their coming with cool intrepidity. Paul had not time tothink or reason, or he would surely have wondered at the rashnessof quitting an advantageous position, and putting themselves tosuch disadvantage before the foe. All he knew was that the duke'scompany had moved first, and had charged upon the enemy, and thattheir military monk had given the word to follow and support theirfriends; which was done without a moment's hesitation, whether themovement were, strategically speaking, right or wrong. 

And then, all in a moment as it seemed, the prince and his comradefound themselves in a fierce melee, in which for a while they couldscarce move hand or foot, jammed in by the press of men and steeds, but surrounded by friends and comrades, who were eagerly pressingforward toward the foe. Cries and shouts rent the air, mingledsometimes with the shriek or groan which told that a well-directedblow had gone home to its mark. The press became denser, and thenless dense; some riderless horses from the front rank came tearingback through the crush, forcing their way in a sort of mad terror;and Edward, snatching his battle-axe from its resting place acrosshis saddle bow, swung it over his head, and shouted to hiscompanion:

"Follow me, Paul! yonder lies the foe. I will strike a blow for myfather's liberty and crown this day, whether I live or die. "

The way was open now, and Paul saw plainly that they were close tothe ranks of the foe. But there was no drawing back, even had hewished it; his blood was up now, and not even fear for the possibleperil of the prince could withhold him from the charge. He knew notwhether the person of the prince was known, and whether youngEdward ran any especial danger in thus flinging himself upon theenemy. But it was no longer his place to think--the moment foraction had arrived; and following Edward's example, he dashed intothe thick of the fray, the impetuosity and fury of his chargebearing down all before him, and hewing down man and horse as heclave a passage through the ranks for the prince, who closelyfollowed. 

They were not alone. A gallant little company was following intheir track, and with cries of "An Edward, an Edward, a Prince ofWales!" smote down the rival warriors with a fury which for themoment nothing could withstand. There is surely something magneticin a war cry or in a patriotic song, for it inspires those who useit with an ardour and a strength which for the moment seeminvincible. 

To Paul and the prince it seemed as if the day were all but won. Wherever they turned they dealt death and destruction. The wing ofthe army upon which they charged was wavering and disorganized; theinfantry recoiled before the fierce charge of the horsemen, and theopposing cavalry was mostly in another part of the field. 

"Victory, victory!" shouted those about Paul and the prince; and tothe enthusiastic and excited lads it seemed as if the day wasalready theirs. The name of the Prince of Wales was in all mouths. It was shouted by each soldier as he fell upon his foe, and theenemy appeared to recoil before it. Onward and ever onward pressedthe eager little band, until it was entirely separated from themain body of the army; and so certain were all who took part inthat isolated skirmish that the fortunes of the day were with theHouse of Lancaster, that the peril of their position struck none ofthe prince's followers till, thinned by the blows of theiradversaries, and weary with the impetuosity of their own charge, they paused and drew together; whilst the foe, glad of a moment'sbreathing space, did not molest them. 

There are pauses even on the battlefield when a few words can beexchanged, and the prince, flushed with the foretaste (as it seemedto him) of a glorious victory, turned to Paul with kindling eyes. 

"War is a glorious game in all truth, Paul. I would not have beenelsewhere for all the world. But you bleed--you are wounded. Tellme where. I knew not that you were hurt. You must ride back to thetown and be tended there. "

"Nay, it is nought; I do not even feel it. I know not who struckme, nor when. I will bind this scarf about my arm, and all will bewell. And think you not, my liege, that it were well to return tothe lines ourselves? I promised your royal mother and the Lady Annethat you should not adventure yourself too much today within theenemy's lines. But all such charge passed from my memory in theheat of the fight. "

"Ay, and my place was here, in the midst of my good soldiers. Oh, it has been a glorious day! 'Lancaster will remember it ever. Andsee, Paul--see how they fly on yonder height! See how the battlerages and becomes a flight! It is the same everywhere. The Red Rosetriumphs. Proud York is forced to fly. Shall we join them, and leadagain to victory? They are chasing them to the very walls of thetown. "

Paul looked in the direction indicated, and a change came over hisface. He had the wonderful long, keen sight which often comes tothose who have grown up in the open air, and have been used fromchildhood to the exercise of hunting and hawking. The prince sawonly the flying rout, which he concluded to be the soldiers ofYork; but Paul could distinguish more. He could see the colours, and the badges they wore, and he recognized with a sinking heartthe terrible fact that it was the followers of the Red Rose whowere flying before the mailed warriors of Edward of York. 

