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 THE LIBRARY OF THE 
 
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UNIVERSITY OF N.C. AT CHAPEL HILL 
 
 00022549529 
 
 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
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 1® 
 
 IT WAS WITH THE GREATEST DIFFICULTY THAT HE GUARDED 
 HIS HEAD. 
 

 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 & Eale of hotspur anti ffilentiofoer 
 
 BY 
 
 G. A. HENTY 
 
 Author of "A March on London," " Beric the Briton," " Held Fast for England," 
 "Wolf the Saxon," " A Jacobite Exile," &c, &c 
 
 WITH TWELVE ILLUSTRA TIONS BY RALPH PEACOCK 
 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 
 1903 
 
Copyright, 1898, by 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 
 
PREFACE 
 
 The four opening years of the fifteenth century were among 
 the most stirring in the history of England. Owen Glen- 
 dower carried fire and slaughter among the Welsh marches, 
 captured most of the strong places held by the English, and 
 foiled three invasions led by the king himself. The northern 
 borders were invaded by Douglas, who, after devastating a 
 large portion of Northumberland, Cumberland, and Durham, 
 was defeated and taken prisoner at the battle of Homildon 
 by the Earl of Northumberland and his son Hotspur. Then 
 followed the strange and unnatural coalition between the 
 Percys, Douglas of Scotland, Glendower of Wales, and Sir 
 Edmund Mortimer — a coalition that would assuredly have 
 overthrown the king, erected the young Earl of March as 
 a puppet monarch under the tutelage of the Percys, and 
 secured the independence of Wales, had the royal forces 
 arrived one day later at Shrewsbury, and so allowed the 
 confederate armies to unite. King Henry's victory there, 
 entailing the death of Hotspur and the capture of Douglas, 
 put an end to this formidable insurrection ; for although the 
 Earl of Northumberland twice subsequently raised the banner 
 of revolt, these risings were easily crushed ; while Glendower's 
 power waned, and order, never to be again broken, was at 
 length restored in Wales. The continual state of unrest and 
 chronic warfare between the inhabitants of both sides of the 
 border was full of adventures as stirring and romantic as that 
 in which the hero of the story took part. 
 
 G. A. HENTY. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2012 with funding from 
 
 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/bothsidesofbordeOOhent 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. A Bordei; Hold 
 
 II. Across the Border 
 
 III. At Alnwick . 
 
 IV. An Unequal Jojst 
 V. A Mission 
 
 VI. At Dunbar 
 
 VII. Back to Hotspur . 
 
 VIII. Ludlow Castle 
 
 IX. The Welsh Rising 
 
 X. A Breach of Duty 
 
 XI. Bad News 
 
 XII. A Dangerous Mission 
 
 XIII. Escape . 
 
 XIV. In Hiding 
 XV. Another Mission to Ludlow 
 
 XVI. A Letter for the King 
 
 XVII. Knighted 
 
 XVIII. Glendower 
 
 XIX. The Battle of Homildon Hill 
 
 XX. The Percys' Discontent 
 
 XXI. Shrewsbury . 
 
 PAGE 
 I 
 
 18 
 36 
 52 
 68 
 
 87 
 105 
 123 
 
 138 
 157 
 177 
 194 
 212 
 231 
 251 
 26S 
 287 
 306 
 324 
 341 
 360 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 It was with the greatest difficulty that he guarded 
 
 hishead Frontispiece 
 
 ",This is the nephew of Alwyn Forster" .... 42 
 
 They journeyed pleasantly along 82 
 
 "Who is going to teach me?" 106 
 
 Oswald threw his arms round two of them . . . 14S 
 
 To Oswald's astonishment two young women stood be- 
 fore him 172 
 
 Armstrong took his place by his son's pallet . . . 200 
 
 "Let the rope pass gradually through your hands" . 226 
 
 " i am well pleased with you, oswald*" .... 262 
 
 "now, i think we shall do, roger " 290 
 
 "how glad i am to have an opportunity of thanking 
 
 YOU " 322 
 
 "DO NOT SPEAK OF SUCH A THING, I PRAY YOU, MASTER" . 372 
 
BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 A BORDER HOLD 
 
 LAD was standing on the little look-out turret on 
 the top of a border fortalice. The place was 
 evidently built solely with an eye to defence, 
 comfort being an altogether secondary consid- 
 eration. It was a square building of rough stone, the walls 
 broken only by narrow loopholes, and the door, which was 
 ten feet above the ground, was reached by broad wooden 
 steps, which could be hauled up in case of necessity, and were 
 in fact raised every night. The building was some forty feet 
 square. The upper floor was divided into several chambers, 
 which were the sleeping-places of its lord and master, his 
 family, and the women of the household. 
 
 The floor below, on to which the door from without opened, 
 was undivided save by two rows of stone pillars that supported 
 the beams of the floor above. In one corner the floor, some 
 fifteen feet square, was raised somewhat above the general 
 level : this was set aside for the use of the master and the 
 family ; the rest of the apartment was used as the living and 
 
2 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 sleeping room of the followers and hinds of the fortalice. 
 The basement — which, although on a level with the ground 
 outside, could be approached only by a trap-door and ladder 
 from the room above — was the store-room, and contained 
 sacks of barley and oatmeal, sides of bacon, firewood, sacks 
 of beans, and trusses of hay for the use of the horses and 
 cattle should the place have to stand a short siege. In the 
 centre was a well. 
 
 The roof of the house was flat, and paved with square blocks 
 of stone ; a parapet three feet high surrounded it. In the 
 centre was the look-out tower rising twelve feet above it, and 
 over the door another turret, projecting some eighteen inches 
 beyond the wall of the house, slits being cut in the stone floor 
 through which missiles could be dropped or boiling lead poured 
 upon any trying to assault the entrance. Outside was a court- 
 yard extending round the house ; it was some ten yards across, 
 and surrounded by a wall twelve feet high, with a square 
 turret at each corner. Everything was roughly constructed, 
 although massive and solid. With the exception of the door, 
 and the steps leading to it, no wood had been used in the 
 construction ; the very beams were of rough stone ; the floors 
 were of the same material. It was clearly the object of the 
 builders to erect a fortress that could defy fire, and could only 
 be destroyed at the cost of enormous labour. 
 
 This was indeed a prime necessity, for the hold stood in the 
 wild country between the upper waters of the Coquet and the 
 Reed River. Harbottle and Longpikes rose but a few miles 
 away, and the whole country was broken up by deep ravines 
 and valleys, fells and crags. From the edge of the moorland, 
 a hundred yards from the outer wall, the ground dropped 
 sharply down into the valley, where the two villages of Yard- 
 hope lay on a little burn running into the Coquet. In other 
 directions the moor extended for a distance of nearly a mile. 
 
A BORDER HOLD o 
 
 On this two or three score of cattle and a dozen shaggy little 
 horses were engaged in an effort to keep life together upon 
 the rough herbage that grew among the heather and blocks 
 of stones scattered everywhere. 
 
 Presently the lad caught sight of the flash of the sun, which 
 had but just risen behind him, on a spear-head at the western 
 edge of the moor. He ran down at once from his post to the 
 principal room. 
 
 "They are coming, mother," he exclaimed; " I have just 
 seen the sun glint on a spear-head." 
 
 " I trust that they are all there," she said, and then turned 
 to two women by the fire and bade them put on more wood 
 and get the pots boiling. 
 
 " Go up again, Oswald, and as soon as you can make out 
 your father's figure bring me down news. I have not closed 
 an eye for the last two nights, for 't is a more dangerous enter- 
 prise than usual on which they have gone." 
 
 " Father always comes home all right, mother," the boy 
 said confidently, " and they have a strong band this time. 
 They were to have been joined by Thomas Gray and his 
 following, and Forster of Currick, and John Liddel, and Percy 
 Hope of Bilderton. They must have full sixty spears. The 
 Bairds are like to pay heavily for their last raid hither." 
 
 Dame Forster did not reply, and Oswald ran up again to the 
 look-out. By this time the party for whom he was watching 
 had reached the moor. It consisted of twelve or fourteen 
 horsemen all clad in dark armour, carrying very long spears 
 and mounted on small but wiry horses. They were driving 
 before them a knot of some forty or fifty cattle, and three of 
 them led horses carrying heavy burdens. Oswald's quick eye 
 noticed that four of the horsemen were not carrying their 
 spears. 
 
 " They are three short of their number," he said to himself, 
 
4 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " and those four must all be sorely wounded. Well, it might 
 have been worse." Oswald had been brought up to regard 
 forays and attacks as ordinary incidents of life. Watch and 
 ward were always kept in the little fortalice, especially when 
 the nights were dark and misty, for there was never any say- 
 ing when a party of Scottish borderers might make an attack, 
 for the truces so often concluded between the border wardens 
 had but slight effect on the prickers, as the small chieftains on 
 both sides were called, who maintained a constant state of 
 warfare against each other. 
 
 The Scotch forays were more frequent than those from the 
 English side of the border, not because the people were more 
 warlike, but because they were poorer and depended more 
 entirely upon plunder for their subsistence. There was but 
 little difference of race between the peoples on the opposite 
 side of the border ; both were largely of mixed Danish and 
 Anglo-Saxon blood, for when William the Conqueror carried 
 fire and sword through Northumbria, great numbers of the 
 inhabitants moved north and settled in the district beyond 
 the reach of the Norman arms. On the English side of the 
 border the population were in time leavened by Norman blood, 
 as the estates were granted by William to his barons. These 
 often married the heiresses of the dispossessed families, while 
 their followers found wives among the native population. 
 
 The frequent wars with the Scots, in which every man 
 capable of bearing arms in the Northern Counties had to take 
 part, and the incessant border warfare maintained a most 
 martial spirit among the population, who considered retalia- 
 tion for injuries received to be a natural and lawful act. This 
 was to some extent heightened by the fact that the terms of 
 many of the truces specifically permitted those who had 
 suffered losses on either side to pursue their plunderers across 
 the border. These raids were not accompanied by bloodshed 
 
A EORDER HOLD O 
 
 except when resistance was made, for between the people, 
 descended as they were from a common stock, there was no 
 active animosity, and at ordinary times there was free and 
 friendly intercourse between them. There were, however, 
 many exceptions to the rule that unresisting persons were not 
 injured. 
 
 Between many families on opposite sides of the border there 
 existed blood feuds, arising from the fact that members of 
 one or the other had been killed in forays, and in these cases 
 bitter and bloody reprisals were made on either side. The 
 very border line was ill defined, and people on one side fre- 
 quently settled on the other, as is shown by the fact that sev- 
 eral of the treaties contained provisions that those who had 
 so moved might change their nationality and be accounted as 
 Scotch or Englishmen as the case might be. Between the 
 Forsters and the Bairds such a feud had existed for three 
 generations. It had begun in a raid by the latter ; the Fors- 
 ter of that time had repulsed the attack, and had with his own 
 hand killed one of the Bairds ; six months later he was sur- 
 prised and killed on his own hearth-stone, at a time when his 
 son and most of his retainers were away on a raid. 
 
 From that time the animosity between the two families had 
 been unceasing, and several lives had been lost on both sides. 
 The Bairds with a large party had, three months before, carried 
 fire and sword through the district bordering on the main 
 road as far as Elsdon on the east, and Alwinton on the north. 
 News of their coming had, however, preceded them ; the 
 villagers of Yardhope had just time to take refuge at Forster's 
 hold, and had repulsed the determined attacks made upon it, 
 until Sir Robert Umfraville brought a strong party to their 
 assistance and drove the Bairds back towards the frontier. 
 The present raid from which the party was returning had 
 been organised partly to recoup those who took part in it 
 
6 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 for the loss of their cattle on that occasion, and partly to 
 take vengeance upon the Bairds. 
 
 As was the custom on both sides of the border, these expe- 
 ditions were generally composed of members of half a dozen 
 families with their followers, the one who was at once most 
 energetic and best acquainted with the intricacies of the 
 country, and the paths across fells and moors, being chosen 
 as leader. 
 
 Presently Oswald Forster saw one of the party wave his 
 hand, and at his order four or five of the horsemen rode out 
 and began to drive the scattered cattle and horses towards 
 the house. Oswald at once ran down. 
 
 "Father is all right, mother; he has just given orders to 
 the men, and they are driving all the animals in, so I suppose 
 that the Bairds must be in pursuit. I had better tell the men 
 to get on their armour? " 
 
 Without waiting for an answer he told six men who were 
 eating their breakfast at the farther end of the room to make 
 an end of their meal, and get on their steel caps and breast 
 and back pieces, and take their places in the turret over the 
 gate into the yard. In a few minutes the animals began to 
 pour in, first those of the homestead, then the captured herd, 
 weary and exhausted with their long and hurried journey; 
 then came the master with his followers. Mary Forster and 
 her son stood at the top of the steps ready to greet him. 
 The gate into the yard was on the opposite side to that of 
 the doonvay of the fortalice, in order that assailants who had 
 carried it should have to pass round under the fire of the 
 archers in the turrets before they could attack the building 
 itself. She gave a little cry as her husband came up. His 
 left arm was in a sling, his helmet was cleft through, and a 
 bandage showed beneath it. 
 
 "Do not be afraid, wife," he said cheerily. "We have had 
 
A BORDER HOLD 7 
 
 hotter work than we expected, but, so far as I am concerned, 
 there is no great harm done. I am sorry to say that we have 
 lost Long Hal, and Rob Finch, and Smedley. Two or three 
 others are sorely wounded, and I fancy few have got off alto- 
 gether scathless. All went well until we stopped to wait for 
 daybreak three miles from Allan Baird's place. Some shep- 
 herd must have got sight of us as we halted, for we found him 
 and his men up and ready. They had not had time, how- 
 ever, to drive in the cattle ; and seeing that we should like 
 enough have the Bairds swarming down upon us before we 
 could take Allan's place, we contented ourselves with gather- 
 ing the cattle and driving them off. There were about two 
 hundred of them. 
 
 " We went fast, but in two hours we saw the Bairds coming 
 in pursuit ; and as it was clear that they would overtake us, 
 hampered as we were with the cattle, we stood and made 
 defence. There was not much difference in numbers, for the 
 Bairds had not had time to gather in all their strength. The 
 fight was a stiff one. On our side Percy Hope was killed, and 
 John Liddel so sorely wounded that there is no hope of his 
 life. We had sixteen men killed outright, and few of us but 
 are more or less scarred. On their side Allan Baird was killed 
 and John was smitten down, but how sorely wounded I cannot 
 say for certain, for they put him on a horse and took him 
 away at once. They left twenty behind them on the ground 
 dead ; and the rest, finding that we were better men than 
 they, rode off again. 
 
 " William Baird himself had not come up ; his hold was too 
 far for the news to have reached him, as we knew well enough, 
 but doubtless he came up with his following a few hours after 
 we had beaten his kinsmen. But we have ridden too fast for 
 him to overtake us. We struck off north as soon as we 
 crossed the border, travelled all night by paths by which they 
 
8 LOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 will find it difficult to follow or track us, especially as we broke 
 up into four parties, and each chose their own way. I have 
 driven all our cattle in, in case they should make straight here 
 after losing our track. Of course there were many who fought 
 against us who know us all well ; but even were it other than 
 the Bairds we had despoiled, they would hardly follow us so 
 far across the border to fetch their cattle. As for the Bairds, 
 the most notorious of the Scottish raiders, for them to claim 
 the right of following would be beyond all bearing. Why, I 
 don't believe there was a head of cattle among the whole herd 
 that had not been born and bred on this side of the border. 
 It is we who have been fetching back stolen goods." 
 
 By this time he and his men had entered the house, and 
 those who had gone through the fray scathless were, assisted 
 by the women, removing the armour from their wounded com- 
 rades. Those who had been forced to relinquish their spears 
 were first attended to. There was no thought of sending for 
 a leech. Every man and woman within fifty miles of the 
 border was accustomed to the treatment of wounds, and in 
 every hold was a store of bandages, styptics, and unguents 
 ready for instant use. Most of the men were very sorely 
 wounded, and had they been of less hardy frame and less 
 inured to hardships could not have supported the long ride. 
 John Forster, before taking off his own armour, saw that 
 their wounds were first attended to by his wife and her 
 women. 
 
 " I think they will all do," he said, " and that they will live 
 to strike another blow at the Bairds yet. Now, Oswald, un- 
 buckle my harness. Your mother will bandage up my arm 
 and head, and Elspeth shall bring up a full tankard from be- 
 low for each of us. A draught of beer will do as much good 
 as all the salves and medicaments. Do you take the first 
 drink, Jock Samlen, and then go up to the watch-tower. I 
 
A BORDER HOLD 9 
 
 see the men have been posted in the wall- turrets. One of 
 them shall relieve you shortly." 
 
 As soon as the wounds were dressed, bowls of porridge 
 were served round, then one of the men who had remained 
 at home was posted at the look-out, and after the cattle had 
 been seen to, all who had been on the road stretched them- 
 selves on some rushes at one end of the room, and were 
 in a few minutes sound asleep. 
 
 " I wonder whether we shall ever have peace in the land, 
 Oswald," his mother said with a sigh, as, having seen that the 
 women had all in readiness for the preparation of the midday 
 meal, she sat down on a low stool by his side. 
 
 " I don't see how we ever can have, mother, until either we 
 conquer Scotland, or the Scotch shall be our masters. It is 
 not our fault ; they are ever raiding and plundering, and heed 
 not the orders of Douglas or the other Lords of the Marches." 
 
 " We are almost as bad as they are, Oswald." 
 
 " Nay, mother, we do but try to take back our own ; as 
 father well said, the cattle that were brought in are all English 
 that have been taken from us by the Bairds, and we do but 
 pay them back in their own coin. It makes but little differ- 
 ence whether we are at war or peace, these reiving caterans 
 are ever on the move. It was but last week that Adam Gor- 
 don and his bands wasted Tynedale as far as Bellingham, and 
 carried off, they say, two thousand head of cattle, and slew 
 many of the people. If we did not cross the border some- 
 times and give them a lesson, they would become so bold that 
 there would be no limit to their raids." 
 
 " That is all true enough, Oswald ; but it is hard that we 
 should always require to be on the watch, and that no one 
 within forty miles of the border can at any time go to sleep 
 with the surety that he will not ere morning hear the raiders 
 knocking at his gate." 
 
10 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " Methinks that it would be dull were there nought to do 
 but to look after the cattle," Oswald replied. It seemed to 
 him, bred up as he had been amid constant forays and excite- 
 ments, that the state of things was a normal one, and that 
 it was natural that a man should need to have his spear ever 
 ready at hand, and to give or take hard blows. " Besides," 
 he went on, " though we carry off each other's cattle and fetch 
 them home again, we are not bad friends while the truces 
 hold, save in the case of those who have blood feuds. It was 
 but last week that Allan Armstrong and his two sisters were 
 staying here with us, and I promised that ere long I would 
 ride across the border and spend a week with them." 
 
 " Yes, but that makes it all the worse. Adam Armstrong 
 married my sister Elizabeth, whom he first met at Goddington 
 fair, and indeed there are few families on either side of the 
 border who have not both English and Scotch blood in their 
 veins. It is natural we should be friends, seeing how often 
 we have held Berwick, Roxburgh, and Dumfries, and how 
 often in times of peace Scotchmen come across the border to 
 trade at the fairs. Why should it not be so when we speak 
 the same tongue, and, save for the border line, are one people ? 
 Though indeed it is different in Kirkcudbright and Wigtown, 
 where they are Galwegians, and their tongue is scarce under- 
 stood by the border Scots. Tis strange that those on one 
 side of the border and those on the other cannot keep the 
 peace towards each other." 
 
 " But save when the kingdoms are at war, mother, we do 
 keep the peace, except in the matter of cattle-lifting, and bear 
 no enmity towards each other save when blood is shed. In 
 war-time each must, of course, fight for his nation and as his 
 lord orders him. We have wasted Scotland again and again 
 from end to end, and they have swept the Northern Counties 
 well-nigh as often. I have heard father say that eight times 
 
A BORDER HOLD 11 
 
 in the last hundred years this hold has been levelled to the 
 ground. It only escaped last time because he built it so 
 strongly of stone that they could not fire it, and it would have 
 taken them almost as long to pick it to pieces as it took him 
 to build it." 
 
 " Yes, that was when you were an infant, Oswald. When 
 we heard the Scotch army was marching this way, we took 
 refuge with all the cattle and horses among the Pikes, having 
 first carried out and burnt all the forage and stores, and leav- 
 ing nothing that they could set fire to. Your father has often 
 laughed at the thought of how angry they must have been when 
 they found that there was no mischief that they could do, for, 
 short of a long stay, which they never make, there was no 
 way in which they could damage it. Ours was the only house 
 that escaped scot-free for thirty miles round ; but indeed 't is 
 generally but parties of pillagers who trouble this part of the 
 country even when they invade England. There is richer 
 booty by far to be gathered in Cumberland and Durham, for 
 here we have nought but our cattle and horses, and of these 
 they have as many on their side of the border. It is the 
 plunder of the towns that chiefly attracts them, and while 
 they go past here empty-handed, they always carry great 
 trains of booty on their backward way." 
 