The change in his countenance did not escape young Edward's keeneye, and he at once divined the cause, The bright flush faded fromhis own face, and his gaze was turned in the same direction again. 

Alas! it was but too plain now; for the rout was plainly in thedirection of the town, and it was easy to understand that had itbeen the Yorkists who had fled they would have taken an oppositedirection, in order to reach their own lines. 

For a moment prince and subject sat spellbound, watching thatterrible sight in deep silence. But then the peril of their ownposition, and the deadly danger that menaced the prince if thesituation should be realized by their foes surrounding them here, flashed across Paul like a vivid and terrible lightning gleam. 

He turned and laid his hand upon the shoulder of the prince. 

"My liege, " he said, "we may not linger here. We must regain ourcomrades, and see if we may rally them yet. All may not be lost, but it were madness to remain here. Let me call our followerstogether, and we will charge back through the foe to our own lines. It is not safe to be here. "

Edward made no reply. The face that had been flushed with victoryand bright with hope was now set in those stern lines which seem tospeak of a forlorn hope. He saw their peril as clearly as Paul; butif the day were lost, what mattered it if his life were yet wholein him? The face he silently turned upon his companion seemed tohave grown years older whilst he had been speaking. 

And to make matters worse, the knowledge of the disaster to theirown side spread to the soldiers who had followed the prince, andthat instant demoralization which so often accompanies andaggravates defeat seized upon the men. They flung away theirheavier arms, and with a shout of "Treason, treason!"--for theywere assured there had been foul play somewhere--fled each man byhimself, without a thought for aught save his own life. 

Paul and the prince thus found themselves alone in the midst of ahostile host--alone save for the presence of some half-dozen stouttroopers attached to the service of Paul, who since his advance inworldly prosperity had been in a position to engage and retain theservices of some men-at-arms of his own. These faithful fellows, who had learned to love their young master, sat doggedly in theirsaddles, prepared to sell their lives dear, and to carry off ifpossible their master and the prince living from the field. Butthey, too, realized how desperate was the situation; and thethreatening and triumphant glances of their enemies, who now beganto close up round them, showed that others had realized that thebattle was already won by the Yorkist faction. 

"King Edward, King Edward!" shouted the fierce soldiers as theygrasped their weapons anew. "Down with the Red Rose! Down with allfalse princes! Down with the traitors who would disturb the peaceof the land! King Edward, King Edward!"

The prince looked at Paul, and Paul looked at the prince. The samethought was in the minds of both. 

"We will at least sell our lives dear, " said young Edward in lowtones. "My trusty comrade, your loyalty to the Red Rose has beenbut a sorry thing for you. I would I could have rewarded you withsuch honours as a prince has to give; but--"

"It is honour enough for me, my liege, to die at your side--to die, if it may be, in saving your life, " said Paul. "Talk not so, Ibeseech you. The happiness of my life has been in calling myselfyour servant. It will be a happy death that is died at your side. "

"Not servant--comrade, friend, brother, " said Ed ward, holding outhis hand once again, with a look that Paul never forgot. "No more, Paul. I must play the man; and such words go deep, and bring thetears to mine eyes. Paul, there are strange chances in battle, andit may be that you will live through it, and that I may be slain:If such be so, tell my mother and my wife (for she is that to me, as I am her husband in love) that I died as a prince of the Houseof Plantagenet should do--sword in hand and face to the foe. Tellmy mother that such a death is better than an inglorious life ofexile, and bid her not weep for me. There is yet another world thanthis in which we shall meet, where the strife of war is not heardand the malice of foes pursues us not. Let her look forward to ourmeeting there. It were a better prospect, in all truth, than anearthly crown, which methinks sits heavy on the head of him thatwears it. "

Paul said nothing, for he could not trust himself to speak, andindeed the brief respite was at an end. With loud and threateningcries the foe was closing round the devoted little band, and fromthe other side of the field he could see that a knot of horsemenwere galloping in their direction, as though they had got some newsof the presence of the prince. 