 "Still it would be dull work if there were no fighting, 
 mother." 
 
 " There is no fighting in Southern England, Oswald, save 
 for those who go across the sea to fight the French, and yet 
 I suppose they find life less dull than we do. They have 
 more to do. Here there is little tillage, the country is poor ; 
 and who would care to break up the land and to raise crops 
 when any night your ricks might be in flames, and your grana- 
 ries plundered? Thus there is nought for us to do b.'*t to 
 keep cattle, which need but little care and attention. *m* 
 
12 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 which can be driven off to the fells when the Scots make a 
 great raid ; but in the south, as I have heard, there is always 
 much for farmers to attend to, and those who find life dull 
 can always enter the service of some warlike lord and follow 
 him across the sea." 
 
 Oswald shook his head. The quiet pursuits of a farmer 
 seemed to him to be but a poor substitute for the excitement 
 of border war. " It may be as you say, mother, but for my 
 part I would rather enter the service of the Percys, and gain 
 honour under their banner, than remain here day after day 
 merely giving aid in driving the cattle in and out, and won- 
 dering when the Bairds are coming this way again." 
 
 His mother shook her head. Her father and two brothers 
 had both been slain the last time a Scottish army had crossed 
 the border ; and although she naturally did not regard constant 
 troubles in the same light in which a southern woman would 
 have viewed them, she still longed for peace and quiet, and 
 was in constant fear that sooner or later the feud with the 
 Bairds, who were a powerful family, would cost her husband 
 his life. Against open force she had little fear. The hold 
 could resist an attack for days, and long ere it yielded, help 
 would arrive ; but although the watch was vigilant, and every 
 precaution taken, it might be captured by a sudden night 
 attack. William Baird had, she knew, sworn a great oath 
 that Yardhope Hold should one day be destroyed, and the 
 Forsters wiped out root and branch. And the death of his 
 cousin Allan in the last raid would surely fan the fire of his 
 hatred against them. 
 
 " One never can say what may happen," she said after a 
 pause ; " but if at any time evil should befall us, and you 
 escape, remember that your uncle Alwyn is in Percy's ser- 
 vice, and you cannot do better than go to him and place 
 yourself under his protection, and act as he may advise you. 
 
A BORDER HOLD 13 
 
 I like not the thought that you should become a man-at-arms ; 
 and yet methinks that it is no more dangerous than that of a 
 householder on the fells. At least, in a strong castle a man 
 can sleep without fear, whereas none can say as much here." 
 
 " If aught should happen to my father and you, mother, you 
 may be sure that I should share in it ; the Bairds would spare 
 no one if they captured the hold. And although father will 
 not as yet take me with him on his forays, I should do my 
 share of fighting if the hold were attacked." 
 
 " I am sure that you would, Oswald ; and were it captured 
 I have no doubt that, as you say, you would share our fate. 
 I speak not with any thought that it is likely things will turn 
 out as I say ; but they may do so, and therefore I give you my 
 advice to seek out your uncle. As to a capture of our hold, 
 of that I have generally but little fear ; but the fact that your 
 father has been wounded and three of his men killed, and that 
 another Baird has fallen, has brought the possibility that it 
 may happen more closely to my mind this morning than usual. 
 Now, my boy, you had best spend an hour in cleaning up your 
 father's armour and arms. The steel cap must go to the ar- 
 mourer at Alwinton for repair, but you can get some of the 
 dints out of his breast and back pieces, and can give them 
 a fresh coat of black paint ; " for the borderers usually 
 darkened their armour, so that in their raids their presence 
 should not be betrayed by the glint of sun or moon upon 
 them. 
 
 Oswald at once took up the armour and went down the steps 
 into the courtyard, so that the sound of his hammer should 
 not disturb the sleepers. As with slight but often-repeated 
 blows he got out the dints that had been made in the fray, he 
 thought over what his mother had been saying. To him also 
 the death of three of the men, who had for years been his 
 companions, came as a shock. It was seldom, indeed, that the 
 
14 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 forays for cattle-lifting had such serious consequences. As a 
 rule they were altogether bloodless, and it was only because of 
 the long feud with the Bairds, and the fact that some warning 
 of the coming of the party harl, in spite of their precaution, 
 reached Allan Baird, that on the present occasion such serious 
 results had ensued. 
 
 Had it not been for this, the cattle would have been driven 
 off without resistance, for Allan Baird's own household would 
 not have ventured to attack so strong a party. No attempt 
 would have been made to assault his hold, for he had often 
 heard his father say that even in the case of a blood feud he 
 held that houses should not be attacked and their occupants 
 slain. If both parties met under arms, the matter was different ; 
 but that, in spite of the slaying of his own father by them, he 
 would not kill even a Baird on his hearth-stone. Still, a Baird 
 had been killed, and assuredly William Baird would not be 
 deterred by any similar scruples. His pitiless ferocity was 
 notorious, and even his own countrymen cried out against 
 some of his deeds, and the Earl of Douglas had several times 
 threatened to hand him over to the English authorities ; but 
 the Bairds were powerful, and could, with their allies, place 
 four or five hundred men in the field, and in the difficult coun- 
 try in which they lived could have given a great deal of trouble 
 even to Douglas. Therefore nothing had come of his threats, 
 and the Bairds had continued to be the terror of that part of 
 the English border that was the most convenient for their 
 operations. 
 
 Oswald was now past sixteen, and promised to be as big 
 a man as his father, who was a fine specimen of the hardy 
 Northumbrian race, — tall, strong, and sinewy. He had felt 
 hurt when his father had refused to allow him to take part in 
 the foray. 
 
 " Time enough, lad, time enough," he had said when the lad 
 
A BORDER HOLD 15 
 
 had made his petition to do so. " You are not strong enough 
 yet to hold your own against one of the Bairds' moss-troopers, 
 should it come to fighting. In another couple of years it will 
 be time enough to think of your going on such an excursion 
 as this. You are clever with your arms, I will freely admit, 
 as you ought to be, seeing that you practise for two hours a 
 day with the men. But strength counts as well as skill, and 
 you want both when you ride against the Bairds ; besides, at 
 present you have still much to learn about the paths through 
 the fells and across the morasses. If you are ever to become 
 a leader, you must know them well enough to traverse them 
 on the darkest night, or through the thickest mist." 
 " I think that I do know most of them, father." 
 " Yes, I think you do, on this side of the border ; but you 
 must learn those on the other side as well. They are, indeed, 
 of even greater importance, in case of pursuit or for crossing 
 the border unobserved. Hitherto I have forbidden you to 
 cross the line, but in future Mat Wilson shall go with you. He 
 knows the Scotch passes and defiles better than any in the 
 band, and so that you don't go near the Bairds' country you 
 can traverse them safely so long as the truce lasts." 
 
 For years indeed, Oswald, on one of the hardy little horses, 
 had ridden over the country in company with one or other of 
 the men, and had become familiar with every morass, moor, 
 fell, and pass, down to the old Roman wall to the south, and 
 as far north as Wooler, being frequently absent for three or 
 four days at a time. He had several times ridden into Scot- 
 land to visit the Armstrongs and other friends of the family, 
 but he had always travelled by the roads, and knew nothing of 
 the hill paths on that side. His life had, in fact, been far 
 from dull, for they had many friends and connections in the 
 villages at the foot of the Cheviots, and he was frequently 
 away from home. 
 
16 EOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 His journeys were generally performed on horseback, but 
 his father encouraged him to take long tramps on foot, in 
 order that he might strengthen his muscles, and would not 
 unfrequently give him leave to pay visits on condition that he 
 travelled on foot instead of in the saddle. Constant exercise 
 in climbing, riding, and with his weapons, and at wrestling 
 and other sports, including the bow, had hardened every 
 muscle of his frame, and he was capable of standing any 
 fatigues ; and although his father said that he could not hold 
 his own a*gainst men, he knew that the lad could do so against 
 any but exceptionally powerful ones, and believed that when 
 the time came he would, like himself, be frequently chosen as 
 leader in border forays. He could already draw the strongest 
 bow to the arrow-head, and send a shaft with a strength that 
 would suffice to pierce the light armour worn by the Scotch 
 borderers. 
 
 It was by the bow that the English gained the majority of 
 their victories over their northern neighbours, who did not 
 take to the weapon, and were unable to stand for a moment 
 against the English archers, who not only loved it as a sport, 
 but were compelled by many ordinances to practise with it 
 from their childhood. Of other education he had none, but 
 in this respect he was no worse off than the majority of the 
 knights and barons of the time, who were well content to trust 
 to monkish scribes to draw up such documents as were re- 
 quired and to affix their seal to them. He himself had once, 
 some six years before, expressed a wish to be sent for a year 
 to the care of the monks at Rothbury, whose superior was a 
 distant connection of his father, in order to be taught to read 
 and write, but John Forster had scoffed at the idea. 
 
 " You have to learn to be a man, lad," he had said, " and 
 the monks will never teach you that. I do not know one letter 
 from another, nor did my father, or any of my forebears, and 
 
A BORDER HOLD 17 
 
 we were no worse for it. On the marches, unless a man means 
 to become a monk he has to learn to make his sword guard his 
 head, to send an arrow straight to the mark, to know every 
 foot of the passes, and to be prepared at the order of his lord 
 to defend his country against the Scots. These are vastly more 
 important matters than reading and writing, which are, so far 
 as I can see, of no use to any fair man, whose word is his bond, 
 and who deals with honest men. I can reckon up, if I sell so 
 many cattle, how much has to be paid, and more of learning 
 than that I want not, nor do you, and every hour spent on it 
 would be as good as wasted. As to the monks, Heaven forfend 
 that you should ever become one. They are good men, I 
 doubt not, and I suppose that it is necessary that some should 
 take to it ; but that a man who has the full possession of his 
 limbs should mew himself up for life between four walls, passing 
 his time in vigils and saying masses, in reading books and dis- 
 tributing alms, seems to me to be a sort of madness." 
 
 " I certainly do not wish to become a monk, father ; but I 
 thought that I should like to learn to read and write." 
 
 "And when you have learnt it, what then, Oswald? Books 
 are expensive playthings, and no scrap of writing has ever 
 been inside the walls of Yardhope Hold since it was first built 
 here, as far as I know. As to writing, it would be of still less 
 use. If a man has a message to send, he can send it by a hired 
 man, if it suits him not to ride himself. Besides, if he had 
 written it, the person he sent it to would not be able to read 
 it, and would have to go to some scribe for an interpretation 
 of its contents. No, no, my lad, you have plenty to learn 
 before you come to be a man, without bothering your head 
 with this monkish stuff. I doubt if Hotspur himself can do 
 more than sign his name to a parchment, and what is good 
 enough for the Percys is surely good enough for you." 
 
 The idea had in fact been put into Oswald's head by his 
 
18 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 mother. At that time the feud with the Bairds had burned 
 very hotly, and it would have lessened her anxieties had the 
 boy been bestowed for a time in a convent. Oswald himself 
 felt no disappointment at his father's refusal to a petition that 
 he would never have made had not his mother dilated to him 
 on several occasions upon the great advantage of learning. No 
 thought of repeating the request had ever entered his mind. 
 His father had thought more of it, and had several times 
 expressed grave regret to his wife over such an extraordinary 
 wish having occurred to their son. 
 
 "The boy has nothing of a milk-sop about him," he said, 
 " and is for his age full of spirit and courage. How so strange 
 an idea could have occurred to him is more than I can 
 imagine. I should as soon expect to see an owlet in a 
 sparrow-hawk's nest as a monk hatched in Yardhope Hold." 
 
 His wife discreetly kept silence as to the fact that she her- 
 self had first put the idea in the boy's head, for although Mary 
 Forster was mistress inside of the hold, in all other matters 
 John was masterful and would brook no meddling even by her. 
 The subject, therefore, of Oswald's learning to read and write 
 was never renewed. 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 ACROSS THE BORDER 
 
 A MOST vigilant watch was kept up for the next week at 
 Yardhope Hold. At night three or four of the troopers 
 were posted four or five miles from the hold, on the roads by 
 which an enemy was likely to come, having under them the 
 fleetest horses on the moor. When a week passed there was 
 some slight relaxation in the watch, for it was evident that the 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 19 
 
 Bairds intended to bide their time for a stroke, knowing well 
 that they would not be likely to be able to effect a surprise at 
 present. The outlying posts were therefore no longer main- 
 tained, but the dogs of the hold, fully a dozen in number, were 
 chained nightly in a circle three or four hundred yards outside 
 it, and their barking would at once apprise the watchers in the 
 turrets on the walls of the approach of any body of armed 
 men. 
 
 Two days later Oswald started for his promised visit to the 
 Armstrongs. It was not considered necessary that he should 
 be accompanied by any of the troopers, for Hinultie lay but a 
 few miles across the frontier. In high spirits he galloped 
 away, and riding through Yardhope was soon at Alwinton, and 
 thence took the track through Kidland Lee, passed round the 
 head of the Usmay brook, along the foot of Maiden Cross 
 Hill, and crossed the frontier at Windy Guile. Here he 
 stood on the crest of the Cheviots, and descending passed 
 along at the foot of Windburgh Hill, and by noon entered 
 the tiny hamlet of Hinultie, above which, perched on one of 
 the spurs of the hill, stood the Armstrongs' hold. It was 
 smaller than that of Yardhope and had no surrounding wall, 
 but, like it, was built for defence against a sudden attack. 
 
 Adam Armstrong was on good terms with his neighbours 
 across the border. Although other members of his family 
 were frequently engaged in forays, it was seldom indeed that 
 he buckled on armour, and only when there was a general call 
 to arms. He was, however, on bad terms with the Bairds, 
 partly because his wife was a sister of Forster's, partly because 
 of frays that had arisen between his herdsmen and those of 
 the Bairds, for his cattle wandered far and wide on the moun- 
 tain slopes to the south, and sometimes passed the ill-defined 
 line, beyond which the Bairds regarded the country as their 
 own. Jedburgh was but ten miles away, Hawick but six or 
 
20 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 seven, and any stay after the sun rose would speedily have 
 brought strong bodies of men from these towns, as well as 
 from his still nearer neighbours, at Chester, Abbotrule, and 
 Hobkirk. 
 
 Oswald's approach was seen, and two of his cousins — Allan, 
 who was a lad of about the same age, and Janet, a year 
 younger — ran out from the house to meet him. 
 
 "We have been expecting you for the last ten days," the 
 former exclaimed, " and had well-nigh given you up." 
 
 "I hold you to be a laggard," the girl added, "and unless 
 you can duly excuse yourself shall have nought to say to you." 
 
 " My excuse is a good one, Janet. My father made a foray 
 a fortnight since into the Bands' country, to rescue some of 
 the cattle they had driven off from our neighbours some days 
 before. There was a sharp fight, and Allan Baird was killed, 
 and since then we have been expecting a return visit from 
 them, and have been sleeping with our arms beside us. 
 Doubtless they will come some day, but as it is evident they 
 don't mean to come at present, my father let me leave." 
 
 "In that case we must forgive you," the girl said. "Some 
 rumours of the fray have reached us, and my father shook his 
 head gravely when he heard that another Baird had been 
 killed by the Forsters." 
 
 " It was not only us," Oswald replied. " There were some 
 of the Liddels, and the Hopes, and other families, engaged. 
 My father was chosen as chief; but this time it was not our 
 quarrel but theirs, for we had lost no cattle, and my father 
 only joined because they had aided us last time, and he could 
 not hold back now. Of course he was chosen as chief be- 
 cause he knows the country so well." 
 
 " Well, come in, Oswald. It is poor hospitality to keep you 
 talking here outside the door." 
 
 A boy had already taken charge of Oswald's horse, and 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 21 
 
 after unstrapping his valise had led it to a stable that formed 
 the basement of the house. 
 
 "Well, laddie, how fares it with you at home?" Adam 
 Armstrong said heartily as they mounted the steps to the 
 main entrance. " We have heard of your wild doings with 
 the Bairds. 'T is a pity that these feuds should go on from 
 father to son, ever getting more and more bitter. But there, 
 we can no more change a borderer's nature than you can 
 stop the tide in the Solway. I hear that it was well-nigh a 
 pitched battle." 
 
 " There was hard fighting," Oswald replied. "Three of our 
 troopers and eight or ten of the others were killed. My 
 father was twice wounded, one of the Hopes was killed, and a 
 Liddel severely wounded. But, from what they say, the Bairds 
 suffered more. Had they not done so there would have been 
 a hot pursuit, but as far as we know there was none." 
 
 " The Bairds will bide their time," Armstrong said gravely. 
 "They are dour men, and will take their turn though they 
 wait ten years for it." 
 
 " At any rate, they won't catch us sleeping, uncle, and come 
 they however strong they may, they will find it hard work to 
 capture the hold." 
 
 " Ay, ay, lad, but I don't think they will try to knock their 
 heads against your wall. They are more like to sweep down 
 on a sudden, and your watchman will need keen eyes to make 
 them out before they are thundering at the gate or climbing 
 up the wall. However, your father knows his danger, and it 
 is of no use talking more of it. What is done, is done." 
 
 " And how is your mother, Oswald?" Mistress Armstrong 
 asked. 
 
 " She is well, aunt, and bade me give her love to you." 
 
 "Truly I wonder she keeps her health with all these troubles 
 and anxieties. We had hoped that, after the meeting last 
 
22 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 March of the Commissioners on both sides, when the Lords 
 of the Marches plighted their faith to each other and agreed 
 to surrender all prisoners without ransom and to forgive all 
 offenders, we should have had peace on the border. As you 
 know, there were but three exceptions named ; namely, Adam 
 Warden, William Baird, and Adam French, whom the Scotch 
 Commissioners bound themselves to arrest and to hand over 
 to the English Commissioners, to be tried as being notorious 
 truce-breakers, doing infinite mischief to the dwellers on the 
 English side of the border. And yet nothing has come of it, 
 and these men still continue to make their raids without check 
 or hindrance either by the Earl of March or Douglas." 
 
 " There are faults on both sides, wife," her husband said. 
 
 " I do not deny it, gudeman ; but I have often heard you 
 say these three men are the pests of the border, and that were 
 it not for them things might go on reasonably enough, for no 
 one counts a few head of cattle lifted now and again. It is 
 bad enough that every two or three years armies should march 
 across the border, one way or the other, but surely we might 
 live peaceably between times. Did not I nearly lose you at 
 Otterburn, and had you laid up on my hands for well-nigh six 
 months? " 
 
 " Ay, that was a sore day for both sides." 
 
 "Will you tell me about it, uncle? " Oswald asked. "My 
 father cares not much to talk of it ; and though I know 
 that he fought there, he has never told me the story of the 
 battle." 
 
 " We are just going to sit down to dinner now," Adam Arm- 
 strong said, " and the story is a long one ; but after we have 
 done I will tell you of it. Your father need not feel so sore 
 about it, for since the days of the Bruce you have had as many 
 victories to count as we have." 
 
 After dinner, however, Armstrong had to settle a dispute 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 23 
 
 between two of his tenants as to grazing rights, and it was 
 not until evening that he told his story. 
 
 "In 1388 there were all sorts of troubles in England, and 
 France naturally took advantage of them and recommenced 
 hostilities, and we prepared to share in the game. Word was 
 sent round privately, and every man was bidden to gather in 
 Jedburgh forest. I tell you, lad, I went with a heavy heart, 
 for although men of our name have the reputation of being 
 as quarrelsome fellows as any that dwell on the border, I am 
 an exception, and love peace and quiet ; moreover, the children 
 were but young, and I saw that the fight would be a heavy 
 business, and I did not like leaving them and their mother. 
 However, there was no help for it, and we gathered there over 
 40,000 strong. The main body marched away into Cumber- 
 land, but Douglas, March, and Moray, with 300 spears and 
 2,000 footmen, including many an Armstrong, entered North- 
 umberland. 
 
 " We marched without turning to the right or left, or staying 
 to attack town, castle, or house, till we crossed the river Tyne 
 and entered Durham. Then we began the war, burning, 
 ravaging, and slaying. I liked it not, for although when it 
 comes to fighting I am ready if needs be to bear my part, I 
 care not to attack peaceful people. It is true that your kings 
 have over and over again laid waste half Scotland, killing, 
 slaying, and hanging ; but it does not seem to me any satis- 
 faction, because some twenty of my ancestors have been 
 murdered, to slay twenty people who were not born until long 
 afterwards, and whose forebears for aught I know may have 
 had no hand in the slaughter of mine. However, having 
 laden ourselves with plunder from Durham, we sat down for 
 three days before Newcastle, where we had some sharp skir- 
 mishes with Sir Henry and his brother Sir Ralph Percy, and 
 in one of these captured Sir Henry's pennant. 
 
24 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 "Then we marched away to Otterburn, after receiving 
 warning from Percy that he intended to win his pennant back 
 again before we left Northumberland. We attacked Otterburn 
 Castle, but failed to carry it, for it was strong and well de- 
 fended. There was a council that night, and most of the 
 leaders were in favour of retiring at once to Scotland with the 
 abundance of spoil that we had gained. But Douglas per- 
 suaded them to remain two or three days and to capture the 
 castle, and not to go off as if afraid of Percy's threats. So we 
 waited all the next day, and at night the Percys with 600 
 spears and 8,000 infantry came up. Our leaders had not been 
 idle, for they had examined the ground carefully, and arranged 
 how the battle should be fought if we were attacked. 
 