Wounded as he was, and spent from having borne the brunt of thatfirst gallant charge, Paul yet set his teeth and nerved himself fora last desperate rally. If they could cut their way through theranks of the foes and gain the town, they might be safe at leastfor the moment; and that was the object of himself and hisservants. Placing the reluctant prince in the midst, so as ifpossible to save at least him from steel or lead, the gallantlittle band with axes and pikes commenced hewing its way throughthe living wall which surrounded it. And so gallantly did the goodsteeds respond to the urging of their riders, and so fierce werethe blows that rained down upon the heads of the footmen who barredtheir passage, that for a moment it seemed as if they would yet wintheir way back, and gain the protection of such of their comradesas had not shared in the general rout. 

But alas! though the footmen gave way before them, the mountedsoldiers, who were speeding across the field, saw at once the linethey were taking, and galloped headlong to intercept them. Paul, inthe fury of his hot young blood, dashed forward alone, and fellupon the foremost with so fierce a blow that his axe was wedged inthe head-piece of his opponent, so that he was unable to draw itout. The man reeled in his saddle and fell, almost dragging Paul, who still had hold of the axe, with him; and before he couldrecover himself or draw his sword, he was set upon by half a scoremounted riders. 

For one moment he was aware of merciless blows raining down uponhim, battering him to the earth; he felt suffocated, crushed, moreutterly helpless and powerless than he had ever done in his lifebefore. Quick thrills of pain were running through him, starsdanced before his eyes; and through all this confusion anddistress he was yet aware of some terrible danger menacing theprince--danger from which he had sworn to save him at the risk ofhis own life. He struggled fiercely and blindly with the foes whoseemed to be above and about him, knocking the wind from his body, and holding his throat in an iron clasp. Consciousness was fastdeserting him. The dancing stars had disappeared, leaving theblackest darkness behind them. He made one frantic effort to breakthe chain which seemed to be grinding his very life out of him, andthen followed a space of blankness that must surely have been likedeath itself. 

It might have been minutes, hours, days, or even years beforePaul opened his eyes to the light of day once more, for allconsciousness he had of the flight of time; but when he did so itwas to meet the solicitous glance of a pair of friendly eyes, andto feel himself supported by strong arms, whilst some potent spiritwas held to his lips, which, when he had drunk of it, seemed todrive away the mists and give him back his senses again. 

He looked round him, and found himself lying upon a bloody field, dead and wounded strewn about him. He was upheld by the arm of oneof his own stout servants; and no one else save a few wounded menor dead corpses was near. In a flash it all came back--the fight, the supposed victory, the disastrous defeat; and he groaned aloud, and struggled to regain his feet. 

"The prince!" he cried, in tones sharpened by physical and mentalanguish, "the prince!--where is he?"

"He is a prisoner; but he is unhurt. A gallant knight took him. Hisname, I learned from one of his men-at-arms, is Sir Richard Crofts;and he called out to his men, after you were down, that he wouldhave no hurt done to the prince. He was to be taken prisoner andbrought to the king--so he called him; and he had given out byproclamation that whoever brought to him the prince, alive or dead, should have a hundred pounds a year; and that the life of theprince should be spared. This I learned from the man-at-arms whostayed behind with me a while, to bind up a wound you had givenhim, and to help me to unlace your helmet, which was going nigh tochoke you as you lay. 

"Fear not for the prince, good master. His life is safe; anddoubtless his noble aspect will win him favour with him they nowcall king. 

"Nay, why do you struggle with me? you can scarce stand yet. Whither would you go? Let me catch some riderless steed and carryyou to the town. Methinks the leaders have taken sanctuary with thequeen in the church. You had better join them there. "

"Ay, get me a horse, " said Paul, with faint but vehement command;and he leaned heavily upon his sword as his servant departed to dohis bidding. 

Battered, sore wounded as he felt himself to be, instinct told himthat he could act now as it would be impossible to do later, whenhis wounds began to stiffen and his muscles to refuse to obey hiswill. No bones were broken. He could still keep his feet and usehis arms; and when the faithful servant brought up a horse andhelped his master to mount, Paul felt that giddy and weak andsuffering as he was, he could yet make shift to ride as far as itwould be needful to do. The royal pennon floating over a certaintent not so very far away told him that his goal might yet bereached before his strength deserted him. The fiery spirit of whichhe again partook gave him temporary power. He scarce knew what hewished to do, save that he must stand beside his prince when he wasbrought to Edward's presence, and if harm befell him there, shareit with him, as he had shared his peril that fatal day. 

"Save yourself, good Adam, " he said to his servant when he was oncemounted; "I am going to follow the prince. But come not near theenemy's lines yourself, lest mischief befall you. "

And before the astonished servant could speak a word ofremonstrance, Paul had set spurs to his horse and had galloped offin the direction of the enemy's camp. 

Within the lines there was the confusion incident to a battle, andno one heeded the battered rider, who, his helmet left behind andhis mail dinted and disfigured by the hard blows it had received, had nothing about him to show to which army he belonged. Soldierswere leaning on their swords and eagerly discussing the fortunes ofthe day; and round and about Edward's royal tent a dense crowd hadgathered, out of curiosity, it was said--and Paul heard thewords--to see what manner of reception would be met at themonarch's hands by the youthful Edward, called "Prince, " who hadbeen brought into the lines by Sir Richard Crofts. 

The proclamation respecting him was widely known throughout thecamp, and it was said on all hands that the life of the princewould be safe; but whether he would share his father's captivity orbe banished the kingdom with his French mother were points no onecould answer. 

And Paul rode silently and swiftly by, glad that no one heeded himor challenged him to give an account of himself. 

Dismounting at last as he reached the outskirts of the crowd, andturning his horse loose to find its own master if it could, Paulwas about to push his way into the eager knot of spectators, when ahand was laid upon his arm; and turning suddenly, he found himselfconfronted by a delicate page boy, whose white face and dilatedeyes seemed to bespeak the extreme of emotion and distress. Beforehe had time to speak or to ask a question, the page addressed him;and as soon as the voice smote upon his ears Paul started andturned even paler than he had been; for he had heard those musicaltones before, and in the fair page before him he recognized, to hishorror and dismay, the gentle Lady Anne--young Edward'sbride--here, alone and unprotected, in the heart of the foe's camp. 

She saw that she was recognized, and laid her hand upon her lips intoken of silence. Paul choked back the words that were upon histongue, and looked at her in mute amaze. 

"I could not keep away, " she whispered, "when they told me all waslost and he had not returned. It was the only way. No one hasheeded me in the tumult and strife. I heard all. I heard he wasprisoner--that he was to be brought before Edward of York. Paul, Iknew that you would be near him. I knew, if living, I should findyou. See, they heed us not. They care not whether we be friends orfoes. Take me through the crowd; take me to him. I am safe withyou. Let us all die together. "

Paul, utterly bewildered and astonished by this extraordinarymeeting, could only obey in silence. It was all like some hideous, oppressive dream. Little by little he and his companion made theirway through the throng until they reached the line of armedsentries who kept their stations outside the royal tent. Here theywould have had to pause, had not Paul made a step forward and saidboldly:

"I am the servant squire of the prisoner, and I claim the right tostand at his side and share his fate, whatever it may be. Let meand this lad, I pray you, go to him. We desire nothing better thanto lay down our lives with him. "

The sentries eyed the pair doubtfully. Their unarmed condition andPaul's visibly battered state told that these were no dangerousconspirators; and devotion to a lost cause always stirs thegenerous feelings of brave men. It may, however, be doubted whetherthe pair would have gained their wish had it not been for the factthat at this moment Edward himself appeared, disarmed, butotherwise treated with due honour and courtesy, attended by hiscaptor, who was leading him to the king's tent in obedience to asummons just received. 