 " Having heard nothing of the English all day, we lay down 
 to sleep, not expecting to hear aught of them until the morning. 
 It was a moonlight night, and, being in August, there was 
 but a short darkness between the twilights, and the English, 
 arriving, at once made an attack, falling first on the servants' 
 huts, which they took for those of the chiefs. This gave us 
 time to form up in good order, as we had lain down each in 
 his proper position. A portion of the force went down to 
 skirmish with the English in front, but the greater portion 
 marched along the mountain side and fell suddenly upon the 
 English flank. At first there was great confusion, but the 
 English being more numerous soon recovered their order and 
 pushed us back, though not without much loss on both sides. 
 
 " Douglas shouted his battle-cry, advanced his banner, fight- 
 ing most bravely, as did Sir Patrick Hepburn, but for whose 
 bravery the Douglas banner would have been taken, for the 
 Percys, hearing the cry of ' a Douglas ! a Douglas ! ' pressed 
 to that part of the field and bore us backwards. I was in the 
 midst of it with ten of my kinsmen ; and though we all fought 
 as became men, we were pressed back, and began to think that 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 25 
 
 the day would be lost. Then the young earl, furious at seeing 
 disaster threaten him, dashed into the midst of the English 
 ranks swinging his battle-axe, and for a time cutting a way 
 for himself. But one man's strength and courage can go for 
 but little in such a fray. Some of his knights and squires had 
 followed him, but in the darkness it was but few who per- 
 ceived his advance. 
 
 " Presently three knights met him, and all their spears 
 pierced him, and he was borne from his horse mortally 
 wounded. Happily the English were unaware that it was 
 Douglas who had fallen. Had they known it, their courage 
 would have been mightily raised, and the day would assuredly 
 have been lost. We too were ignorant that Douglas had fallen, 
 and still fought on. In other parts of the field March and 
 Moray were holding their own bravely. Sir Ralph Percy, who 
 had, like Douglas, charged almost alone into Moray's ranks, 
 was sorely wounded, and, being surrounded, surrendered to 
 Sir John Maxwell. Elsewhere many captures were made by 
 both parties ; but as the fight went on the advantage turned 
 to our side, for we had rested all the day before, and began 
 the battle fresh, after some hours of sleep, while the English 
 had marched eight leagues and were weary when they began 
 the fight. 
 
 " Sir James Lindsay and Sir Walter Sinclair with some other 
 knights who had followed Douglas found him still alive. With 
 his last words he ordered them to raise his banner and to shout 
 ' Douglas ! ' so that friends and foes should think that he was of 
 their party. These instructions they followed. We and others 
 pressed forwards on hearing the shout, and soon, a large party 
 being collected, resumed the battle at this point. Moray and 
 March both bore their arrays in the direction where they 
 believed Douglas to be battling, and so together we pressed 
 upon the English so hardly that they retreated, and for five 
 
26 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 miles we pursued them very hotly. Very many prisoners were 
 taken, but all of quality were at once put to ransom and 
 allowed to depart, on giving their knightly word of payment 
 within fifteen days. 
 
 " It was a great victory, and in truth none of us well knew 
 how it had come about, for the English had fought as well and 
 valiantly as we did ourselves ; but it is ill for wearied men 
 to fight against fresh ones. Never was I more surprised than 
 when we found that the battle, which for a time had gone 
 mightily against us, was yet won in the end. Methinks that it 
 was to a great extent due to the fact that each Englishman 
 fought for himself, while we, having on the previous day re- 
 ceived the strictest orders to fight each man under his leader, 
 to hold together, and to obey orders in all respects, kept in our 
 companies, and so in the end gained the day against a foe as 
 brave and much more numerous than ourselves." 
 
 "Thank you, Uncle Armstrong. I have often wondered how 
 it was that the Percys, being three to one against you, were yet 
 defeated, fighting on their own ground as it were. 'T is long 
 indeed since we suffered so great a reverse." 
 
 "That is true enough, Oswald. In the days of Wallace and 
 Bruce we Scots often won battles with long odds against us ; 
 but that was because we fought on foot, and the English for 
 the most part on horseback, — a method good enough on an 
 open plain, but ill fitted for a land of morass and hill like 
 Scotland. Since the English also took to fighting on foot, the 
 chances have been equal, and we have repulsed invasions not 
 so much by force as by falling back, and so wasting the coun- 
 try that the English had but the choice of retreating or starving. 
 There is reason, indeed, why, when equal forces are arrayed 
 against each other, the chances should also be equal, for we 
 are come of the same stock, and the men of the northern 
 marches of England and those of Scotland are alike hardy and 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 27 
 
 accustomed to war. Were we but a united people as you 
 English are, methinks that there would never have been such 
 constant wars between us, for English kings would not have 
 cared to have invaded a country where they would find but 
 little spoil, and have hard work to take it. But our nobles 
 have always been ready to turn traitors ; they are mostly of 
 Norman blood and Norman name, and no small part of them 
 have estates in England as well as in Scotland. Hence it is 
 that our worst enemies have always been in our midst. And 
 now it is time for bed, or you will be heavy in the morning ; 
 and I know that you intend starting at dawn with the dogs, 
 and have promised to bring in some hares for dinner." 
 
 Not only Oswald and Allan, but Janet also, was afoot early, 
 and after taking a basin of porridge started for the hills, ac- 
 companied by four dogs. They carried with them bows and 
 arrows, in case the dogs should drive the hares within shot. 
 Six hours later they returned, carrying with them five hares 
 and a brace of birds. These had both fallen to Oswald's bow, 
 being shot while on the ground, for in those days the idea that 
 it was unsportsmanlike to shoot game except when flying was 
 unknown. For a week they went out every day, sometimes 
 with the dogs, but more often with hawks, which were trained 
 to fly not only at birds in their flight, but at hares, on whose 
 heads they alighted, pecking them and beating them so fiercely 
 with their wings that they gave time for the party on foot to 
 run up and despatch the quarry with an arrow. 
 
 Once or twice they accompanied Adam Armstrong when he 
 rode to some of the towns in the neighbourhood and spent the 
 day with friends of the Armstrongs there. For a fortnight the 
 time passed very pleasantly to the English lad, but at the end 
 of that time Adam Armstrong returned from a visit to Jed- 
 burgh with a grave face. " I have news," he said, " that your 
 King Richard has been deposed, that Henry, the Duke of 
 
28 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Lancaster, having landed in Yorkshire, was joined by Percy 
 and the Earl of Westmoreland, and has been proclaimed king. 
 This will cause great troubles in England, for surely there must 
 be many there who will not tamely see a king dethroned by 
 treasonable practices, and another having no just title to the 
 crown promoted to his place. Such a thing is contrary to all 
 reason and justice. A king has the same right to his crown as 
 a noble to his estates, and none may justly take them away 
 save for treasonable practices, and a king cannot commit 
 treason against himself. Therefore it is like that there will be 
 much trouble in England, and I fear that there is no chance of 
 the truce that concludes at the end of this month being 
 continued. 
 
 " The fact that the two great northern lords of England are 
 both with their forces in the south will further encourage 
 trouble, and the peace that with small intermissions has contin- 
 ued since the battle of Otterburn is like to be broken. There- 
 fore, my lad, I think it best that you should cut short your 
 visit by a week, and you shall return and finish it when 
 matters have settled down. Here in Scotland we are not with- 
 out troubles ; ill-blood has arisen between March and Douglas, 
 owing to the Duke of Ramsay breaking his promise to marry 
 the Earl of March's daughter and taking Douglas's girl to wife. 
 This, too, has sorely angered one more powerful than either 
 Douglas or March — I mean, of course, Albany, who really 
 exercises the kingly power. 
 
 " But troubles in Scotland will in no way prevent war from 
 breaking out with England. On the contrary, the quarrel 
 between the two great lords of our marches will cause them to 
 loose their hold of the border men, and I foresee that we shall 
 have frays and forays among ourselves again, as in the worst 
 times of old ; therefore it were best that you went home. 
 While these things are going on, the private friendship between 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 29 
 
 so many families on either side of the border must be sus- 
 pended, and all intercourse, for maybe every man on either 
 side will be called to arms, and assuredly it will not be safe 
 for one of either nation to set foot across the border save 
 armed, and with a strong clump of spears at his back." 
 
 " I shall be sorry indeed to go," Oswald said, " but I see 
 that if troubles do, as you fear, break out at the conclusion of 
 the peace a fortnight hence — " 
 
 " They may not wait for that," Adam Armstrong interrupted 
 him. "A truce is only a truce so long as there are those 
 strong enough to enforce it, and with Douglas and March at 
 variance on our side, and Northumberland and Westmoreland 
 absent on yours, there are none to see that the truce is not 
 broken, and from what I hear it may not be many days before 
 we see the smoke of burning houses rising upon either side of 
 the border." 
 
 " The more reason for my going home," Oswald said. " My 
 father is not likely to be last in a fray, and assuredly he would 
 not like me to be away across the border when swords are 
 drawn. I am very sorry, but I see that there is no help for it, 
 and to-morrow at daybreak I will start for home." 
 
 That evening was the dullest Oswald had spent during his 
 visit. The prospect that the two nations might soon be engaged 
 in another desperate struggle saddened the young cousins, who 
 felt that a long time might elapse before they again met, and 
 that in the meantime their fathers, and possibly themselves, 
 might be fighting in opposite ranks. Although the breaches 
 of the truces caused, as a rule, but little bloodshed, being in 
 fact but cattle-lifting expeditions, it was very different in time 
 of war, when wholesale massacres took place on both sides, 
 towns and villages were burned down, and the whole of the 
 inhabitants put to the sword. Ten years had sufficed to soften 
 the memory of these events, especially among young people, 
 
80 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 but each had heard numberless stories of wrong and slaughter, 
 and felt that when war once again broke out in earnest, there 
 was little hope that there would be any change in the manner 
 in which it would be conducted. 
 
 Oswald rode rapidly until he had crossed the border. The 
 truce would not expire for another thirteen days, but the 
 raiders might be at work at any moment, for assuredly there 
 would be no chance of complaints being made on the eve of 
 recommencement of general hostilities. He met no one on the 
 road until he reached the first hamlet on the English side ; here 
 he stopped to give his horse half an hour's rest and a feed. 
 As he dismounted, two or three of the villagers came up. 
 
 " Have you heard aught, lad, of any gatherings on the other 
 side of the border?" 
 
 " None from where I came ; but there was a talk that 
 notices had been sent through the southern Scottish marches 
 for all to be in readiness to gather to the banner without delay 
 when the summons was received." 
 
 " That is what we have heard," a man said. " We have made 
 everything in readiness to drive off our cattle to the fells ; the 
 beacons are all prepared for lighting from Berwick down to 
 Carlisle, and assuredly the Scotch will find little near the 
 border to carry back with them. You are the son of stout 
 John Forster of Yardhope Keep, are you not ? I saw you rid- 
 ing by his side two months since at Alwinton fair." 
 
 "Yes, I was there with him." 
 
 " He will have hot work if a Scotch army marches into 
 Tynedale. The Bairds will be sure to muster strongly, and 
 they won't forgive the last raid on them, and whichever way 
 they go you may be sure that your father's hold will receive 
 a visit." 
 
 " It was but a return raid," Oswald said. "The Bairds had 
 been down our way but a short time before and lifted all the 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 31 
 
 cattle and horses that they could lay hands on for miles 
 round." 
 
 "That is true enough. We all know the thieving loons. 
 But men remember the injuries they have suffered better than 
 those they have inflicted, and they will count Allan Baird's 
 death as more than a set-off for a score of their own 
 forays." 
 
 " If we have only the Bairds to settle with, we can hold our 
 walls against them," Oswald said ; " but if the whole of the 
 Scotch army come our way, we must do as you are doing, 
 drive the cattle to the hills, and leave them to do what harm 
 they can to the stone walls, which they will find it hard work 
 to damage." 
 
 "Ay, I have heard that they are stronger than ordinary, 
 and so they need be, seeing that you have a blood feud with 
 the Bairds. Well, they are not like to have much time to 
 waste over it, for our sheriff has already sent word here as to 
 the places where we are to gather when the beacon-fires are 
 lighted, and you may be sure that the Percys will lose no 
 time in marching against them with all their array ; and the 
 Scots are like to find, as they have found before, that it is an 
 easier thing to cross the border than it is to get back." 
 
 Late that evening Oswald returned home. After the first 
 greetings his father said : " It is high time that you were back, 
 Oswald. Rumour is busy all along the border ; but for my- 
 self, though I doubt not that their moss-troopers will be on 
 the move as soon as the truce ends, I think there will not be 
 any invasion in force for some little time. The great lords of 
 the Scotch marches are ill friends with each other, and until 
 the quarrel between Douglas and Dunbar is patched up, 
 neither will venture to march his forces into England. It 
 may be months yet before we see their pennons flying on 
 English soil. My brother Alwyn has been over here for a day 
 
32 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 or two since you were away. The Percys are down south, so 
 he was free to ride over here. 
 
 " He wants us to send you to him without loss of time. He 
 says that there is a vacancy in Percy's household, owing to 
 one of his esquires being made a knight, and a page has been 
 promoted to an esquireship. He said that he spoke to Hot- 
 spur before he went south anent the matter, and asked him 
 to enroll you not exactly as a page, but as one who, from his 
 knowledge of the border, would be a safe and trusty messen- 
 ger to send in case of need. As he has served the Percys for 
 thirty years, and for ten has been the captain of their men-at- 
 arms, and has never asked for aught either for himself or his 
 relations, Percy gave him a favourable answer, and said that if 
 on his return he would present you to him, and he found that 
 you were a lad of manners that would be suitable for a mem- 
 ber of his household, he would grant his request, partly, too, 
 because my father and myself had always been stanch men, 
 and ready at all times to join his banner when summoned and 
 to fight doughtily. So there seems a good chance of prefer- 
 ment for you. 
 
 " Your mother is willing that you should go. She says, and 
 truly enough, that if you stay here it will be but to engage, as 
 I and my forebears have done, in constant feuds with the 
 Scots, harrying and being harried, never knowing when we 
 lie down to rest but that we may be woke up by the battle- 
 shout of the Bairds, and leaving behind us when we die no 
 more than we took from our fathers. I know not how your 
 own thoughts may run in the matter, Oswald, but methinks 
 that there is much in what she says, though for myself I wish 
 for nothing better than what I am accustomed to. Percy would 
 have knighted me had I wished it years ago, but plain Jock 
 Forster I was born and so will I die when my time comes ; 
 for it would alter my condition in no way, save that as Jock 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 33 
 
 Forster I can lead a raid across the border, but as Sir John 
 Forster it would be hardly seemly for me to do so save when 
 there is open war between the countries. 
 
 " It is different in your case ; you are young, and can fit 
 yourself to another mode of life, and can win for yourself with 
 your sword a better fortune than you will inherit from me. 
 Besides, lad, I am like enough, unless a Baird spear finishes 
 me sooner, to live another thirty years yet, and it is always 
 sure to lead to trouble if there are two cocks in one farmyard. 
 You would have your notions as to how matters should be 
 done, and I should have mine ; and so for many reasons it is 
 right that you should go out into the world. If matters go 
 well with you, all the better ; if not, you will always be wel- 
 come back here, and will be master when I am gone. What 
 say you?" 
 
 " It comes suddenly upon me, father ; but as I have always 
 thought that I should like to see something of the world be- 
 yond our own dales, I would gladly, for a time at least, accept 
 my uncle's offer, which is a rare one and far beyond my hopes. 
 I should be sorry to leave you and my mother, but save for 
 that, it seems to me, as to you, that it would be best for me to 
 go out into the world for a time." 
 
 " Then that is settled, and to-morrow you shall ride to Aln- 
 wick and see, at any rate, if aught comes of the matter. Do 
 not cry, wife ; it is your counsel that I am acting upon, and 
 you have told me you are sure that it is best that he should 
 go. It is not as if he were taking service with a southern 
 lord. He will be but a day's ride away from us, and doubtless 
 will be able to come over at times and stay a day or two with 
 us ; and once a year, when times are peaceable, you shall ride 
 behind me on a pillion to see how things go with him at the 
 Percys' castle. At any rate, it will be better by far than if he 
 had carried out that silly fancy of his for putting himself in 
 
34 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the hands of the monks and learning to read and write, which 
 would perchance have ended in his shaving his crown and 
 taking to a cowl, and there would have been an end of the 
 Forsters of Yardhope. Now put that cold joint upon the 
 table again; doubtless the lad has a wolfs appetite." 
 
 There was no time lost. The next day was spent in looking 
 out his clothes and packing his valise by his mother, while he 
 rode round the country to say good-bye to some of his friends. 
 The next morning at daybreak he started, and at nightfall 
 rode into the castle of Alnwick and inquired for Alwyn For- 
 ster. The two men-at-arms, who had regarded his appearance 
 on his shaggy border horse with scarce concealed contempt, at 
 once answered civilly that the captain would be found in his 
 room in the north turret. They then pointed out to him the 
 stables where he could bestow his horse, and having seen some 
 hay placed before it, and a feed of barley, to which the animal 
 was but little accustomed, Oswald made his way up the turret 
 to the room in which his uncle lodged. 
 
 The stately castle, and the beauty as well as the strength of 
 the Percys' great stronghold, had in no small degree surprised 
 and almost awed the lad, accustomed only to the rough border 
 holds. It was situated on rising ground on the river Aln, and 
 consisted of a great keep, which dated back to the times of the 
 Saxons, and three courts, each of which were indeed separate 
 fortresses, the embattled gates being furnished with portcullises 
 and strong towers. Within the circuit of its walls it contained 
 some five acres of ground with sixteen towers, the outer wall 
 being surrounded by a moat. 
 
 The Percys were descended from a Danish chief, who was 
 one of the conquerors of Normandy, and settled there. The 
 Percy of the time came over with William the Norman, and 
 obtained from him the gift of large possessions in the south 
 of England and in Yorkshire, and, marrying a great Saxon 
 
ACROSS THE BORDER 35 
 
 heiress, added to his wide lands in the north. One of the 
 Percys in the reign of Henry II. made a journey to Jerusalem, 
 and died in the Holy Land. None of his four sons survived 
 him. His eldest daughter Maude married the Earl of War- 
 wick, but, dying childless, her sister Agnes became sole heir to 
 the broad lands of the Percys. She married the son of the 
 Duke of Brabant, the condition of her marriage being that he 
 should either take the arms of the Percys instead of his own, 
 or continue to bear his own arms and take the name of Percy. 
 He chose the latter alternative. Their son was one of the 
 barons who forced King John to grant the Magna Charta. 
 The Percys always distinguished themselves in the wars against 
 the Scots, and received at various times grants of territory in that 
 country, one of them being made Earl of Carrick when Robert 
 the Bruce raised the standard of revolt against England. 
 
 Upon the other hand, they not unfrequently took a share in 
 risings against the Kings of England, and their estates were 
 confiscated for a time by their taking a leading part in the 
 action against Piers Gaveston, the royal favourite. It was in 
 the reign of Henry II. that the Percy of the time obtained by 
 purchase the Barony of Alnwick, which from that date became 
 the chief seat of the family. The present earl was the first 
 of the rank, having been created by Richard II. He was one 
 of the most powerful nobles in England, and it was at his invita- 
 tion that Henry of Lancaster had come over from France and 
 had been placed on the throne by the Percys and some other 
 of the northern nobles, and as a reward for his service the 
 earl was created High Constable of England. 
 
36 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 AT ALNWICK 
 
 " \7"OU are rarely changed, Oswald," his uncle said as the 
 JL lad entered his apartment. " 'T is three years since 
 I last saw you, and you have shot up nigh a head since then. 
 I should not have known you had I met you in the street, but 
 as I was expecting you, it is easy to recall your features. I 
 made sure that you would come, for although your father was 
 at first averse to my offer I soon found that your mother was 
 on my side, and I know that in the long run my brother 
 generally gives in to her wishes ; and I was sure that as you 
 were a lad of spirit you would be glad to try a flight from 
 home. You are growing up mightily like your father, and 
 promise to be as big and as strong as we both are ; your eyes 
 speak of a bold disposition, and my brother tells me that you 
 are already well practised with your arms. You understand 
 that it is Sir Henry, whom they call Hotspur, that you are to 
 serve. As to the earl, he is too great a personage for me to 
 ask a favour from, but Sir Henry is different. 
 