The moment that she saw her betrothed husband, no power on earthwould have been strong enough to hold back the fair-faced page, under whose boyish dress a faithful woman's heart was beating. Thedisguised maiden sprang forward and sank at the feet of hersupposed master, seizing his hand and covering it with kisses asshe tenderly murmured his name. 

Edward instantly recognized her--Paul saw that at once; but theshock of the discovery steadied his nerves, as he realized theperil in which she had placed herself, and he looked round for onewho might save her when he himself might be powerless to do so. Itwas at that moment--as the crowd stood speechless, touched andperplexed by the little scene, and reluctant to rough-handle sofair a boy, and one whose devotion was so bravely displayed--thatPaul took occasion to step forward and present himself beforeEdward. 

A look of relief instantly crossed the prince's face. 

"I might have known that you would have been here--ever nearest inthe hour of deadliest peril. Paul, whatever befalls me, take careof him. " Low as the words were spoken, the prince dared not use theother pronoun. "Keep him safe. Take him to my mother; she willprotect him from the menaced peril. "

"I will, my liege, I will, " said Paul; and it was he who raised theform of the trembling page, and together the three were pushed notungently into the royal presence--Sir Richard being a man of kindlynature, and having been touched by the devotion evinced by thesetwo youths (as he supposed them) in braving the dangers of the campin order to be with their prince when he was called upon to answerfor his life before the offended monarch. 

Edward was standing in his tent, surrounded by his nobles, brothers, and his wife's kinsmen, as the young Plantagenet princewas brought before him. Perhaps England hardly possessed a finerman than its present king, who was taller by the head than almostany of those who stood round him, his dress of mail adding to thedignity of his mien, and his handsome but deeply-lined features, now set in stern displeasure, showing at once the indications of anunusual beauty and a proud and relentless nature. 

The youthful Edward was brought a few paces forward by theattendants; whilst Paul stood in the background, longing to bebeside his prince, but obliged to support the trembling form ofAnne, who had been his liege's last charge to him. 

"Is this the stripling they falsely call the Prince of Wales?"quoth Edward, stepping one pace nearer and regarding the noble ladwith haughty displeasure. "How dost thou dare to come thuspresumptuously to my realms with banners displayed against me?"

"To recover my father's kingdom and mine own inheritance, " was thebold but unhesitating answer of the kingly youth, who, fettered andprisoner as he was, had all the fearless Plantagenet blood runningin his veins. 

The eagle eye of Edward flashed ominously, and making one more steptoward his unarmed prisoner, he struck him in the face with hisiron gauntlet. In a moment a dozen swords flashed from theirscabbards. It seemed as if the bloodthirsty nobles awaited but thissignal for the ruthless attack upon the deposed monarch's son whichhas left so dark a stain upon one page of history. 

Paul, all unarmed as he was, would have sprung forward to die withhis prince, but was impeded by the senseless burden now lying adead weight in his arms. At the king's blow the page had uttered afaint cry; and as the first of those murderous weapons were plungedin the breast of her youthful lover, she fell to the earth like astone, or would have done, but that Paul flung his arm about her, and she lay senseless on his breast. 

For one awful moment the blackness returned upon him and swallowedhim up, and he knew not what terrible thing had happened; but whena loud voice proclaimed the fact that the prince had ceased tolive, a wild fury fell upon Paul, and he started to his feet torevenge that death by plunging his dagger into the breast of thehaughty monarch as he stood there, calm and smiling, in histerrible wrath and power. 

Had Paul attempted to carry out this wild act, a fateful murderwould have been enacted in the tent that day; but even as hereleased himself from the clinging clasp of Anne's unconsciousarms, there came to him the memory of those last words spoken byhis beloved prince. The young bride must be his first care. Shemust be carried to safe sanctuary; that done, he would stand forthto revenge his lord's death. But the prince's charge must befulfilled. 