 " I taught him the first use of his arms, and many a bout 
 have I had with him. He treats me as a comrade rather than 
 as the captain of his father's men-at-arms here ; and when I 
 spoke to him about you he said at once, ' Bring him here, and 
 we will see what we can do for him. If he is a fellow of parts 
 and discretion, I doubt not that we can make him useful. You 
 say he knows every inch of our side of the border and some- 
 thing of the Scottish side of it, his mother's sister being mar- 
 ried to one of the Armstrongs. There is like to be trouble 
 before long. You know the purpose for which I am going 
 
AT ALNWICK 37 
 
 away ; and the Scots are sure to take advantage of changes 
 in England, and a youth who can ride, and knows the border, 
 and can, if needs be, strike a blow in self-defence, will not 
 have to stay idle in the castle long. His father is a stout with- 
 stander of the Scots, and the earl would have given him knight- 
 hood if he would have taken it, and maybe in the future the son 
 will win that honour. He is too old for a page, and I should 
 say too little versed in our ways for such a post, but I promise 
 you that when he is old enough he shall be one of my esquires.' 
 So you may soon have an opportunity of showing Hotspur 
 what you are made of. And now I doubt not that you are 
 hungry ; I will send down to the buttery for a couple of 
 tankards and a pasty. I had my supper two hours ago, but I 
 doubt not that I can keep you company in another." 
 
 He went to the window and called out, " John Horn ! " 
 The name was repeated below, and in two minutes a servant 
 came up. The captain gave him directions, and they shortly 
 sat down to a substantial meal. 
 
 "The first thing to do, lad, will be to get you garments 
 more suitable to the Percys' castle than those you have on ; 
 they are good enough to put on under armour or when you ride 
 in a foray ; but here one who would ride in the train of the 
 Percys must make a brave show. It is curfew now, but to-morrow 
 early we will sally into the town, where we shall find a good 
 choice of garments for men of all conditions. You hold your- 
 self well, and you have something of your mother's softness of 
 speech, and will, I think, make a good impression on Sir 
 Henry when suitably clad. You see, there are many sons of 
 knights of good repute and standing who would be glad indeed 
 that their sons should obtain a post in Hotspur's personal fol- 
 lowing, and who might grumble were they passed over in 
 favour of one who, by his appearance, was of lower condition 
 than themselves. 
 
38 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " John Forster is well known on the border as a valiant 
 fighter and a leading man in Coquetdale. It is known, too, 
 that he might have been knighted had he chosen, and doubt- 
 less there are many who, having heard that his hold is one of 
 the strongest on the border, give him credit for having far 
 wider possessions than that bit of moor round the hold, and 
 grazing rights for miles beyond it. If, then, you make a brave 
 show, none will question the choice that Hotspur may make ; 
 but were you to appear in that garb you have on, they might 
 well deem that your father is, after all, but a moss-trooper. He 
 told me that you had once a fancy to learn to read and write. 
 What put that idea into your head? I do not say that it was 
 not a good one, but at least it was a strange one for a lad 
 brought up as you have been." 
 
 " I think, uncle, that it was rather my mother's idea than 
 my own ; she thought that it might conduce to my advance- 
 ment should I ever leave the hold and go out into the world." 
 
 " She was quite right, Oswald, and 't is a pity that you did 
 not go for a couple of years to a monastery. It is a good 
 thing to be able to read an order or to write one, for many of 
 the lords and knights can do no more than make a shift to sign 
 their names. As for books, I say nothing, for I see not what 
 manner of good they are, but father Ernulf, who is chaplain 
 here, tells me that one who gives his mind to it can in a year 
 learn enough to write down, not in a clerkly hand, but in one 
 that can be understood, any letter or order his lord may 
 wish sent, or to read for him any that he receives. In most 
 matters, doubtless, an order by word of mouth is just as good 
 as one writ on vellum, but there are times when a messenger 
 could not be trusted to deliver one accurately as he receives it, 
 or it might have to be passed on from hand to hand. Other- 
 wise a spoken message is the best, for if a messenger be killed 
 on the way none are the wiser as to the errand on which he is 
 
AT ALNWICK 39 
 
 going, while, if a parchment is found on him, the first priest 
 or monk can translate its purport. The chaplain has two 
 younger priests with him, and should you be willing I doubt 
 not that one of these would give you instruction for an hour or 
 two of a day. The Percys may not be back for another month 
 or two, and if you apply yourself to it honestly you might learn 
 something by that time." 
 
 " I should like it very much, uncle." 
 
 " Then, so it shall be, lad. For two or three hours a day 
 you must practise in arms, — I have some rare swordsmen 
 among my fellows, — but for the rest of the time you will be 
 your own master. I will speak with father Ernulf in the morn- 
 ing after we have seen to the matter of your garments." 
 
 A straw pallet was brought up to the chamber, and after 
 chatting for half an hour about his visit to the Armstrongs, 
 Oswald took off his riding-boots and jerkin, the total amount 
 of disrobing usual at that time on the border, and was soon 
 asleep. 
 
 " I am afraid, uncle," he said in the morning, " that the 
 furnishment of the purse my father gave me at starting will 
 not go far towards what you may consider necessary for my 
 outfit." 
 
 " That need not trouble you at all, lad. I told your father 
 I should take all charges upon myself, having no children of 
 my own, and no way to spend my money, therefore I can 
 afford well to do as I like towards you. Once the war begins, 
 you will fill your purse yourself, for although the peoples of 
 the towns and villages suffer by the Scotch incursions, we men- 
 at-arms profit by a war. We have nought that they can take 
 from us but our lives, while we take our share of the booty, 
 and have the ransom of any knights or gentlemen we may 
 make prisoners." 
 
 Accordingly they went into Alnwick, and Alwyn Forster 
 
40 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 bought for his nephew several suits of clothes suitable for a 
 young gentleman of good family, together with armour of 
 much more modern fashion than that to which Oswald was 
 accustomed. When they returned to the castle the lad was 
 told to put on one of these suits at once. 
 
 "Make your old ones up in a bundle," his uncle said. 
 "There may be occasions when you may find such clothes 
 useful, though here assuredly they are out of place. Now I 
 will go with you to father Ernulf." 
 
 The priest's abode was in what was called the Abbots' 
 Tower, which was the one nearest to the large monastery out- 
 side the walls. 
 
 " I told you, father," the captain said, " that belike my 
 nephew would join me here, as I was going to present him to 
 Sir Henry Percy. The good knight will not be back again 
 mayhap for some weeks, and the lad has a fancy to learn to 
 read and write, and I thought you might put him in the way 
 of his attaining such knowledge." 
 
 " He looks as if the sword will suit his hand better than the 
 pen," the priest said with a smile, as his eye glanced over the 
 lad's active figure. " But surely, if he is so inclined, I shall be 
 glad to further his wishes. There is a monk at the monastery 
 who, although a good scholar, is fitted rather for the army 
 than the Church. He was one of our teachers, but in sooth had 
 but little patience with the blunders of the children ; but I am 
 sure that he would gladly give his aid to a lad like this, and 
 would bear with him if he really did his best. I have nought 
 to do at present, and will go down with him at once and talk 
 to friar Roger. If the latter would rather have nought to do 
 with it, one of my juniors shall undertake the task ; but I am 
 sure that the friar would make a better instructor, if he would 
 take it in hand. 
 
 " He is a stout man-at-arms — for, as you know, when the 
 
AT ALNWICK 41 
 
 Scots cross the border, the abbot always sends a party of his 
 stoutest monks to fight in Percy's ranks, as is but right, seeing 
 that the Scots plunder a monastery as readily as a village. 
 Friar Roger was the senior in command under the sub-prior 
 of the monks who fought at Otterburn, and all say that none 
 fought more stoutly, and the monks were the last to fall back 
 on that unfortunate day. They say that he incurred many 
 penances for his unchurchly language during the fight, but 
 that the abbot remitted them on account of the valour that 
 he had shown." 
 
 Accordingly the priest went off with Oswald to the monas- 
 tery, while Alwyn Forster remained to attend to his duties as 
 captain of the men-at-arms. On his saying that he wished to 
 see the friar Roger, the priest was shown into a waiting-room, 
 where the monk soon joined them. He was a tall, powerful 
 man, standing much over six feet in height, and of propor- 
 tionate width of shoulders. He carried his head erect, and 
 looked more like a man-at-arms in disguise than a monk. He 
 bent his head to the priest, and then said in a hearty tone : 
 
 " Well, father Ernulf, what would you with me to-day ? 
 You have no news of the Scots having crossed the border, and 
 I fear that there is no chance at present of my donning a 
 cuirass over my gown?" 
 
 " None at present, brother, though it may well be so before 
 long. I hope that we shall soon have the earl and his son 
 back again, for the Scots are sure to take advantage of their 
 absence now that the truce is expired. No, I want you on 
 other business. This young gentleman is the nephew of 
 Alwyn Forster, whom you know." 
 
 " Right well, father, a good fellow and a stout fighter." 
 
 " He is about to enter Sir Henry's household," the priest 
 went on ; " but seeing that the knight is still away, and may 
 be absent for some weeks yet, the young man is anxious to 
 
42 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 learn to read and write — not from any idea of entering the 
 Church," he broke off with a smile at the expression of surprise 
 on the monk's face, " but that it may be useful to him in 
 procuring advancement. I have therefore brought him to you, 
 thinking that you would make a far better teacher for a lad 
 like him than your brothers in the school. I thought perhaps 
 that if I spoke to the abbot he might release you from your 
 attendance at some of the services for such a purpose." 
 
 " That is a consideration," the monk laughed. " Well, 
 young sir, I tell you fairly that among my gifts is not that of 
 patience with fools. If you are disposed to work right heartily, 
 as I suppose you must be or you would not make such a 
 request, I on my part will do my best to teach you ; but you 
 must not mind if sometimes you get a rough buffet to assist 
 your memory." 
 
 " I should doubt whether a buffet from you would not be 
 more likely to confuse my memory than to assist it," Oswald 
 said with a smile ; " but at any rate I am ready to take my 
 chance, and can promise to do my best to avoid taxing your 
 patience to that point." 
 
 "That will do, father," the monk said. "He is a lad of 
 spirit, and it is a pleasure to train one of that kind. As to 
 the puny boys they send to be made monks because, forsooth, 
 they are likely to grow up too weak for any other calling, I 
 have no patience with them, and I get into sore disgrace 
 with the abbot for my shortness of temper." 
 
 " I am afraid, from what I hear," the priest said, shaking his 
 head, but unable to repress a smile, "that you are often in 
 disgrace, brother Roger." 
 
 " I fear that it is so, and were it not that I am useful in 
 teaching the lay brothers and the younger monks the use of 
 the carnal weapons, I know that before this I should have 
 been bundled out, neck and crop. 'Tis hard, father, for a 
 
IHIS IS THE NEPHEW 01- ALWYN FORSTER. 
 
AT ALNWICK 43 
 
 man of my inches to be shut up here when there is so much 
 fighting to be done abroad." 
 
 "There is good work to be done everywhere," the priest 
 said gravely. " Many of us may have made a mistake in 
 choosing our vocations, but, if so, we must make the best 
 we can of what is before us." 
 
 "What time will you come?" the monk asked Oswald. 
 
 " My uncle said that he would suit my hours to yours ; but 
 that if it was all the same to you I should practise in arms 
 from six o'clock till eight, and again for an hour or two in the 
 evening, so that I could come to you either in the morning or 
 afternoon." 
 
 " Come at both if you will," the monk said. " If the good 
 father can get me off the services from eight till six, you can 
 be with me all that time save at the dinner-hour. You have 
 but a short time to learn in, and must give yourself heartily to 
 it. There is the chapel bell ringing now, and I must be off. 
 The abbot will not be present at this service, father, and if 
 you will you can see him now. I doubt not that he will grant 
 your request, for I know that I anger him every time I am in 
 chapel. I am fond of music, and I have a voice like a bull, 
 and do what I will it will come out in spite of me ; and he says 
 that my roaring destroys the effect of the whole choir." 
 
 So saying he strode away. 
 
 " Do you wait outside the gates, my son," the priest said. 
 " I shall be only a few minutes with the abbot, who, as friar 
 Roger says, will, I doubt not, be glad enough to grant him 
 leave to abstain from attendance at the services." 
 
 In a short time indeed he rejoined Oswald at the gate. 
 
 "That matter was managed easily enough," he said. "The 
 abbot has himself a somewhat warlike disposition, which is not 
 to be wondered at, seeing that he comes from a family ever 
 ready to draw the sword, and he has therefore a liking for 
 
44 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 friar Roger, in spite of his contumacies, breaches of regula- 
 tions, and quarrels with the other monks. He is obliged to 
 continually punish him with sentences of seclusion, penance, 
 and fasting, but methinks it goes against the grain. He said 
 at once that he was delighted to hear that he had voluntarily 
 undertaken some work that would keep him out of trouble, 
 and that he willingly, and indeed gladly, absolved him from 
 attendance in chapel during the hours that he was occupied 
 with you." 
 
 " He is not without his uses," he said. " He is in special 
 charge of the garden, and looks after the lay brothers em- 
 ployed in it. I will put someone else in charge while he is 
 busy, though I doubt if any will get as much work out of the 
 lay brothers as he does, and indeed he himself labours harder 
 than any of them. With any other I should say that tucking 
 his gown round his waist and labouring with might and main 
 was unseemly, but as it works off some of his superabundant 
 energy, I do not interfere with him." 
 
 " How ever did he become a monk, father? " 
 " It seems that he was a somewhat sickly child, and his 
 father sent him to the monastery to be taught with a view to 
 entering the Church. He was quick and bright in his parts, 
 but as his health improved he grew restless, and at fifteen 
 refused to follow the vocation marked out for him, and re- 
 turned home, where, as I have heard, he took part in various 
 daring forays across the border. When he was five-and-twenty 
 he was wounded well-nigh to death in one of these, and he 
 took it as a judgment upon him for deserting the Church, so 
 he returned here and became a lay brother. He was a very 
 long time before he recovered his full strength, and before he 
 iid so he became a monk, and I believe has bitterly regretted 
 the fact ever since. Some day, I am afraid, he will break the 
 bounds altogether, throw away his gown, assume a breast-plate 
 
AT ALNWICK 45 
 
 and steel cap, and become an unfrocked monk. I believe he 
 fights hard against his inclinations, but they are too strong 
 for him. If war breaks out I fear that some day he will be 
 missing. He will, of course, go down south, where he will be 
 unknown, and where, when the hair on his tonsure has grown, 
 he can well pass as a man-at-arms, and take sen-ice with some 
 warlike lord. I trust that it may not be so, but he will 
 assuredly make a far better man-at-arms than he will ever 
 make a good monk." 
 
 The next morning, after practising for two hours with sword 
 and pike, Oswald went down at eight o'clock to the monastery 
 and was conducted to friar Roger's cell. The latter at once 
 began his instruction, handing him a piece of blackened board 
 and a bit of chalk. 
 
 " Now," he said, " you must learn to read and write together. 
 There are twenty-six letters, and of each there is a big one 
 and a little one. The big ones are only used at the beginning 
 of a sentence. That is where, if you were talking, you would 
 stop to take breath and begin afresh, and also at the first 
 letter of the names of people and places. The first letter is 
 ' A.' There it is, in that horn-book, you see. It looks like 
 two men or two trees leaning against each other for support, 
 with a line which might be their hands, in the middle. Now 
 make a letter like that on your board. The little ' a,' is a 
 small circle with an upright with a tail to it ; you might fancy 
 it a fish with its tail turned up. Now write each of those 
 twelve times." 
 
 So he continued with the first six letters. 
 
 " That will be as much as you will remember at first," he 
 said. " Now we will begin spelling with those letters, and you 
 will see how they are used. You see it is a mixture of the 
 sounds of the two : ' b a ' makes ba, and 'be' be, ' c a ' ca, 
 'da' da, ' d e ' de, and so on. Now we will work it out." 
 
46 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Oswald was intelligent, and anxious to learn. He had been 
 accustomed, when riding, to notice every irregularity of ground, 
 every rock and bush that might serve as a guide if lost in a 
 fog, and he very quickly took in the instruction given him ; 
 and by the time the convent bell rung to dinner, he had made 
 a considerable progress with the variations that could be 
 formed with the six letters that he had learned, and the friar 
 expressed himself as highly satisfied with him. 
 
 "You have learned as much in one morning as many of the 
 boys who attend schools would learn in a month," he said. 
 " If you go on like this, I will warrant that if Percy delays his 
 return for two months, you will know as much as many who 
 have been two years at the work. I have always said that it 
 is a mistake to teach children young ; their minds do not take 
 in what you say to them. You may beat it into them, but 
 they get it only by rote, and painfully, because they don't 
 understand how one thing leads to another, and it is their 
 memory only, and not their minds that are at work." 
 
 The next day came news that the Scotch had crossed the 
 border, and there was great excitement in the castle ; but it 
 was soon learned that the invasion was not on a great scale, 
 neither the Douglases nor the Earl of March having taken 
 part in it. 
 
 " There is no fear of our being attacked here," Alwyn Forster 
 said to Oswald. " The sheriffs of the county will call out their 
 levies, and will soon make head against them. At the same 
 time we shall make preparations against any chance of their 
 coming hither." 
 
 This was done. Vast quantities of arrows were prepared, 
 stones collected and carried up to the points on the wall most 
 exposed to attack, and orders sent out by the governor of the 
 castle in the Percys' absence, to the people for many miles 
 round, that on the approach of the Scots all were to retire to 
 
AT ALNWICK 47 
 
 refuge, the women and children taking to the hills, while the 
 men capable of bearing arms were to hasten to the defence of 
 the castle. For a time the Scots carried all before them, 
 wasting and devastating the country. Oswald heard that 
 they had captured without resistance his father's hold. He 
 rejoiced at the news, for he feared that, not knowing the 
 strength of the invading force, resistance might have been 
 attempted, in which case all in the hold might have been put 
 to the sword. He had no doubt now that his father and 
 mother had retired with their followers to the hills, as they 
 had always determined to do in case of an invasion by a force 
 too strong to resist. 
 
 Had the Percys been at home they might have held out, 
 confident that the Scotch would be attacked before they could 
 effect its capture, but as all the northern lords with their re- 
 tainers were away in the south it would be some time before a 
 force could be collected that could make head against the Scots. 
 A portion of the Scottish army laid siege to the castle of Wark 
 on the Tweed. This castle had always played a conspicuous 
 part in the border wars. It had been besieged and captured 
 by David of Scotland in the reign of Stephen, and two or 
 three years later was again besieged, but this time repulsed all 
 attacks. David, after his defeat at the battle of the Standard, 
 resumed the siege. It again repulsed all attacks, but at last 
 was reduced to an extremity by famine, and capitulated. 
 
 The castle was demolished by the Scots, but was rebuilt by 
 Henry the Second. In 1215 it was again besieged, this time 
 by King John, who resented the defection of the northern 
 barons, and it was captured and again destroyed. In 13 18 it 
 was captured and destroyed by Robert Bruce. In 1341 it was 
 besieged by David Bruce, but held out until relieved by King 
 Edward himself. In 1383 it was again besieged by the Scots 
 and part of its fortifications demolished. On the present 
 
48 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 occasion it was again captured and razed to the ground. 
 Another portion of the Scottish army, plundering and burning, 
 advanced along the valley of the Coquet. As they approached, 
 the inhabitants of the district round Alnwick began to pour 
 into the castle, but orders were issued that all the fighting men 
 should join the force of Sir Robert Umfraville, the sheriff of 
 the district, who was gathering a force to give the Scots battle. 
 
 " I fear that there is small chance of the Scots making their 
 way hither," Oswald's instructor said in lugubrious tones. 
 " Sir Robert is a stout fighter, and the Scots, laden as they 
 must be with booty, and having hitherto met with no resist- 
 ance, will be careless and like to be taken by surprise. Me- 
 thinks the abbot ought to send off a contingent to aid Sir 
 Robert." 
 
 Oswald laughed. " I suppose he wants to keep them for 
 more urgent work, and thinks that the Church should only 
 fight when in desperate straits. However, father, you may 
 have an opportunity yet, for we cannot regard it as certain 
 that Sir Robert will defeat the Scots." 
 
 Three days later, however, the news arrived that Sir Robert 
 had attacked the Scots at Fulhetlaw and utterly defeated them, 
 taking prisoner Sir Richard Rutherford and his five sons, 
 together with Sir William Stewart, John Turnbull, a noted 
 border reiver, and many others, and that those who had 
 escaped were in full flight for the border. The Scotch incur- 
 sion had made no change in Oswald's work. He continued 
 to study hard with the monk. As a rule he fully satisfied 
 his teacher, but at times, when he failed to name the letters 
 required to make up a certain sound, the latter lost all patience 
 with him and more than once with difficulty restrained himself 
 from striking him. Spelling in those days, however, had by 
 no means crystallised itself into any definite form, and there 
 was so large a latitude allowed that if the letters used gave 
 
AT ALNWICK 49 
 
 an approximate sound to the word, it was deemed sufficient. 
 The consequence was that Oswald's education progressed at a 
 speed that would in these more rigid days be deemed impossible. 
 
 He was intensely interested in the work, and even his 
 martial exercises were for the time secondary to it in his 
 thoughts. He felt so deeply grateful to his instructor that 
 even if he had struck him he would have cared but little. In 
 those days rough knocks were readily given, and the idea that 
 there was anything objectionable in a boy being struck had 
 never been entertained by anyone. Wives were beaten not 
 uncommonly, servants frequently, and, from the highest to the 
 lowest, corporal punishment was regarded as the only way to 
 ensure the carrying out of orders. Oswald was slower in 
 learning to write down the letters than he was to read them. 
 His hands were so accustomed to the rein, the bow, and the 
 sword that they bungled over the work of forming letters. 
 Nevertheless by the time the Percys returned, three months 
 and a half after his arrival at the castle, he could both read 
 and write short and simple words, and as these formed a large 
 proportion of English speech at the time, he had made a con- 
 siderable step in the path of learning, and the monk was highly 
 pleased with his pupil. 
 