Lifting the unconscious form in his arms, he walked unchallengedfrom the tent. The deed now done sent a thrill of horror throughthe camp, and men looked into each other's eyes, and were ashamedthat they had stood by to see it. 

Not an attempt was made to oppose the passage of the faithfulattendant, who carried in his arms the page boy, who had stood byhis master to the last. Room was made for them to pass through thecrowd; and staggering blindly along, Paul reached a spot where, tohis astonishment and relief, his own servant was waiting for himwith a horse ready caparisoned. 

"To the church, to the church, " he whispered as Paul mountedmechanically, holding his still unconscious burden in his arms. 

And he made a mute sign of assent; for he knew that within thewalls of the church he should find the wretched Margaret, who wouldhave taken sanctuary there at first tidings of defeat. 

Silently, and as in a dream, the horsemen passed along, and at lastdrew rein at the door of the little church, where stood a priestwith the Host in his hand, ready, if need be, to stand betwixt thehelpless victims of the battle and their fierce pursuers. 

He knew Paul's face, he recognized that of the inanimate form hecarried in his arms, and he made way for him to pass with a mutesign of blessing. 

Paul passed in. There beside the altar he saw the queen, bowed downby the magnitude of her woe, for she had just heard the firstrumour of that terrible tragedy. 

As he approached someone spoke to her, and she turned, rose, andcame swiftly forward. 

"Paul, " she said, "Paul--tell me--is it true?"

Paul looked at her with dim eyes. 

"I have brought you his wife, " he said. "It was his last charge. Now I am going back. They have killed him; let them kill me, too. "

He placed his helpless burden in the queen's arms, turned, and madea few uncertain steps, and then fell down helplessly. He hadfulfilled his life's purpose in living for the prince; but it wasnot given to him to die uselessly for him, too. 

Chapter 10: The Prince Avenged. 

Paul Stukely lived to see the foul crime that stained the victor'slaurels on the field of Tewkesbury amply avenged upon the House ofYork in the days that quickly followed. 

He himself was carried away by his faithful men-at-arms, who sawthat their cause was finally lost; and when, many weeks later, theraging fever which held him in its grasp abated, and he knew oncemore the faces of those about him, and could ask what had befallenhim, he found that he had been carried away to his own small manor, bestowed upon him by the great Earl of Warwick--which manor, perhaps from its very obscurity and his own, was left quietly inhis hands; for its late owner had fallen upon the field ofTewkesbury, and no claim was ever made which disturbed Paul frompeaceful possession. 

When he recovered his senses it was to hear that not only theprince was dead, but his royal father also; that the queen, asMargaret was still called by him, had returned to France; and thatthe cause of the Red Rose was hopelessly extinguished. So Paul, with the hopefulness which is the prerogative of youth, recoveredby degrees from the depression of spirit that the memory of thetragedy of Tewkesbury cast over him, and learned by degrees to takea healthy interest in his little domain, which he ruled wisely andkindly, without meddling in public matters, or taking part in theburning questions of the day. To him Edward always was and alwaysmust be a cruel tyrant and usurper; but as none but princes of theHouse of York were left to claim the succession to the crown, therecould be no possible object in any renewal of strife. 

Paul, in his quiet west-country home, watched the progress ofevents, and saw in the tragedies which successively befell thescions of the House of York the vengeance of Heaven for the foulmurder of the young Lancastrian prince. 

The Duke of Clarence, who had been one of the first to strike him, fell a victim to the displeasure of the king, his brother, and wassecretly put to death in the Tower. Although Edward himself died anatural death, it was said that vexation at the failure of some ofhis most treasured schemes for the advancement of his children cuthim off in the flower of his age. And a darker fate befell his ownyoung sons than he had inflicted upon the son of the rival monarch:for Edward of Lancaster had died a soldier's death, openly slain bythe sword in the light of day; whilst the murderer's children weredone to death between the stone walls of a prison, and for yearstheir fate was shrouded in terrible mystery. 