 " I shall not be able to come to-morrow, father," he said to 
 the monk one day. " The earl and Sir Henry will be back to- 
 night, and my uncle says that I must keep near him to-morrow, 
 so that if opportunity offers he may present me to the knight." 
 
 " I feared it would come to that," the monk said. " I wish 
 they had all stopped away another three or four months, then 
 you would have got over ycygz difficulty of piecing together 
 syllables so as to make up jong word. 'T is a thousand 
 pities that you should stop altogether, just when you are get- 
 ting on so well." 
 
 " I will come as often as I can, father, if you will let me." 
 
 4- 
 
50 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " No, no, lad ; I know what it is when the family are at 
 home. It will be, ' Here, Oswald, ride with such a message ; ' 
 or Hotspur himself may be going out with a train, and you 
 will have to accompany him. There will always be something. 
 Indeed, save but for your teaching, it is high time that the 
 Percys were back again, for there has already been a great 
 deal of hot work on the border, and report says that the Scots 
 are mustering strongly, and that there is going to be a great 
 raid into Cumberland ; so you will be busy and so shall I. 
 The lay brothers have made but a poor hand of it while I have 
 been busy. I went down in the evening yesterday to see them 
 drill, and it was as much as I could do to prevent myself from 
 falling upon them and giving them a lesson of a different sort. 
 As it was, I gave it to their instructor heartily, and was had 
 up before the abbot on his complaint this morning, and am to 
 eat Lenten fare for the next ten days, which accords but ill 
 either with my liking or needs." 
 
 In the evening the court-yard was ablaze with torches, as 
 amid the cheers of the garrison the Earl of Northumberland 
 and his son rode in with a strong body of men-at-arms. The 
 greater portion of the following with which they had met 
 Henry of Lancaster on his landing, and escorted him to Lon- 
 don, had long since returned to their homes, being released 
 from service when it was seen that no opposition was to be 
 looked for from the adherents of Richard. The followings of 
 the various nobles and knights of the northern counties had 
 left the main body on the way home, and Northumberland had 
 brought with him to Alnwick only the men-at-arms who formed 
 the regular force retained under his standard. 
 
 Oswald was greatly struck with the splendid appearance and 
 appointments of the earl and the knights who attended him, 
 and with the martial array of his followers. Hitherto he had 
 seen but the roughest side of war, the arms and armour carried 
 
AT ALNWICK 51 
 
 not for show but for use, and valued for their strength without 
 any reference to their appearance. On the border there was 
 not the smallest attempt at uniformity in appearance, polished 
 armour was regarded with disfavour, and that worn was of the 
 roughest nature, the local armourer's only object being to 
 furnish breast and back pieces that would resist the strongest 
 spear-thrust. Of missiles they made little account, for the 
 Scots had but few archers, and their bows were so inferior in 
 strength to those carried by the English archers that armour 
 strong enough to resist a spear-thrust was amply sufficient to 
 keep out a Scottish arrow. 
 
 There was not, even in the array of the Earl of Northum- 
 berland's men-at-arms, any approach to the uniformity that 
 now prevails among bodies of soldiers. The helmets, breast 
 and back pieces, were, however, of similar form, as the men 
 engaged for continued service were furnished with armour by 
 the earl ; but there was a great variety in the garments worn 
 under them, these being of all colours, according to the fancy 
 of their wearers. All, however, carried spears of the same 
 length, while some had swords, and others heavy axes at their 
 girdles. The helmets and armour were all brightly polished, 
 and as the lights of the torches flashed from them and from 
 the spear-heads, Oswald for the first time witnessed something 
 of the pomp of war. His uncle, as captain of the men-at-arms 
 left in the castle, was invited to the banquet held after the 
 arrival of the force. Oswald, therefore, was free to wander 
 about among the soldiers, listening to their talk of what they 
 had seen in London, and of the entertainments there in 
 honour of the new king, exciting thereby no small amount of 
 envy among those who had been left behind in garrison. 
 Oswald already knew that the earl had been appointed Con- 
 stable of England for life, and now heard that the lordship of 
 the Isle of Man had since been conferred on him. 
 
52 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 AN UNEQUAL JOUST 
 
 "T 7*OU must don your best costume to-morrow, Oswald," his 
 JL uncle said, when he returned from the banquet. " Sir 
 Henry Percy's first question, after asking as to the health of 
 the garrison, was, ' Has this nephew of yours, of whom you 
 were speaking to me, come yet ? ' I told him that you had 
 been here well-nigh four months, that you had been practising 
 in arms with my best swordsmen, who spoke highly of you, 
 and that the whole of your spare time had been spent at the 
 monastery, where you had been studying to acquire the art of 
 reading and writing, thinking that such knowledge must be 
 useful to you in his service. I told him that brother Roger 
 had reported that you had shown marvellous sharpness there, 
 and could already read from a missal, barring only some of the 
 long words. 
 
 " ' Oh, he had the fighting monk for his master ! ' Sir Henry 
 said laughing. ' Truly he must have been a good pupil if he 
 has come out of it without having his head broken a dozen 
 times. The friar is a thorn in the abbot's flesh, and more than 
 once I have had to beg him off or he would have been sent to 
 the monastery of St. John, which is a place of punishment for 
 refractory monks. But in truth he is an honest fellow, though 
 he has mistaken his vocation. He is a valiant man-at-arms, 
 and the abbot's contingent would be of small value without him. 
 Well, I will see your nephew in the morning. His perseverance 
 in learning, and his quickness in acquiring it, show him to be a 
 youth of good parts and intelligent, but until I see him I can- 
 not say what I will make of him,' " 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 53 
 
 Accordingly, the next morning the lad accompanied his 
 uncle to Sir Henry's private apartment, and found the knight 
 alone. Sir Henry, Lord Percy, was now about forty years old. 
 He had received the order of knighthood at the coronation of 
 Richard II., when his father was created earl, and nine years 
 later he was made governor of Berwick and Warden of the 
 Marches, in which office he displayed such activity in following 
 up and punishing raiders that the Scots gave him the name of 
 Hotspur. He was then sent to Calais, where he showed great 
 valour. Two years later he was made Knight pf the Garter, 
 and was then appointed to command a fleet sent out to repel a 
 threatened invasion by the French. Here he gained so great a 
 success that he came to be regarded as one of the first captains 
 of the age. 
 
 At Otterburn his impetuosity cost him his freedom, for, 
 pressing forward into the midst of the Scotch army, he and his 
 brother Ralph were taken prisoners and carried into Scot- 
 land. He had just been appointed by King Henry sheriff of 
 Northumberland, and governor of Berwick and Roxburgh, and 
 received other marks of royal favour. Although of no remark- 
 able height, his broad shoulders and long sinewy arms testified 
 to his remarkable personal strength. His face was pleasant 
 and open, and showed but small sign of his impetuous and ■ 
 fiery disposition. 
 
 "So this is the young springal," he said with a smile, as 
 with a quick glance he took in every detail of Oswald's figure 
 and appearance. " By my troth you have not overpraised him. 
 He bears himself well, and is like to be a stout fighter when 
 he comes to his full strength ; indeed, as the son of John 
 Forster of Yardhope, and as your nephew, good Alwyn, he 
 could scarce be otherwise, although I have not heard that 
 either his father or you ever showed any disposition for 
 letters." 
 
54 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " No, indeed, Sir Henry ; nor have we, as far as I have ever 
 seen, been any the worse for our lack of knowledge on that 
 head ; but with the lad here it is different. Under your good 
 patronage he may well hope to attain, by good conduct and 
 valour, a promotion where book-learning may be of use to him, 
 and therefore, when he expressed a desire to learn, I did my 
 best to favour his design." 
 
 " And you did well, Alwyn. And since he has gained so 
 much in so short a time, it were a pity he should not follow it 
 up ; and he shall, if it likes him, so long as he is in this castle, 
 have two hours every morning in which he can visit the fight- 
 ing monk, until he can read and write freely. Now, young 
 sir, the question is, how can we best employ you. You are too 
 old for a lady's bower, but not old enough yet for an esquire." 
 
 " Nor could I aspire to such a position, my lord, until I have 
 proved myself worthy of it. My uncle told me that he had 
 suggested that I might be useful as a bearer of messages and 
 orders, and as I know every foot of the border from near Berwick 
 to Cumberland, methinks that I might serve you in that way. 
 I ride lightly, know every morass and swamp, and every road 
 through the fells, and have at times, when there was peace, 
 crossed the Cheviots by several of the passes to pay visits to 
 my mother's sister, who is married to one of the Armstrongs 
 near Jedburgh. If your lordship will deign to employ me in 
 such service I can promise to do so safely and to justify my 
 uncle's recommendation, and shall be ready at all times to risk 
 my life in carrying out your orders." 
 
 " Well spoken, lad. I like the tone of your voice and your 
 manner of speech. They are such as will do no discredit to my 
 household, and I hereby appoint you to it ; further matters I 
 will discuss with your uncle." 
 
 Oswald expressed his thanks in suitable terms, and then, 
 bowing deeply, retired. 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 55 
 
 u A very proper lad, Alwyn. I would have done much for 
 you, old friend, and would have taken him in some capacity, 
 whatever he might have turned out ; but, frankly, I doubted 
 whether John Forster, valiant moss-trooper as he is, would have 
 been like to have had a son whom I could enroll in my house- 
 hold, where the pages and esquires are all sons of knights and 
 men of quality. It is true that his father might have been a 
 knight had he chosen, since the earl offered him that honour 
 after Otterburn, for three times he charged at the head of a 
 handful of his own men right into the heart of the Scottish 
 army, to try and rescue me ; but he has always kept aloof in 
 his own hold, going his own way and fighting for his own 
 hand, and never once that I can recall has he paid a visit to us 
 here or at our other seats. I feared that under such a training 
 as he would be likely to have the lad would have been but a 
 rough diamond. However, from his appearance and bearing 
 he might well have come of a noble family." 
 
 " 'T is his mother's doing, methinks, Sir Henry. She is of 
 gentle birth. Her father was Sir Walter Gillespie. He was 
 killed by the Scots when she was but a girl, or methinks he 
 would scarcely have given her in marriage to my brother John. 
 She went with a sister to live with an old aunt, who let the 
 girls have their way without murmur, and seeing that they had 
 no dowry, for their father was but a poor knight, there were 
 not many claimants for their hands ; and when she chose John 
 Forster, and her sister Adam Armstrong, she did not say them 
 nay. She has made a good wife to him, though she must have 
 had many an anxious hour, and doubtless it is her influence 
 that has made the lad what he is." 
 
 " How think you I had best bestow him, among the pages 
 or the esquires? " 
 
 " I should say, Sir Henry, as you are good enough to ask 
 my opinion, that it were best among the esquires. It would 
 
56 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 be like putting a hunting dog among a lady's pets to put him 
 with the pages. Moreover, boys think more of birth than men 
 do ; the latter judge by merit, and when they see that the lad 
 has something in him, would take to him ; whereas were he 
 with the pages there might be quarrels, and he might fall into 
 disgrace." 
 
 " I think that you are right, Alwyn. He might get a buffet 
 or two from the esquires, but he will be none the worse for 
 that ; while with the pages it might be bickering and ill-will. 
 He shall take his chance with the squires. Bring him to me 
 at twelve o'clock and I will myself present him to them with 
 such words as may gain their good-will, and make the way as 
 easy as may be for him." 
 
 Accordingly at twelve o'clock Oswald went to Hotspur's 
 room, and was taken by him to the hall where the esquires, 
 six in number, had just finished a meal. They varied in age 
 from eighteen to forty. They all rose as their lord entered. 
 
 " I wish to present to you this young gentleman, my friends. 
 He is the son of John Forster of Yardhope, whose name is 
 familiar to you all as one of the most valiant of the defenders 
 of the border against the Scottish incursions. None distin- 
 guished themselves more at the battle of Otterburn, where he 
 performed feats of prodigious valour in his endeavours to 
 rescue me and my brother from the hands of the Scots. The 
 earl my father offered him knighthood, but he said bluntly 
 that he preferred remaining, like his father, plain John Forster 
 of Yardhope. The lad's mother is a daughter of Sir Walter 
 Gillespie, and he is nephew of Alwyn, captain of the men-at- 
 arms here. He knows every foot of the border, its morasses, 
 fells, and passes, and will prove a valuable messenger when I 
 have occasion to send orders to the border knights and yeo- 
 men. I have attached him to my household. You will find 
 him intelligent and active. He comes of a fighting stock, and 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 57 
 
 will, I foresee, do no discredit to them in the future. I hesi- 
 tated whether I should place him with the pages or with you, 
 and have decided that, with your good-will, he will be far 
 more comfortable in your society, if you consent to receive 
 him." 
 
 " We will do so willingly on such recommendation," the 
 senior of the esquires said, " as well as for the sake of his 
 brave uncle, whom we all respect and like, and of his valiant 
 father. The addition of young blood to our party will indeed 
 not be unwelcome, and while perchance he may learn some- 
 thing from us he will assuredly be able to tell us much that is 
 new of the doings on the border, of which nothing but vague 
 reports have reached our ears." 
 
 " Thanks, Allonby," Hotspur said. " I expected nothing less 
 from you. He will, of course, practise at arms regularly when 
 not occupied in carrying messages, and you will be surprised 
 to hear that he will go for two hours daily to the monastery, 
 where he has for the last three months been learning reading 
 and writing at the hands of brother Roger, the fighting monk. 
 It is his own desire, and a laudable one, and when I say that 
 he has succeeded in giving brother Roger satisfaction you may 
 well imagine that he must have made great progress." 
 
 A smile ran round the faces of the esquires, for brother 
 Roger's pugnacious instincts were widely known. 
 
 " Truly, Sir Henry, if brother Roger did not lose patience 
 with him, it would be hard indeed if we could not get on with 
 him, and in truth this desire to improve himself speaks well 
 for the lad's disposition." 
 
 When Hotspur left, Allonby said, "Take a seat, Master 
 Oswald. But first, have you dined ? " 
 
 " I took my meal an hour since with my uncle," Oswald 
 replied. 
 
 " Ay, I remember that your uncle sticks to the old hours. 
 
58 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Tell us, were you with your father in that foray he headed to 
 carry off some cattle that had been lifted by the Bairds? We 
 heard a report of it last night." 
 
 " I was not with him, to my great disappointment, for he 
 said that another year must pass before I should be fit to hold 
 my own in a fray. The affair was a somewhat hot one. Three 
 of my father's men were killed, and some ten or twelve of 
 those under other leaders, and my father and several of the 
 band were wounded, some very sorely. It happened thus." 
 And he then told the details of the affair. 
 
 " It might well have been worse," Allonby said, " for, had 
 the Bairds had time to assemble it would have gone hardly 
 with your father's party, especially as there is, as I have heard, 
 a blood feud between him and them." 
 
 " They have scored the last success," Oswald said, " seeing 
 that they accompanied Sir Richard Rutherford in his raid nigh 
 two months ago ; and, as I hear, while the rest came on harry- 
 ing and plundering Coquetdale, the Bairds and their gathering 
 remained at our hold, which they found deserted, for indeed 
 my father could not hope to defend it successfully against so 
 large a force, and there they employed themselves in demol- 
 ishing the outer wall and much of the hold itself, and would 
 have completed their task had it not been for the defeat in- 
 flicted upon the rest of the Scots by Sir Robert Umfraville, 
 when they were forced to hasten back across the border. My 
 father sent me a message afterwards, saying that he and my 
 mother with their followers had been forced to take to the 
 fells, and that on their return they found the place well-nigh 
 destroyed, but that he was going to set to work to rebuild it 
 as before, and that he hoped some time to demolish the Bairds' 
 hold in like fashion. It will be some time before the place is 
 restored, for, my father's means being limited, he and his re- 
 tainers would have to turn masons ; but as the materials were 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 59 
 
 there he doubted not that in time they would make a good 
 job of it." 
 
 " Truly it is a hard life on the border," the squire said, " and 
 it is wonderful that any can be found willing to live within 
 reach of the Scotch raiders. I myself have done a fair share 
 of fighting under our lord's banner, but to pass my life never 
 knowing whether I may not awake to find the house assailed 
 would be worse than the hardest service against an open foe. 
 Now, Master Oswald, we will go down to the court-yard and see 
 what your instructors have done for you in the matter of arms. 
 With whom have you been practising since you came here? " 
 
 "Principally with Godfrey Harpent, Dick Bamborough, and 
 William Anell, but I have had a turn with a great many of the 
 other men-at-arms." 
 
 " The three men you name are all stout fellows and good 
 swordsmen. As a borderer I suppose that you have practised 
 with the lance ? " 
 
 " We call it by no such knightly term. With us it is a spear 
 and nought else, but all borderers carry it both for fighting 
 and for pricking up cattle, and from the time that I could sit 
 a horse I have always practised for a while every day with 
 some of my father's troopers, or with himself, using blunt 
 weapons whitened with chalk so as to show where the hits fell. 
 Although in a charge upon footmen our border spearmen would 
 couch their weapons and ride straight at their foe, in skir- 
 mishes, where each can single out an enemy and there is a series 
 of single combats, they do not so fight, but circle round each 
 other, trusting to the agility of their horses to avoid a thrust 
 and to deliver one when there is an opening. Our spears are 
 nothing like so heavy as the knightly lances, and we thrust 
 with them as with the point of a sword." 
 
 " But in that way you can hardly penetrate armour," one of 
 the other esquires said. 
 
60 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " No, it is only in a downright charge that we try to do so. 
 When we are fighting as I speak of, we thrust at the face, at 
 the arm-pit, the joints of the armour, which in truth seldom 
 fits closely, or below the breastplate. The Scotch use even less 
 armour than do our borderers, their breast-pieces being smaller, 
 and they seldom wear back-pieces. It is a question chiefly of 
 the activity of the horses as of the skill of their riders, and our 
 little moor horses are as active as young goats ; and although 
 neither horse nor rider can stand a charge of a heavily-armed 
 knight or squire, methinks that if one of our troopers brought 
 him to a stand he would get the better of him, save if the 
 knight took to mace or battle-axe." 
 
 " Have you your horse with you, Oswald? " 
 
 " Yes, it is in the stable. I have gone out with it every 
 morning as soon as the castle gates were opened, and have 
 ridden for a couple of hours before I began my exercises." 
 
 " Do you take him in hand first, Marsden, " Allonby said 
 to one of the younger esquires, a young man of two or three 
 and twenty. Light steel caps with cheeks, gorgets, shoulder 
 and arm pieces, and padded leathern jerkins were put on, and 
 then with blunted swords they took their places facing each 
 other. The squire took up a position of easy confidence. He 
 was a good swordsman, and good-naturedly determined to treat 
 the lad easily, and to play with him for a time before scoring 
 his first hit. He soon, however, found that the game was not 
 to be conducted on the lines that he had laid down. Oswald, 
 after waiting for a minute or two, finding his opponent did not 
 take the offensive, did so himself, and for a time Marsden had 
 all his work to do to defend himself. Several times, indeed, it 
 was with the greatest difficulty that he guarded his head ; the 
 activity of his assailant almost bewildered him, as he continually 
 shifted his position, and with cat-like springs leapt in and dealt 
 a blow, leaping back again before his opponent's arm had time 
 to fall. 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 61 
 
 Finding at last that, quick as he might be, Marsden's blade 
 always met his own, Oswald relaxed his efforts, as he was grow- 
 ing fatigued, and as he did so Marsden took the offensive, 
 pressing him backwards foot by foot. Every time, however, 
 that he found himself approaching a barrier or othei» obstacle 
 that would prevent his further retreat, Oswald with a couple 
 of springs managed to shift his ground. When he saw that 
 Marsden was growing breathless from his exertions, he again 
 took the offensive, and at last landed a blow fairly on his op- 
 ponent's helm. 
 
 "By my faith," the squire said, with a laugh that had never- 
 theless a little mortification in it, " I would as soon fight with 
 a wild-cat, and yet your breath scarce comes fast, while I have 
 not as much left in me as would fill an egg-shell." 
 
 " It was an excellent display," Allonby said. " Truly, lad, 
 your activity is wonderful, and you might well puzzle the 
 oldest swordsman by such tactics. Marsden did exceedingly 
 well too. Many times I thought that your sword would have 
 gone home, but up to the last his guard was always ready in 
 time. As for yourself, we had scarce the opportunity of seeing 
 how your sword would guard your head, for you trusted always 
 to your legs rather than your arms. Well, lad, you will do. 
 Your arm is like iron, or it would have tired long before with 
 that sword, which is a little over-heavy for you. 
 
 " As to your wind, you would tire out the stoutest swords- 
 man in the Percys' train. I do not say that in the press 
 of a battle, where your activity would count for little, a good 
 man-at-arms would not get the better of you, but in a single 
 combat with plenty of room it would be a good man indeed 
 who would tackle you, especially were he clad in armour and 
 you fighting without it. His only chance would be to get in 
 one downright blow that would break down your guard. As 
 Marsden says, you fight like a wild-cat rather than as a man-at- 
 
62 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 arms, but as the time may come when you will ride in heavy 
 armour, and so lose the advantage of your agility, you had 
 best continue to practise regularly with us and the men-at- 
 arms, and learn to fight in the fashion that would be needed 
 were you engaged in a pitched battle when on horseback and 
 in armour." 
 
 " I shall be glad indeed to do so," Oswald said modestly. 
 " I know that I am very ignorant of real swordsmanship, and 
 the men-at-arms have me quite at their mercy when they insist 
 upon my not shifting my ground. At home I have only 
 practised with my father's troopers, and we always fight on 
 foot and with stout sticks instead of swords, and without 
 defences save our head-pieces, but fighting in knightly fashion 
 I knew nothing of until I came here." 
 
 " You will soon acquire that, lad ; with your strength of arm, 
 length of wind, quickness of eye, and activity, you will make a 
 famous swordsman in time. Ah ! here is Sir Henry." 
 
 "Have you been trying the lad's mettle? " Hotspur asked, as 
 he saw Oswald in the act of taking off his steel cap. Marsden 
 had already done so. 
 
 " That have we, Sir Henry, and find it as of proof. Mars- 
 den here, who is no mean blade, has taken him in hand, and 
 the lad has more than held his own against him, not so much 
 by swordsmanship as by activity and wind. It was a curious 
 contest. Marsden compared Oswald to a wild-cat, and the 
 comparison was not an ill one, for indeed his springs and leaps 
 were so rapid and sudden that it was difficult to follow him, 
 and the fight was like one between such an animal and a 
 hound. Marsden defended himself well against all his at- 
 tacks until his breath failed him, and he was dealt a down- 
 right blow on his helm, on which I see it has made a shrewd 
 dint. As for his blows, they fell upon air, for the lad was 
 ever out of reach before the ripostes came. In his own style 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 63 
 
 of fighting I would wager on him against any man-at-arms in 
 the castle." 
 
 " I am glad to hear it," Hotspur said. " I shall feel the less 
 scruple in sending him on missions which are not without 
 danger. He will need training to fit him for combat in the 
 ranks. No doubt he has had no opportunity for such teaching, 
 and would go down before a heavy-armed man with a lance 
 like a blade of grass before a millstone." 
 
 " He thinks not, Sir Henry, at least not in a single combat, 
 for by his accounts his horse is as nimble as himself; but of 
 course in charges he and his horse would be rolled over, as 
 you say." 
 
 " He thinks not ? Oh, well, we will try him ! I have an 
 hour to spare. Do you put on a suit of full armour, Sinclair, 
 and we will ride out to the course beyond the castle. What 
 will you put on, lad?" 
 
 " I will put on only breast-piece and steel cap ; but I only 
 said I should have a chance against a lance, Sir Henry. I do 
 not pretend that I could stand against any man-at-arms armed 
 with sword and mace, but only that I thought that with my 
 horse I could evade the shock of a fully-accoutred man, and 
 then harass and maybe wound him with my spear." 
 
 " Well, we will try, lad. Put on what you will and get your 
 horse saddled. It will be rare amusement to see so unequal 
 a course. We shall be ready in a quarter of an hour." 
 
 Oswald went up to his uncle and told him what was pro- 
 posed. Alwyn, who had witnessed his exercises with the 
 rough-riders of his father, smiled grimly. " If you can evade 
 his first charge, which I doubt not that you can, you will have 
 him at your mercy with your light spear against his lance, and 
 your moor horse against his charger ; but put on the heaviest 
 of your two steel caps, and strong shoulder-pieces, 't is like 
 enough that in his temper he may throw away his lance and 
 
G4 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 betake him to his sword. I will demand that he carries 
 neither mace nor battle-axe, and that you should only carry 
 sword and spear. Your horse's nimbleness may keep you out 
 of harm, which is as much as you can expect or hope for. 
 Put on a light breast-plate too, for in spite of the wooden 
 shield to his lance-head, he may hurt you sorely if he does 
 chance to strike you." 
 
 Oswald saw that his horse was carefully saddled. He pro- 
 cured from his uncle a piece of cloth, and, removing the spear- 
 head, wrapped this round the head of the shaft until it formed 
 a ball the size of his fist. This he whitened thickly with 
 chalk. In a few minutes Sinclair, who was the heaviest and 
 strongest of the esquires, rode out into the court-yard in full 
 armour. Sir Henry, with his own esquires and several of the 
 gentlemen of the earl's household, came down, and Hotspur 
 laughed at the contrast presented by the two combatants — 
 the one a mass of steel, with shield and lance, on a war-horse 
 fully caparisoned, the other a slight, active-looking figure, with 
 but little defensive armour, on a rough pony which had 
 scarce an ounce of superfluous flesh. 
 
 " Now, gentlemen," he said, " we may be engaged in war- 
 fare with the Scots before long, and you will here have an 
 opportunity of seeing the nature of border fighting. The 
 combat may seem to you ridiculously unequal, but I know the 
 moss-trooper, and I can tell you that in a single combat like 
 this, activity goes far to counterbalance weight and armour. 
 You remember how Robert Bruce, before Bannockburn, 
 mounted on but a pony, struck down Sir Robert Bohun, a 
 good knight and a powerful one." 
 
 As the party went out through the gates to the tilting-ground 
 outside the walls, the men-at-arms, seeing that something 
 unusual was going to take place, crowded up to the battle- 
 ments looking down on the ground. 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 65 
 
 "Now, gentlemen," Percy said, "you will take your places 
 at opposite ends of the field, and when I drop my scarf you 
 will charge. It is understood that you need not necessarily 
 ride straight at each other, but that it is free to each of you 
 to do the best he can to overthrow his opponent." 
 
 As he gave the signal the two riders dashed at full speed 
 at each other, and for a moment the spectators thought that 
 Oswald was going to be mad enough to meet his opponent in 
 full course. When, however, the horses were within a length 
 of each other the rough pony swerved aside with a spring like 
 that of a deer, and wheeling round instantly, Oswald followed 
 his opponent. The latter tried to wheel his charger, but as 
 he did so, Oswald's spear struck him in the vizor, leaving a 
 white mark on each side of the slit, and then he too wheeled 
 his horse, maintaining his position on the left hand, but some- 
 what in rear of his opponent, who was thereby wholly unable 
 to use his lance, while Oswald marked the junction of gorget 
 and helmet with several white circles. Furious at finding 
 himself incapable of either defending himself or of striking a 
 blow, the squire threw away his lance and drew his sword. 
 
 Hotspur shouted at the top of his voice, " A breach of the 
 rules ! a breach of the rules ! the combat is at an end." But 
 his words were unheard in the helmet. Making his horse 
 wheel round on his hind-legs, Sinclair rode at Oswald with 
 uplifted sword. The latter again couched his spear under his 
 arm, and touching his horse with his spur, the animal sprung 
 forward, and before the sword could fall, the point of the 
 spear caught the squire under the arm-pit and hurled him 
 sideways from his saddle. Hotspur and those round him ran 
 forward. Sinclair lay without moving, stunned by the force 
 with which he had fallen. Oswald had already leapt from his 
 horse and raised Sinclair's head and began to unlace the fast- 
 enings of his helmet. Hotspur's face was flushed with anger. 
 
66 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 "Do not upbraid him, my lord, I pray you," Oswald said. 
 " He could scarce have avoided breaking the conditions, help- 
 less as he felt himself; and he could not have heard your 
 voice, which would be lost in his helmet. I pray you be not 
 angered with him." 
 
 Hotspur's face cleared. " At your request I will not, lad," 
 he said ; " and, indeed, he has been punished sufficiently." 
 
 By the time that the helmet was removed, one of the soldiers 
 from the battlements ran out from the castle with a ewer of 
 water ; this was dashed into the squire's face. He presently 
 opened his eyes. A heavy fall was thought but little of in 
 those days, and as Sinclair was raised to his feet and looked 
 round in bewilderment at those who were standing round him, 
 Hotspur said good-temperedly, "Well, Master Sinclair, the 
 lad has given us all a lesson that may be useful to us. I would 
 scarce have believed it if I had not seen it, that a stout soldier 
 in full armour should have been worsted by a lad on a rough 
 pony, but I see now that the advantage is all on the latter' s 
 side in a combat like this, with plenty of room to wheel his 
 horse. 
 
 "Why, he would have slain you a dozen times, Sinclair. 
 Look at your vizor. That white mark is equal on both sides 
 of the slit, and had there been a spear-head on the shaft, it 
 would have pierced you to the brain ; every joint of your 
 armour behind is whitened, and that thrust that brought you 
 from your horse would have spitted you through and through. 
 Now, let there be no ill-feeling over this. It is an experiment, 
 and a useful one ; and had I myself been in your place I do 
 not know that I could have done aught more than you did." 
 
 Sinclair was hot-tempered, but of a generous disposition, 
 and he held out his hand to Oswald frankly. 
 
 " It was a fair fight," he said, " and you worsted me alto- 
 gether. No one bears malice for a fair fall in a joust." 
 
AN UNEQUAL JOUST 67 
 
 " The conditions were not at all even," Oswald said ; " on a 
 pony like mine, unless you had caught me in full career, it was 
 impossible that the matter could have turned out otherwise." 
 
 " I often wondered," Hotspur said, as they walked towards 
 the gate, " that our chivalry should have been so often worsted 
 by the rough Scottish troopers, but now I understand it. The 
 Scotch always choose broken ground, and always scatter before 
 we get near them, and, circling round, fall upon our chivalry 
 when their weight and array are of no use to them. Happily, 
 such a misadventure has never happened to myself, but it 
 might well do so. The Scotch, too, have no regard for the 
 laws of chivalry, and once behind will spear the horse, as in- 
 deed happened to me at Otterburn. 'T is a lesson in war one 
 may well take to heart ; and when I next fight the Scots, I will 
 order that on no account whatever are the mounted men to 
 break their ranks, but whatever happens are to move in a solid 
 body, in which case they could defy any attacks upon them by 
 light-armed horse, however numerous." 
 
 At the gate of the castle Alwyn Forster met them. " You 
 have given me a more useful addition to my following than 
 I dreamt of, Alwyn," Hotspur said. " Did you see the 
 conflict?" 
 
 " I watched it from the wall, Sir Henry. I felt sure how 
 the matter would end. The lad is quick and sharp at border 
 exercises. I have seen him work with his father's troopers. 
 There were not many of them who could hold their own against 
 him, and in fighting in their own way I would back the moss- 
 troopers against the best horsemen in Europe. They are 
 always accustomed to fight each man for himself, and though 
 a score of men-at-arms would ride through a hundred of them 
 if they met the charge, in single combat their activity and the 
 nimbleness of their horses would render them more than a 
 match for a fully-caparisoned knight." 
 
68 BOTH SIDES THE EORDER 
 
 " So it seems," Hotspur said ; " and yet if Sinclair had but 
 known that the lad was about to swerve in his course, which 
 indeed he ought to have known — for it would have been 
 madness to meet his charge — he too should have changed 
 his course to his left when a couple of lengths away, for he 
 might be sure that the lad would turn that way so as to get 
 on his left hand, and in that case he would have ridden over 
 him like a thunderbolt." 
 
 " Yes, Sir Henry, but Oswald would have had his eye on 
 knee and bridle, and the moment the horse changed his direc- 
 tion he would have been round the other way like an arrow 
 from a bow, and would have planted himself, as he did, in the 
 squire's rear." 
 
 " Perhaps so," Hotspur said thoughtfully. " At any rate, 
 Alwyn, the boy has given us all a lesson, and you have done 
 me good service by presenting him to me." 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 A MISSION 
 
 FOR the next three or four months Oswald was but little at 
 the castle, Percy utilising his services in the manner 
 most agreeable to him by sending him on errands to various 
 knights and gentlemen in different parts of Northumberland, 
 and to the fortified places held by the English across the 
 border. A fortnight after his contest with Sinclair, Sir Henry 
 formally appointed him one of his esquires. 
 
 "You are young," he said, "for such a post; but as you 
 have shown that you are well able to take care of yourself in 
 arms, and as I perceive you to be shrewd and worthy of con- 
 fidence, your age matters but little. As my messenger, you 
 
A MISSION 69 
 
 will be more useful travelling as one of my esquires, than as 
 one without settled rank, and I can not only send written com- 
 munications by you, but can charge you to speak fully in my 
 name and with my authority." 
 
 Oswald was not slow in finding out the advantages that the 
 position gave him. On the first errands on which he had 
 been sent he had been treated as but an ordinary messenger, 
 had been placed at dinner below the salt, and herded with the 
 men-at-arms. As an esquire of Lord Percy he was treated 
 with all courtesy, was introduced to the ladies of the family, 
 sat at the high table, and was regarded as being in the confi- 
 dence of his lord. His youth excited some little surprise, but 
 acted in his favour, because it was evident that Percy would 
 not have nominated him as one of his esquires had he not 
 shown particular merit. In his journeys he often passed near 
 Yardhope, where the rebuilding of the wall and keep was be- 
 ing pushed on with much vigour, the inhabitants of the villages 
 in the valley lending their assistance to restore the fortalice, 
 which they regarded as a place of refuge in case of sudden 
 invasion by the Scots. His parents were both greatly pleased 
 at his promotion, especially his mother, who had always been 
 anxious that he should not settle down to the adventurous 
 and dangerous life led by his father. 
 
 " By our Lady," John Forster said, " though it be but six 
 months since you first left us you have changed rarely. I speak 
 not of your fine garments, but you have grown and widened 
 out, and are fast springing from a boy into a man ; and it is no 
 small thing that Percy should have thought so well of you as 
 to make you one of his esquires already." 
 
 " It was from no merit of mine, father, but because he 
 thought that, as his messenger, I should be able to speak in 
 his name with more authority than had I been merely the 
 bearer of a letter from him." 
 
70 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " 'T is not only that," his father replied. " I received a letter 
 but two days since from my brother Alwyn, written by the hand 
 of a monk of his acquaintance, telling me that Lord Percy was 
 mightily pleased with you, not only because you had set your- 
 self to read and write, but from the way in which you had 
 defeated one of his esquires in a bout at arms. Alwyn said 
 that he doubted not that you would win knightly spurs as soon 
 as you came to full manhood. So it is clear that merit had 
 something to do with your advancement, though this may be 
 also due to some extent to the cause you assign for it. The 
 monk who wrote the letter added on his own account that he 
 had been your preceptor, and that, though he had often rated 
 you soundly, you had made wonderful progress." 
 
 "The monk is a good teacher," Oswald laughed; "but he 
 would have made a better man-at-arms than he will ever make 
 a monk. I believe it pleased him more that I worsted Sinclair 
 — which indeed was a small thing to do, seeing that he had no 
 idea of fighting save of charging straight at a foe — than at the 
 progress I made at my books. He commands the contingent 
 that the monastery sends when Percy takes the field to repel 
 an invasion, and, could he have his own will, would gladly 
 exchange a monk's robes for the harness of a man-at-arms. 
 I would wish for no stouter companion in the fray." 
 
 The speed with which he had performed his journeys, and 
 the intelligence which he showed in carrying out his missions 
 and reporting on their issue, earned for the lad an increasing 
 amount of liking and confidence on the part of his lord. It 
 was not only that he delivered the replies to Hotspur's messages 
 accurately, but his remarks upon the personal manner and 
 bearing of those to whom he was sent were of still greater 
 value to Percy. Naturally all had promised to have their con- 
 tingent of fighting men ready in case of serious invasion by 
 the Scots ; but Oswald was able to gather from their manner 
 
A MISSION 71 
 
 whether the promises would surely be fulfilled, or whether, in 
 case of trouble, the knights were more likely to keep their array 
 for the defence of their own castles than to join Percy in any 
 general movement. 
 
 One day, when Oswald had been engaged six months at this 
 work, which had taken him several times into Cumberland and 
 Westmoreland as well as the north, Lord Percy summoned him 
 to his private apartment. 
 
 " Hitherto you have done well, Oswald, and I feel now that 
 I can trust you with a mission of far higher importance than 
 those you have hitherto performed. 'T is not without its 
 dangers, but I know that you will like it none the less for that 
 reason. You are young indeed for business of such importance, 
 but it seems to me that of those around me you would be best 
 fitted to carry it out. Your manner of speech has changed 
 much since you came here, but doubtless you can fall at will 
 into the border dialect, which differs little from that on the 
 other side, and you can pass well enough as coming from Jed- 
 burgh or any other place across the border. 
 
 " All the world knows, lad, that George, Earl of March and 
 Dunbar, was mightily offended at Rothesay breaking off the 
 match with his daughter and marrying the child of his rival 
 Douglas ; but now I am going to tell you what the world does 
 not know, and which is a secret that would cost many a life 
 were it to be blabbed abroad, and which I should not tell you 
 had I not a perfect confidence in your discretion. The anger 
 of March — as he is mostly called on this side of the border, 
 while in Scotland they more often call him Earl of Dunbar — 
 goes beyond mere displeasure with the Douglas and sullen 
 resentment against Rothesay. He has sent a confidential mes- 
 senger to me intimating that he is ready to acknowledge our 
 king as his sovereign, and place himself and his forces at his 
 disposal. I see you are surprised, as is indeed but natural ; 
 
72 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 but the Marches have ever been rather for England than for 
 Scotland, although they have never gone so far as to throw off 
 their allegiance to the Scottish throne. It is not for us to 
 consider whether March is acting treacherously to James of 
 Scotland, but whether he is acting in good faith towards us. 
 
 " It was easy for him to send a messenger to me, since Scot- 
 land trades with England, and a ship bound for London might 
 well touch at one of our ports on the way down, but the 
 presence of an Englishman at Dunbar would not be so readily 
 explained. His messenger especially enjoined on me not to 
 send any communication in writing, even by the most trust- 
 worthy hand, since an accident might precipitate matters and 
 drive him to take up arms before we were in a position to give 
 him aid. Therefore, in the first place, I wish you to journey to 
 Dunbar to see the earl and deliver to him the message I shall 
 give you, and endeavour to inform yourself how far he is to be 
 trusted. Say what he will, I can scarce bring myself to believe 
 that he will really throw off his allegiance to Scotland save in 
 the event of a great English army marching north, when doubt- 
 less he would do what most Scotch nobles have always done, 
 namely, hasten to give in his submission and make the best 
 terms he can for himself. 
 
 " 'T is a business which I like not, although it is my duty to 
 accept a proposal that, if made in good faith, would be of vast 
 value to the king. You must, after seeing the earl, return here 
 with all speed, to bear me any message March may give you, and 
 to report your impressions as to his sincerity and good faith. 
 'T is a month since I received his message. Since then I have 
 communicated with the king, and have received his authority 
 to arrange terms with March, to guarantee him in the posses- 
 sion of his lordships, to hand over to him certain tracts of the 
 Douglas country which he bargained for, and to assure him of 
 pur support. But he must be told that the king urges him to 
 
A MISSION 73 
 
 delay at present from taking any open steps, as, in the first 
 place, he is bound by the truce just arranged for the next two 
 years ; and in the second, because, having no just cause of 
 quarrel with Scotland, and being at present but newly seated 
 on the throne, be would have difficulty in raising an army for 
 the invasion of that country. 
 
 "The king is ready to engage himself not to renew the 
 truce, and to collect an army in readiness to act in concert 
 with him as soon as it is terminated. The earl has sent by his 
 messenger a ring, which, on being presented at Dunbar, will 
 gain for the person who carries it immediate access to him, 
 and I shall also give you my signet in token that you are come 
 from me. You will carry also a slip of paper that can be 
 easily concealed, saying that you have my full authority to 
 speak in my name. You yourself can explain to him that I 
 have selected you for the mission because of your knowledge 
 of border speech, and because a youth of your age can pass 
 unobserved where a man might excite attention and remark, 
 and possibly be detained until he could render a satisfactory 
 account of himself. 
 
 " Here are the conditions set down upon paper, take it and 
 commit them to heart, and then tear the paper into shreds 
 and burn them. As far as Roxburgh you can of course ride as 
 my squire, but beyond you must travel in disguise. This you 
 had better procure here and take with you, for although the 
 Governor of Roxburgh is a trusty knight, it were best that no 
 soul should know that you go on a mission to March, and I 
 shall simply give you a letter to him stating that you are 
 engaged in a venture in my service, and that your horse and 
 armour are to be kept for you until your return." 
 
 Thanking Lord Percy for the honour done him in selecting 
 him for the mission, and promising him to carry it out to the 
 best of his power, Oswald retired, and, making his way up to 
 
74 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 an inner room, set about learning the contents of the papei 
 given him, which was indeed a copy of the royal letter to 
 Percy. When he had thoroughly mastered all the details and 
 could repeat every word, he followed Sir Henry's instructions, 
 tore the letter up, and carefully burned every fragment. Then 
 he went out into the town and bought garments suited for 
 travelling unnoticed in Scotland, the dress being almost iden- 
 tical on both sides of the border, save for the lowland Scotch 
 bonnet. On his return he found that Lord Percy had sent for 
 him during his absence, and he at once went to his apartments. 
 