The next death in that ill-omened race was that of King Richard'sown son, in the tenth year of his age. As Duke of Gloucester, hehad stood by to see the death of young Edward, even if his hand hadnot been raised to strike him. He had then forced into reluctantwedlock with himself the betrothed bride of the murderedprince--the unhappy Lady Anne. He had murdered his brother'schildren to raise himself to the throne, and had committed manyother crimes to maintain himself thereon; and his own son--anotherEdward, Prince of Wales--was doomed to meet a sudden death, calledby the chroniclers of the time "unhappy, " as though some strange orpainful circumstance attached to it, in the absence of both hisparents: and lastly, the lonely monarch, wifeless and childless, was called upon to reap the fruits of the bitter hostility anddistrust which his cruel and arbitrary rule had awakened in thebreasts of his own nobles and of his subjects in general. 

Paul Stukely, now a married man with children of his own growing upabout him, watched with intense interest the course of publicevents; and when Henry of Richmond--a lineal descendant of Edwardthe Third by his son John of Gaunt--landed for the second time tohead the insurrection against the bloody tyrant, Sir Paul Stukelyand a gallant little following marched amongst the first to joinhis standard, and upon the bloody field of Bosworth, Paul felt thathe saw revenged to the full the tragedy of Tewkesbury. 

He was there, close beside Henry Tudor, when the last franticcharge of the wretched monarch in his despair was made, and whenRichard, after unhorsing many amongst Henry's personal attendantsin order to come to a hand-to-hand combat with his foe, witnessedthe secession from his ranks of Sir William Stanley, and fell, crying "Treason, treason!" with his last breath. He who hadobtained his crown by treachery, cruelty, and treason of theblackest kind, was destined to fall a victim to the treachery ofothers. As Paul saw the mangled corpse flung across a horse's backand carried ignominiously from the field, he felt that the God ofheaven did indeed look down and visit with His vengeance those whohad set at nought His laws, and that in the miserable death of thislast son of the House of York the cause of the Red Rose was amplyavenged. 

A few years later, in the bright summertide, when the politic ruleof Henry the Seventh was causing the exhausted country to recoverfrom the ravages of the long civil war, Sir Paul Stukely and histwo sons, fine, handsome lads of ten and twelve years old, weremaking a little journey (as we should now call it, though it seemeda long one to the excited and delighted boys) from his pleasantmanor near St. Albans through a part of the county of Essex. 

Paul had prospered during these past years. The king had rewardedhis early fealty by a grant of lands and a fine manor near to St. Albans, whither he had removed his wife and family, so as to bewithin easy reach of them at such times as he was summoned by theking to Westminster. The atmosphere of home was dearer to him thanthat of courts, and he was no longer away from his own house thanhis duty to his king obliged him to be. But he had been muchengaged by public duties of late, and the holiday he had promisedhimself had been long in coming. It had been a promise of somestanding to his two elder sons, Edward and Paul, that he would takethem some day to visit the spots which he talked of when theyclimbed upon his knee after his day's work was done to beg for thestory of "the little prince, " as they still called him. Paulhimself was eager again to visit those familiar haunts, and see ifany of those who had befriended the homeless wanderer were livingstill, and would recognize the bronzed and prosperous knight oftoday. 

And now they were entering a familiar tract; and the father toldhis boys to keep their eyes well open, for the village of MuchWaltham could not be far off and every pathway in this part of theforest had been traversed by him and the prince in the days thathad gone by. 

"I hear the sound of hammering, " cried the younger Paul in greatexcitement soon. "O father, we must be getting very near! It islike a smith's forge. I am sure it must be Will Ives or his father. Oh, do let us ride on quickly and see!"

The riders pressed onward through the widening forest path, and, sure enough, found themselves quickly in the little clearing whichsurrounded the village of Much Waltham. How well the elder Paulremembered it all! the village church, the smithy, and the lowthatched cottages, the small gardens, now brighter than he had seenthem in the dreary winter months; the whole place wearing an air ofincreased comfort and prosperity. 