 " I have been thinking over this matter further," Sir Henry 
 said. " The abbot came in just as you left me, and among 
 other things he mentioned that friar Roger had again fallen 
 into disgrace, having gone so far as to strike the sub-prior on 
 the cheek, almost breaking the jaw of that worthy man, and that 
 finding discipline and punishment of no avail with him he was 
 about to expel him in disgrace from the community. He said 
 that he had only retained him so long on account of my good- 
 will for the fellow, and from the fact that he would, as I had 
 often urged, be most valuable as leader of the abbot's forces 
 in case of troubles with the Scots, but that his last offence has 
 passed all bearing. For the time I could say nothing, for 
 discipline must be maintained in a monastery as well as in the 
 castle ; but after the abbot had left me, and I was walking 
 up and down in vexation over the affair — for I like the rascal 
 in spite of his ways, and there is no one else who could so well 
 lead the contingent of the monastery — a thought occurred to 
 me. I like not your going altogether alone, for the times are 
 lawless, and you might meet trouble on the road, and yet I 
 did not see whom I could send with you. Now it seems to 
 me that this stout knave would make an excellent companion 
 for you. 
 
 " In the first place, you like him, and he likes you ; secondly, 
 
A MISSION 75 
 
 a monk travelling north on a mission, say from the abbot to 
 the prior of a monastery near Dunbar, could pass anywhere 
 unheeded ; and in the third place, although as a peaceful man 
 he could carry no military arms, he might yet take with him 
 a staff, with which I warrant me he would be a match for two 
 or three ordinary men ; and lastly, I may be able to convince 
 the abbot that he can thus get rid of him from the monastery 
 for some time and avoid the scandals he occasions, and yet 
 hold him available on his return for military sendee. What 
 say you, lad?" 
 
 " I should like it much, Sir Henry, I could wish for no 
 stouter companion ; and although he may be quarrelsome with 
 his fellows, it is, methinks, solely because the discipline of the 
 monastery frets him, and he longs for a more active life ; but 
 I believe that he could be fully trusted to behave himself dis- 
 creetly were he engaged in outdoor work, and there can be 
 no doubt that he is a stout man-at-arms in all ways." 
 
 " I should not trust him in any way with the object of your 
 mission. If I obtain the abbot's consent I shall simply send 
 for him, rate him soundly for his conduct, but telling him I 
 make all allowances for his natural unfitness for his vocation, 
 and that I have, as a matter of grace, obtained from the abbot 
 permission to use his services for a while, and to suspend his 
 sentence upon him until it be seen how he comports himself, 
 and with that view I am about to send him as your companion 
 on a commission with which I have intrusted you, to the town 
 of Dunbar. I shall hint that if he behaves to my satisfaction 
 I may persuade the abbot to allow him to remain in my ser- 
 vice until the time comes when he may be useful to the con- 
 vent for military work, he still undertaking to drill the lay 
 brothers and keep the abbot's contingent in good order; and 
 that when the troubles are at an end I will obtain for him full 
 absolution from his vows, so that he may leave the monastery 
 
76 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 without the disgrace of being expelled, and may then take ser* 
 vice with me or with another as a man-at-arms. I wish you to 
 be frank with me ; if you would rather go alone, matters shall 
 remain as they are." 
 
 " I would much rather that he went with me, my lord. 
 From the many conversations that I have had with him I am 
 sure that he is shrewd and clever, and that once beyond the 
 walls of the monastery and free to use his weapon, he would 
 be full of resource. There is doubtless much lawlessness on 
 both sides of the border, and although I should seem but little 
 worth robbing, two travel more pleasantly than one ; and the 
 monk has taken such pains with me, and has been so kind, 
 that there is no one with whom I would travel with greater 
 pleasure." 
 
 " Then I will go across to the monastery at once and see the 
 abbot, and I doubt not that he will grant my request, for, much 
 and often as brother Roger has given him cause for anger, I 
 know that he has a sort of kindness for him, and will gladly 
 avoid the necessity for punishing and disgracing him. If all is 
 arranged, the monk shall come over here and see you." 
 
 An hour later brother Roger came in to the captain's 
 quarters. 
 
 " So you have been in trouble again, brother Roger," Alwyn 
 Forster said with a laugh, as he held out his hand to him. 
 
 " That have I, and an hour ago I was lying in a prison cell 
 cursing my hot temper, and with, as it seemed, the certainty 
 of being publicly unfrocked and turned out like a mangy dog 
 from a pack. It was not, mind you, that the thought of being 
 unfrocked was altogether disagreeable, for I own that I am 
 grievously ill-fitted for my vocation, and that fasts and vigils 
 are altogether hateful to me ; but it would not be a pleasant 
 thing to go out into the world as one who had been kicked 
 out, and though I might get employment as a man-at-arms, I 
 
A MISSION 77 
 
 could never hope for any promotion, however well I might be- 
 have. However, half an hour ago the cell door was opened 
 and I was taken before the abbot, whom I found closeted with 
 Hotspur. 
 
 "The latter rated me soundly, but said that, for the sake 
 of Otterburn, he had spoken for me to the abbot, and that 
 as he would for the present be able to make use of me in work 
 that would be more to my liking, the abbot had consented to 
 reconsider his decision and would lend me to him for a time, 
 in hopes that my good conduct would in the end induce him 
 to overlook my offences, and that in that case he might even 
 be induced to take steps of a less painful description than 
 public disgrace for freeing me of my gown. I naturally re- 
 plied that I was grateful for his lordship's intercession, and 
 that outside monkish offices there was nothing I would not 
 do to merit his kindness. He told me that I was to report 
 myself to your nephew, who would inform me of the nature 
 of the service upon which I was at first to be employed." 
 
 " It is to undertake a journey with me," Oswald said. " I 
 am going on a mission for our lord, to Dunbar. The object of 
 my mission is one that concerns me only, but it is one of some 
 importance, and as the roads are lonely since March and 
 Douglas quarrelled, and order is but badly kept on the other 
 side of the border, he thought that I should be all the better 
 for a companion. Assuredly I could wish for none better than 
 yourself, for in the first place you have proved a true friend to 
 me ; in the second, you have so much knowledge that we shall 
 not lack subjects for conversation upon the journey ; and lastly, 
 should I get into any trouble I could reckon upon you as a 
 match for two or three border robbers." 
 
 " Nothing could be more to my taste," the monk said joy- 
 fully. " I did not /eel quite sure before whether I was glad or 
 sorry that my expulsion was put off, for I always thought that 
 
78 DOTH SIDES THE EORDER 
 
 it would come to that some day ; but now that I learn for what 
 service Hotspur intends me I feel as if I could shout for joy. 
 Get me a flagon of beer, good Alwyn. I have drunk but 
 water for the last twenty-four hours, and was in too great 
 haste to learn what was before me even to pay a visit to 
 brother Anselm, the cellarer, who is a stanch friend of mine. 
 And do I go as a man-at-arms, Master Oswald? for, as your 
 mission is clearly of a private character, disguise may be 
 needful." 
 
 " No, Roger, you will go in your own capacity as a monk, 
 journeying on a mission from the abbot to the head of some 
 religious community near Dunbar. I doubt not that Lord 
 Percy will obtain a letter from the abbot, and though it may 
 be that there will be no need to deliver it, still it may help us 
 on the way. As you are going with me, I shall attire myself 
 as a young lay servitor of the convent." 
 
 " I would that it had been otherwise," the monk said with 
 a sigh. " I should have travelled far more lightly in the 
 heaviest mail harness than in this monk's robe. Besides, how 
 can I carry arms for use in case of necessity? " 
 
 " You can carry a staff," Oswald said, laughing ; " and being 
 so big a man you will assuredly require a long and heavy one, 
 and even if it is heavily shod with iron no one need object." 
 
 "That is not so bad, Master Oswald. A seven-foot staff of 
 the thickness of my wrist, with an iron shoe weighing a pound 
 or two is a carnal weapon not to be despised. As you doubt- 
 less know, our bishops when they ride in the field always carry 
 a mace instead of a sword, so that they may not shed blood, 
 though I say not that the cracking of a man's skull is to be 
 accomplished without some loss thereof. However, if a bishop 
 may lawfully crack a man's head as an egg-shell, I see not that 
 blame can attach to me, a humble and most unworthy son of 
 the Church, if some slight harm should come to any man from 
 
A MISSION 79 
 
 the use of so peaceful an instrument as a staff. And how 
 about yourself, young master?" 
 
 "I can carry a sword," Oswald replied. "In times like 
 these no man travels unarmed, and as I go as a servitor, and 
 an assistant to your reverence, there will be nothing unseemly 
 in my carrying a weapon to defend you from the attack of 
 foes." 
 
 " You can surely take a dagger too ; a dagger is a meet com- 
 panion to a sword, and is sometimes mighty useful in a close 
 fight. And mark me, take a smaller dagger also, that can be 
 concealed under your coat. I myself will assuredly do the 
 same. There are many instances in which a trifle of that kind 
 might come in useful, such as for shooting the lock of a door 
 or working out iron bars." 
 
 " I will do so," Oswald said, "though I hope there will be 
 no occasion such as you say for its use." 
 
 "When do we start, Master Oswald?" 
 
 " To-morrow at daybreak. We shall ride as far as Rox- 
 burgh. I shall go on my own horse, which, though as good 
 an animal as was ever saddled, has but a poor appearance. 
 You had best purchase a palfrey, as fat and sleek as may be 
 found, but with strength enough to carry your weight. I shall 
 be amply provided with money, and if you find a bargain let 
 me know and I will give you the means. Mind, buy nothing 
 that looks like a war-horse, but something in keeping with 
 your appearance." 
 
 That evening Oswald had another interview with Percy, and 
 received his final instructions and a bag of money. 
 
 "Be careful with it, lad," he said ; "not so much because of 
 the use that it may be to you, but because, were you seized 
 and searched by robbers and others, the sight of the gold 
 might awake suspicions that you were not what you seemed, 
 and might lead to a long detention. Keep your eye on brother 
 
80 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Roger, and see that he does not indulge too much in the wine- 
 cups, and that he comports himself rather in keeping with his 
 attire than with his natural disposition, and if you have any 
 difficulty in restraining him, or if he does not obey your orders, 
 send him back at once. Will you see him again this evening? " 
 
 " He is waiting for me in my apartment now, my lord, 
 having come for the money for the purchase of a palfrey 
 which I bade him get." 
 
 " Send him to me when you get there." 
 
 When the monk appeared before Hotspur the latter said, 
 "See here, monk, I have saved you from punishment, and 
 become as it were your surety. See that you do not discredit 
 me. You will remember that although my young esquire may 
 ask your advice, and benefit by your experience, he is your 
 leader, and his orders, when he gives them, are to be obeyed 
 as promptly as if it were I myself who spoke to one of my 
 men-at-arms. He is my representative in the matter, and is 
 obeying my orders as you will obey his. The mission is one 
 of importance, and if it fails from any fault of yours, you had 
 better drown yourself in the first river you come to than return 
 to Northumberland." 
 
 " I think that you can trust me, my lord," the monk said 
 calmly. " I am a very poor monk, but methinks that I am 
 not a bad soldier, and although I go in the dress of the one I 
 shall really go as the other. I know that my duty as a soldier 
 will be to obey. Even as regards my potations, which I own 
 are sometimes deeper than they should be, methinks that as 
 a soldier I shall be much less thirsty than I was as a monk. If 
 the enterprise should fail from any default of mine, your lord- 
 ship may be sure that I shall bear your advice in mind." 
 
 " I doubt not that you will do well, Roger. I should not 
 have sent you with my esquire on such a business had I not 
 believed that you would prove yourself worthy of my confi- 
 
A MISSION 81 
 
 dence. I know that a man may be a good soldier, and even a 
 wise counsellor, though he may be a very bad monk." 
 
 The next morning the pair rode out from the castle at day- 
 break. Roger was dressed in the usual monkish attire of the 
 time, a long loose gown with a cape, and a head-covering 
 resembling a small turban. He rode a compactly-built little 
 horse, which seemed scarce capable of carrying his weight, but 
 ambled along with him as if it scarcely felt it. Oswald was 
 dressed as a lay servitor in tightly-fitting high hose, short 
 jerkin girt in by a band at the waist, and going half-way down 
 to the knee. He rode his own moorland horse, and carried 
 on his arm a basket with provisions for a day's march. He 
 wore a small cloth cap, which fell down to his neck behind. 
 His uncle accompanied him to the gate, which was by his 
 orders opened to give them egress. 
 
 " Good-bye, lad," he said. " I know not, and do not wish 
 to know, the object of your journey. It is enough for me that 
 it is a confidential mission for Hotspur, and I am proud that 
 you should have been chosen for it, and I feel convinced that 
 you will prove you have merited our lord's confidence. Good- 
 bye, friend Roger ! Don't let your love of fisticuffs and hard 
 knocks carry you away, but try and bear yourself as if you 
 were still in the monastery, with the abbot keeping his eye 
 upon you." 
 
 Brother Roger laughed. " You make a cold shiver run 
 down my back, Alwyn. I was feeling as if I had just got out 
 of a cold cellar into the sunshine, and could shout with very 
 lightness of heart. I am not in the least disposed to quarrel 
 with anyone, so let your mind be easy as to my doings. I 
 shall be discretion itself; and even if I am called upon to 
 strike, will do so as gently as may be, putting only such 
 strength into the blow as will prevent an opponent from 
 troubling us further." 
 
 6 
 
82 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 So with a wave of the hand they rode on. . 
 
 " I had better strap that staff beside your saddle and under 
 your knee," Oswald said, when they had ridden a short distance. 
 " You carry it as if it were a spear, and I have seen already 
 three or four people smile as we passed them." 
 
 Roger reluctantly allowed Oswald to fasten the staff beside 
 him. 
 
 "One wants something in one's hands," he said. "On foot 
 it does not matter so much, but now I am on horseback again 
 I feel that I ought to have a spear in hand and a sword 
 dangling at my side." 
 
 " You must remember that you are still a monk, Roger, 
 although enlarged for a season. Some day perhaps you will 
 be able to gratify your desires in that way. You had best 
 moderate the speed of your horse, for although he ambles 
 along merrily at present, he can never carry that great carcase 
 of yours at this pace through our journey." 
 
 "I should like one good gallop," Roger sighed as he pulled 
 at the rein, and the horse proceeded at a pace better suited to 
 the appearance of its rider. 
 
 " A nice figure you would look with your robes streaming 
 behind you," Oswald laughed. " There would soon be a story 
 going through the country of a mad monk. Now we take this 
 turning to the right, and here leave the main north road, for 
 we are bound in the first place to Roxburgh." 
 
 " I thought that it must be that or Berwick, though I asked 
 no questions." 
 
 " We shall not travel like this beyond Roxburgh, but shall 
 journey forward on foot." 
 
 " I supposed that we should come to that, Master Oswald, 
 for otherwise you would not have told me to provide myself 
 with a staff." 
 
 They journeyed pleasantly along. Whenever they approached 
 
THEY JOURNEYED PLEASANTLY ALONl 
 
A MISSION 83 
 
 any town or large village Oswald reined back his horse a little, 
 so that its head was on a level with Roger's stirrup. They 
 slept that night at Kirknewton, where they put up at a small 
 hostelry. Oswald had intended going to the monastery there, 
 but Roger begged so earnestly that they should put up else- 
 where that he yielded to him. 
 
 " I should have no end of questions asked as to our journey 
 across the border and its object," Roger said ; " and it always 
 goes against my conscience to have to lie unless upon pressing 
 occasions." 
 
 " And, moreover," Oswald said with a laugh, " you might be 
 expected to get up to join the community at prayers at mid- 
 night, and they might give you a monk's bed instead of a 
 more comfortable one in the guest-chambers." 
 
 "There may be something in that," Roger admitted, "and 
 I have so often to sleep on a stone bench for the punishment 
 of my offences that I own to a weakness for a soft bed when I 
 can get one." 
 
 However, Oswald was pleased to see that his follower be- 
 haved at their resting-place with more discretion than he 
 could have hoped for, although he somewhat surprised his 
 host by the heartiness of his appetite ; but, on the other hand, 
 he was moderate in his potations, and talked but little, retiring 
 to a bed of thick rushes at curfew. 
 
 " In truth I was afraid to trust myself," he said to Oswald 
 as they lay down side by side. " Never have I felt so free 
 since Otterburn — never, indeed, since that unfortunate day 
 when I was wounded and conceived the fatal idea of becom- 
 ing a monk. Two or three times the impulse to troll out a 
 trooper's song was so strong in me that I had to clap my 
 hand over my mouth to keep it in." 
 
 " 'T is well you did, Roger, for assuredly if you had so com- 
 mitted yourself on the first day of starting I must have sent 
 
84 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 you back to Alnwick, feeling that it would not be safe for you 
 to proceed with me farther. When we get upon the Cheviots 
 to-morrow you may lift your voice as you choose, but it were 
 best that you confined yourself to a Latin canticle even there 
 for the habit of breaking into songs of the other kind might 
 grow upon you." 
 
 " I will do so," Roger said seriously. " Some of the canti- 
 cles have plenty of ring and go, and the words matter not, 
 seeing that I do not understand them." 
 
 The next morning they resumed their journey, crossed the 
 Cheviots, which were here comparatively low hills, and after 
 four hours' riding arrived at Roxburgh. 
 
 "Why do we come here?" Roger asked. "It would 
 surely have been much shorter had we travelled through Ber- 
 wick and along the coast road." 
 
 " Much shorter, Roger ; but Sir Henry thought it better 
 that we should go inland to Haddington and thence east to 
 Dunbar, as thus entering the town it would seem that we 
 came from Edinburgh or from some western monastery, 
 whereas did we journey by the coast road it might be guessed 
 that we had come from England." 
 
 As before, they put up at a hostelry, and Oswald then pro- 
 ceeded on foot to the governor's house. Some soldiers were 
 loitering at the door. 
 
 " What do you want, lad ? " one of them asked as he came up. 
 
 " I have a letter which I am charged to deliver into the 
 governor's own hands." 
 
 " A complaint, I suppose, from some worthy prior who has 
 lost some of his beeves? " 
 
 " Maybe the governor will inform you if you ask him," 
 Oswald replied. 
 
 " I shall pull your ear for you when you come out, young 
 jackanapes," the soldier said hotly. 
 
A MISSION 85 
 
 " That danger I must even risk. Business first and pleasure 
 afterwards." And while the other soldiers burst into a fit of 
 laughter at the astonishment of their comrade at what he 
 deemed the insolence of this young senator of a monastery, 
 he quietly entered. 
 
 The guard at the door, who had heard the colloquy, led 
 him into the governor's room. " A messenger with a letter 
 desires speech with you, Sir Philip," he said. 
 
 " Bid him enter," the knight said briefly. 
 
 Oswald entered and bowed deeply. He waited until the 
 door closed behind the attendant and then said : 
 
 " 1 am the bearer of a letter, sir, from Lord Percy to you." 
 
 The knight looked at him in surprise. 
 
 " Hotspur has chosen a strange messenger," he muttered to 
 himself as he took the missive Oswald held out to him, cut 
 the silk that bound it with a dagger, and read its contents. 
 As he laid it down he rose to his feet. " Excuse my want of 
 courtesy," he said. " Lord Percy tells me that you are one 
 of his esquires — no slight recommendation — and that you 
 are intrusted with somewhat important a mission on his part 
 to Dunbar, a still higher recommendation — for assuredly he 
 would not have selected you for such a purpose had you not 
 stood high in his regard. But, indeed, at first I took you for 
 what you seemed, as the bearer of a complaint from some 
 abbot ; for in truth such complaints are not uncommon, for 
 whenever a bullock is, lost they put it down to my men. 
 Where are your horses that Percy speaks of ? You will, I hope, 
 take up your abode here as long as you stay in the town." 
 
 " Thank you, Sir Philip ; but I shall go forward in the 
 morning. I have already put up at the Golden Rose. It 
 would attract attention were I to come here, and it were best 
 that I remain as I am ; and indeed I have brought no clothes 
 with me save those I stand in." 
 
86 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " Well, perhaps, as you do not wish to attract attention, it 
 were best so ; and I pray you inform Lord Percy of the reason 
 why you declined my entertainment." 
 
 " I shall be glad, Sir Philip, if you will send down a couple 
 of your men to fetch the horses up to your stables, as I shall 
 start as soon as the gates are open to-morrow morning." 
 
 "I will do so at once." And the governor rang a hand-bell 
 on the table. 
 
 " Send two of the men up here," he said, as an attendant 
 entered. 
 
 A minute later a door opened, and two soldiers came in and 
 saluted. One of them, to Oswald's amusement, was the man 
 with whom he had exchanged words below. 
 
 " You will accompany this gentleman to the Golden Rose, 
 and bring back two horses which he will hand over to you, 
 and place them in the stables with mine. Are you sure, 
 Master Forster, that there is nothing more that I can do for 
 you ? " 
 
 " Nothing whatever, I thank you, sir ; and I am greatly 
 obliged by your courtesy, and with your permission I will take 
 my leave. I hope to return here in the course of a week or 
 ten days." 
 