The flame within the forge burned cheerily, and revealed an activefigure within, hard at work over some glowing metal, which emittedshowers of brilliant sparks. Sir Paul rode forward and paused atthe door with a smile of recognition on his face. The smith cameforward to see if the traveller required any service of him, butwas somewhat taken aback by the greeting he received. 

"Well, worthy Will Ives, time has dealt more kindly with you thanwith me, I trow. You are scarce a whit changed from the day, seventeen years back come November, when I first stopped in sorryplight at this forge, with your pretty wife as my companion, to getyour assistance as far as Figeon's Farm. Why, and here is MistressJoan herself; and I warrant that that fine lad is the son of bothof you. 

"Good Even to you, fair mistress!--Last time we met we scarcethought that so many years would roll by before I should pay theseparts a visit. But fortune's wheel has many strange turns, and Ihave been dwelling in regions far remote from here. But these ladsof mine have given me no peace until I should bring them on a visitto Much Waltham and Figeon's Farm. I trust that I shall find allthe dwellers there hale and hearty as of yore, and that death haspassed this peaceful place by, whilst he has been so busyelsewhere. "

Great was the excitement of the place when it was realized by theinhabitants that this fine knight, who rode with half-a-dozenmen-at-arms in his company, and two beautiful boys at his side, wasnone other than the Paul Stukely that the men and women of theplace remembered, and the children spoke of as of the hero of someromance dear to their hearts. The news flew like wildfire throughthe village, and old and young came flocking out to see, till theknight was the centre of quite a little crowd, and the excited anddelighted boys were hearing the familiar story again and again fromthe lips of these friendly strangers. 

When at length the little cavalcade moved up the gentle slopetoward Figeon's Farm, quite a large bodyguard accompanied it. Joanherself walked proudly beside the knight, who had given his horsein charge to his servant, and was on foot as he trod the familiartrack; and she was listening with flushing and paling cheek to thetale of Tewkesbury, whilst the boys were asking questions ofeverybody in the little crowd, and eagerly pushing on ahead to getthe first sight of the farm that had twice sheltered their fatherin the hour of his need. 

The old people were living yet, though infirm and feeble, and moredisposed to spend the day in the armchairs, beside the blazing firein the inglenook, than to stir abroad or carry on any activeoccupation at home. Jack Devenish and his wife, Eva, managed thehouse and farm, and brought up their sturdy and numerous family soas to be a credit to the old name. It was Jack himself who camehurrying out to meet his guests--a rumour of their approach havinggone on before--whilst his smiling wife stood in the door way towelcome in the bronzed knight, whom once she had rescued from suchpitiful plight and from deadly danger. 

What a welcome it was that they got from all at Figeon's Farm! andhow delightful to the boys to run all over the house--to see theroom in which their father had slept, the window from which he hadflung the robber who had come to carry away Mistress Joan, and thelittle sliding panel behind which the recess lay that had been soluckily emptied of its treasure before the search party came!

Then, on the next day, there was the Priory to visit, and BrotherLawrence to claim acquaintance with, and a long ride through theforest to be made to visit the cave at Black Notley, where Paul hadonce been dragged a prisoner, and had been so roughly handled bythe robbers. The days were full of excitement and pleasure to thetwo lads, and scarcely less so to Paul himself, save for the faintflavour of melancholy which could not but at times assail him inrecalling the episode of his romantic friendship with Edward, Prince of Wales. 

And when they returned home at last to tell their adventures towife and mother, they left behind them in Much Waltham manysubstantial proofs of the gratitude the Stukelys must ever feel forthe protection accorded by its inhabitants in past days to the headof the house; and round the firesides in cottage and farm there wasfor many long years no more favourite story told by the old folksto the eager children than the tale of adventure, peril, anddevotion in the days of the Wars of the Roses, which went by thename, in that place, of "The Story of Paul and the Prince. "

Notes. 

{1} Lichfield had the right in these days of calling itself a county.