 So saying, Oswald shook hands with the governor and went 
 downstairs, followed by the soldiers, who had not yet recovered 
 from their surprise at seeing Oswald seated and evidently on 
 familiar terms with their lord. Oswald said nothing to them 
 until he arrived at the Golden Rose. Then he led the way to 
 the stables, and handed the horses over to them. 
 
 " I suppose that that pulling of the ear will be deferred for 
 a time?" he said, with a smile, to the soldier who had made 
 the remark. 
 
 The man sheepishly took hold of the bridle. " I could not 
 tell, sir — " he began. 
 
AT DUNBAR 87 
 
 ** Of course you could not," Oswald interrupted. " Still, it 
 may be a lesson to you that it is just as well not to make fun 
 of people until you are quite sure who they are. There, I 
 bear no malice ; get yourselves a stoup of wine in payment for 
 your services." 
 
 " I thought that there was something out-of-the-way about 
 him," the other man said as they walked up the street with the 
 two horses, " or he would never have turned upon you as he 
 did. It is evident that he is someone of consequence, and is 
 here on some secret business or other with Sir Philip. It is 
 well that he did not bear malice, for you would have got it hot 
 from the governor had he reported what you said to him." 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 AT DUNBAR 
 
 THE journey passed without any incident of importance, 
 but Oswald had reason to congratulate himself on having 
 taken the monk with him. On one occasion, as they were 
 passing over a wild heath, a party of eight or ten men, on 
 rough ponies, rode up. They were armed with spears and 
 swords. They reined up with exclamations of disappointment 
 as Roger, who had rolled up his robe round his waist for con- 
 venience of walking, let it fall round him. 
 
 " You have played us a scurvy trick, monk," the leader said 
 angrily. " Who was to guess it was a monk who was thus 
 striding along?" 
 
 " You would find it difficult to walk yourself with this robe 
 dangling about your heels," Roger said. 
 
 " Whither are you bound, and whence are you going?" 
 
88 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 "We are travelling to Dunbar, being sent to the convent of 
 St. Magnus there, and come from Roxburgh." 
 
 " 'T is a shame that so stalwart a fellow as you are should be 
 leading a drone's life in a convent, when every true Scotsman 
 is sharpening his spear in readiness for what may come when 
 the truce with England expires." 
 
 "I am glad to hear that you are so well employed," Roger 
 replied ; " but methinks that in days like these it is sometimes 
 useful to have a few men of thews and sinews even in a re- 
 ligious house, for there are those who sometimes fail in the 
 respect they owe to the Church." 
 
 "That is true enough," the men laughed. "Well, go thy 
 way, there is nought to be gained from a travelling monk." 
 
 " Nought, good friend, save occasionally hard blows, when 
 the monk happens to be of my strength and stature, and 
 carries a staff like this." 
 
 " 'T is a goodly weapon in sooth, and you look as if you 
 knew how to wield it." 
 
 " Even a monk may know that, seeing that a staff is not a 
 carnal weapon." 
 
 And rolling up his sleeves Roger took the staff in the middle 
 with both hands, in the manner of a quarter- staff, and made it 
 play round his head with a speed and vigour that showed that 
 he was a complete master of the exercise. 
 
 " Enough, enough ! " the man said, while exclamations of 
 admiration broke from the others. " Truly from such a cham- 
 pion, strong enough to wield a weapon that resembles a 
 weaver's beam rather than a quarter-staff, there would be more 
 hard knocks than silver to be gained ; but it is all the more 
 pity that such skill and strength should be thrown away in a 
 convent. Perhaps it is as well that you are wearing a monk's 
 gown, for methinks that, eight to one as we are, some of us 
 might have got broken heads before we gained the few pence 
 
AT DUNBAR 89 
 
 in your pocket. Come on men; better luck next time. It is 
 clear that this man is not the one we are charged to capture." 
 And with his followers he rode off across the moor. 
 
 " I do not think that they are what they seem, Oswald said, 
 as they resumed their journey. " The man's speech was not 
 that of a border raider, and his followers would hardly have 
 sat their horses so silently and obeyed his orders so promptly 
 had they been merely thieving caterans ; besides, you marked 
 that he said you were not the man they were watching for." 
 
 " Whom think you that they are then, Master Oswald? " 
 
 " I think it possible that they may be a party of Douglas's 
 followers, led by a knight. It may be that Douglas has 
 received some hint of March's being in communication with 
 England, and that he has sent a party to seize and search any 
 traveller who looked like a messenger from the south. Of 
 course this may be only fancy. Still, I am right glad that you 
 were wearing your monkish robe, for had I been alone I might 
 have been cross-questioned so shrewdly as to my purpose in 
 travelling, that I might have been held on suspicion, and 
 means employed to get the truth out of me." 
 
 At the small town where they stopped next night they 
 learned that many complaints had been made by travellers 
 from the south of how they had been stopped by a party of 
 armed men on the border, closely questioned, and searched, 
 and in some cases robbed. This had been going on for some 
 weeks, and the sheriff of the county had twice collected an 
 armed force and ridden in search of the robbers, but alto- 
 gether without success. It was believed that they were stran- 
 gers to the district, and the description given of them had 
 not agreed with those of any noted bad characters in the 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 " Certainly, Master Oswald," the monk said, " all this seems 
 to support your idea. Money and valuables are soon found ; 
 
90 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 but by what these men say of the way in which the clothes and 
 belongings of these travellers were searched, it would seem to 
 show that money was not the object of the band, but rather 
 the discovery of correspondence, and that money was only 
 taken as a cloak." 
 
 " I have no doubt that they were there to intercept some- 
 one, Roger, though it may not have been Percy's messengers ; 
 still, we are well rid of them, and I hope that we shall meet no 
 more on our way." 
 
 The hope was fulfilled, and they reached Dunbar without 
 further interruption. Here they deemed it better to separate. 
 The monk went to a convent and gave out there that he was 
 on the way to Edinburgh, being on a journey thither to see his 
 aged father, who was in his last sickness. Oswald went to a 
 shop and bought clothes suited for the son of a trader in a fair 
 position, and changing his things at the inn where he had put 
 up, made his way to the castle. 
 
 " I would have speech with the earl," he said to the warder 
 at the gate. " I have his orders to wait upon him." 
 
 " What is your name and condition ? " 
 
 " That matters not. I am here by the earl's orders. He 
 sent me a ring by which it might be known that I am author- 
 ised to have access to him." 
 
 On seeing the ring the warder at once called to one of 
 the servitors and bade him conduct Oswald to the earl's 
 apartment. 
 
 "Whom shall I say?" he asked when he reached the door. 
 
 " Give this ring to him, and say the bearer awaits admittance 
 to him." 
 
 The man entered the room, and then opening the door again 
 motioned to Oswald to enter. The earl, a tall and powerfully- 
 built man, looked with a keen scrutiny at him. 
 
 "From whom come you, young sir?" 
 
AT DUNBAR 91 
 
 " From the holder of that ring, ray Lord Earl," Oswald said, 
 presenting the ring that Percy had given him. " My name is 
 Oswald Forster, and I have the honour to be one of Lord 
 Percy's esquires." 
 
 "Come you alone?" the earl asked. 
 
 " I came with a companion, a monk. I was in the disguise 
 of a young servitor of his convent. We came on foot from 
 Roxburgh." 
 
 He then unscrewed the handle of a dagger Percy had given 
 him for the purpose, and pulled out a small roll of paper, which 
 he handed to the earl. It contained only the following words : 
 " Do not intrust undue confidence in the bearer. The matters 
 you wot of are in good train ; of them my messenger knows 
 nothing." 
 
 " This was so writ by Sir Henry Percy," said Oswald, " in 
 order that if I were detained and searched on the way, and 
 this paper found on me, I might not be forced by torture to 
 say aught of my message." 
 
 " But this signet-ring would have shown to whom you were 
 coming." 
 
 " It was concealed in my staff, my lord, and could not have 
 been discovered had not that been split open. Had it been 
 so I should have admitted that Lord Percy had indeed com- 
 mitted the signet and the writing to me to carry, and had bid 
 me travel as the servitor of a monk on his journey north, but 
 that, more than that these were to be delivered to you, I knew 
 nothing. Lord Percy selected me as his messenger partly be- 
 cause from my youth I should not be likely to be suspected 
 of being a messenger between two great lords, and in the 
 second place, because, if arrested, and these matters found on 
 me, the statement of the letter would be readily believed. It 
 would not be supposed that important state secrets would be 
 committed to a lad like myself." 
 
92 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 The earl made no reply for a time, but sat with his eyes 
 fixed on Oswald's face, as if he were reading him thoroughly. 
 
 " Then you do know the matters in question? " 
 
 " I do, my lord. I am the bearer of a further communication 
 to you." 
 
 " Say on, then." 
 
 " Lord Percy bids me say that on the receipt of your message 
 to him, he forwarded it by one of his knights to the king at 
 Westminster, and that the matter was discussed by his majesty 
 with two or three of his most trusted councillors. After full 
 consideration the king has accepted your offer, and will grant 
 all its conditions. He sent, my lord, also a document with his 
 royal seal attached, engaging to observe all the conditions of 
 the compact. This document Lord Percy holds, to be given to 
 you on a convenient occasion, but he deemed it of so important 
 a nature that it would be too hazardous to send it to you. The 
 king, in a letter to Lord Percy, begged him to tell you that so 
 long as the truce continued he could not collect an army to sup- 
 port you, but that, as the time for its termination approached, 
 he would begin to do so, and would be in readiness to take the 
 field in the north immediately you move in the matter." 
 
 The earl sat for some time in thought. " Do you know the 
 conditions of the compact?" he asked suddenly. 
 
 Oswald had expected this question, and felt sure that the 
 earl, who was, when not inflamed by anger, a cool and cautious 
 man, would highly disapprove of Hotspur's frankness, and might 
 possibly detain him if he knew that he possessed so important 
 a secret. He therefore replied, " As to such grave matters, 
 it was not necessary that I should know more than I have 
 said to you, my Lord Earl. As it is no secret that you and the 
 Douglases have personal enmity, I deemed that the compact 
 referred to our king giving you aid should you need it against 
 the Douglases." 
 
AT DUNBAR 93 
 
 The answer was apparently satisfactory. The earl asked 
 no further questions on this head. 
 
 " Were there other reasons than those you have stated why 
 he chose you as his messenger? " 
 
 " Another reason he gave me, my lord, was that as I came 
 of a family who reside within a few miles of the border, and 
 had relatives on this side whom I sometimes visited, my 
 language was similar to that spoken in Roxburghshire, so 
 that I could therefore pass as a Lowland Scot without diffi- 
 culty. No one, in fact, at the various places at which we 
 have stopped has taken me for aught but a countryman, 
 though the monk with me was often taxed with being an 
 Englishman, though belonging to a monastery at Roxburgh." 
 
 Again the earl was silent for some time. " I must think 
 over the message that I shall give you for Percy," he said. " I 
 like not the delay, though I see that there is good reason for 
 it. As one of Hotspur's esquires I would fain treat you with 
 all courtesy and lodge you here, but this might cause question 
 as to who you are, and it were therefore better that you should 
 lodge in the town. Have you put up anywhere?" 
 
 " I rested for an hour at the sign of the Lion, my lord, 
 engaging a room there in order to effect a change in my 
 clothes. I left by the back entrance in order that the change 
 should not be observed." 
 
 " It were best that you fetched those you travelled in away, 
 or rather that you returned unnoticed, and as it is getting 
 dark now, this can doubtless be managed, and when you sally 
 out place that cloak over your shoulders to hide your dress as 
 a servitor, and go to the other inn, the Falcon. Say there 
 that you are staying for a few days in Dunbar, having come 
 here on business with me, and that I bade you go there so 
 that I might know where to send for you if necessary. You 
 can pass for what you seem, a young trader who has come 
 
94 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 from Edinburgh to arrange, on the part of your father, a cloth 
 merchant there, for a supply of stuffs for the clothing of my 
 retainers." 
 
 Oswald carried out his instructions, walked about until it 
 was quite dark, then entered the inn, made his way unobserved 
 to the chamber where he had left his clothes, put these on, 
 made the others up into a bundle, and then went downstairs 
 again and paid his bill, saying as he did so, that he had found 
 the friends he came to see, and that they had room to take 
 him in. After leaving the house he threw the cloak, which he 
 had carried on his arm, over his shoulders, and put on the cap 
 that belonged to his other dress, and then went to the Falcon 
 Inn, and repeating to the landlord the statement the earl had 
 made, was at once shown to a chamber with some deference. 
 
 " Will your worship have supper here or in the room 
 below?" 
 
 " I will come down," he said ; " it is dull work sitting alone." 
 
 Having ordered his supper, with a flask of wine, Oswald 
 again donned his attire as a trader and went downstairs. 
 Just as he entered the room, in which several persons were 
 sitting, a soldier came in from the outer door. He looked 
 round the room. 
 
 " I have a message from the earl for the person who was 
 with him this afternoon." 
 
 Oswald at once rose and went across to him. "The earl 
 bade me tell you," the soldier said in a low voice, " that his 
 present furnisher is Robert Micklethwaite, and that his place 
 of business is near the castle gate at Edinburgh." 
 
 "Please thank the earl for the information," Oswald replied, 
 and then returned to his seat. 
 
 He had, indeed, while dressing been wondering what name 
 he should give. It was like enough that in Dunbar many 
 might know the names of the principal traders in Edinburgh 
 
AT DUNBAR 95 
 
 and that were he to give an unknown one he might be ques- 
 tioned as to his place of business. The message, therefore, 
 relieved him of this difficulty. After he had finished his supper, 
 which was an excellent one, he beckoned to the landlord. 
 
 " I am a stranger here, landlord," he said ; " I pray you to 
 drink a cup with me, and tell me the news of the place. You 
 may know the name of Micklethwaite," he went on, as the land- 
 lord sat down, " and that he comes or sends regularly to arrange 
 for the supply of cloth, its quality and price, required for the 
 earl's retainers." 
 
 "Master Micklethwaite always puts up here when he visits 
 Dunbar," the landlord said. " I must have misunderstood him, 
 for one day when he was talking with me he said that it was 
 a trouble to him that he had no sons." 
 
 " Nor has he," Oswald said ; " luckily for me, who am but 
 a nephew." 
 
 "He is a good customer," the landlord went on, " and good 
 company too ; but he cares not for French wines, and does 
 not trouble my cellarer much." 
 
 " He is a careful man," Oswald said, with a smile, " and 
 though he is a good trencherman, he does not waste his 
 money on such matters. However, he lets me have a freer 
 hand than he uses himself, and asks not, when I return, for a 
 close account of my outgoings. What do they say here as to 
 the chances of another war with England?" 
 
 " I fear the worst," the landlord replied. " These wars are 
 ruin to us, and we have had the English at the gates of Dun- 
 bar over many times already, and the town sacked and burnt 
 over our heads more than once. Though I do not say that it 
 might not have been worse, for our earls have ever stood aloof 
 as much as possible, and have often inclined towards the 
 English side. Still, even then it is bad enough, for the whole 
 country from Berwick has often been wasted to check the 
 
96 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 progress of the armies, and our trade well-nigh ruined. A 
 pest on all wars, say I ! " 
 
 " And which way think you that the present earl's leanings 
 would go? " 
 
 " I think not about it one way or the other. My business 
 is to sell food and liquor, the earl's to take part in affairs of 
 state. In days like these it is quite enough for each man to 
 attend to his own business without troubling about that of 
 other people, more especially when that other is a powerful 
 noble, who thinks little enough of slitting a tongue that wags 
 too freely. No, no, lad ; John Sanderson is no fool, and 
 knows better than to open his mouth touching the affairs of 
 great nobles. I know not how it may be with you and the 
 burghers of Edinburgh, but here we are content to cool our 
 own porridge, and let others take their food hot or cold as 
 they choose." 
 
 " I was not wishing you to give me so much your own ideas 
 as the common talk of the town ; but I see that my question 
 was indiscreet, and I ask your pardon." 
 
 " I know you meant no harm, lad, and that your question 
 was just one that any young man of your age might ask with- 
 out thinking that there was harm in it, or that the answering 
 of it might lead to harm. I can tell you that whatever folk 
 may think here in Dunbar, they say nought about it to their 
 nearest neighbour. We can talk of war with England, that is 
 too common a thing for there to be harm in it, and as no one 
 knows aught, one man's opinion is as good as another's ; but 
 the talk is general, and assuredly no man asks his neighbour 
 what this great lord will do, or how matters will go. There 
 is no harm in two gossips wondering whether, if the English 
 come, the town will hold out till help comes, or whether they 
 will batter down the walls first. 
 
 " It is a kind of riddle, you see, and all the more that no 
 
AT DUNBAR 97 
 
 one knows who may be by the king's side when the storm 
 breaks. A generation back men might make a fair guess, but 
 now it were beyond the wisest head to say, and for my part I 
 leave the thinking to those whom it concerns. You from 
 Edinburgh ought to know more than we do, for in great cities 
 men can talk more freely, seeing that no one lord has the 
 place in his hands, and that the citizens have rights, and hold 
 to them. The general thought is that we shall have war 
 directly the truce is over. Among us who live by peaceful 
 trade we still hope for peace, for we see not what good comes 
 of war, save to those who make raids in England, and as often 
 as not these get more hard knocks than plunder; but to the 
 quiet trader it means loss, and may well mean ruin if the 
 English army again marches through Scotland. We can dis- 
 cover no reason why the two countries should not live peace- 
 ably together, each going about its own business. I have 
 heard it said before now that it would be a good thing for 
 both countries if the border districts on both sides were 
 stripped altogether of their people, and allowed to lie 
 desolate. 
 
 " Ah, it would be a rare thing, that. It is thieving loons on 
 both sides of the border that keep up the ill-feeling, and the 
 loss would not be great, seeing that there are plenty of waste 
 tracts where the people might be bestowed, and pass their 
 time more profitably in raising crops and cattle than in destroy- 
 ing or carrying off those of their neighbours. However, young 
 sir, that is not like to be in our time." 
 
 " I am afraid not, Sanderson, and we must needs make the 
 best we can of things as they stand. I think that 't would be 
 well, if the English do come north again and capture Edin- 
 burgh, and ruin trade for years, to cross the seas to France and 
 take service there." 
 
 " Scarce spoken like a peaceful trader," the landlord 
 
98 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 laughed ; " but I doubt not you would make a good soldier, 
 and that a sword would suit your hand to the full as well as a 
 yard measure. Well, it makes not so much difference to me. 
 Men must eat and drink, and though my wine would be drunk 
 up without payment, and I should have to run the risk of being 
 killed on the walls if the English came, I should know that in 
 a short time men would come and go as before, and that they 
 will drink good wine if they have money to pay for it, and in 
 six months my trade would be as brisk as ever ; but men seem 
 to think that this time it will be the Scots who will invade 
 England, for the English barons have had enough of wars in 
 France, and will be slow in furnishing their quota when called 
 on, and that we shall carry fire and sword through the north- 
 ern counties." 
 
 " That we may do, though Northumberland and Hotspur 
 will doubtless have something to say to it. I fear it will be as 
 it has been many a time before. Our armies will march back 
 with their plunder, the news of the damage done will inflame 
 all England, and then a great army will march north. The 
 nobles will hasten to make terms for themselves, and the harm 
 and damage will fall upon quiet people who had nought what- 
 ever to do with the invasion." 
 
 " True enough, young sir, true enough, though it is a shame 
 that it should be said. Had the cities a voice in the matter 
 of peace and war, you may be right sure that we should hear 
 no more of invasions and troubles from this side of the border. 
 I say not that there would be peace, for the claims of the Eng- 
 lish kings to authority in Scotland, although we have not heard 
 so much of them since Bannockburn, are but in abeyance, and 
 the first time that there is really peace between them ana 
 France, you may be sure that we shall hear of them again, 
 and then the towns as well as the country would join heartily 
 in repelling an invasion." 
 
AT DUNBAR 99 
 
 "They never did so in the past time, Sanderson. They 
 generally opened their gates at once, or if they closed them it 
 was because there was a strong garrison, under some knight 
 or noble who, and not the townspeople, had the say in the 
 matter. Now, methinks, I will to bed, for I have had a long 
 day's travel." 
 
 The next day passed without any message from the earl, 
 but on the following morning one of the retainers from the 
 castle came in with the message that the earl desired the pres- 
 ence of Mr. Micklethwaite. 
 
 Oswald went up at once. The earl was, as before, alone. 
 
 "I have been thinking, Master Forster, that it would be 
 safer both for you and for me were you to tarry here for a 
 while. You came through safely, it is true, but you might not 
 have such good fortune on your return ; and even though I 
 sent no written answer, it would be enough, were Percy's signet 
 found upon you, to ensure your imprisonment and perhaps 
 death. At any rate they would have the means of wringing 
 from you the mission of which you were in charge, while I 
 could send equally well a message by sea as I did before." 
 
 " I see that there might be some slight danger, my Lord 
 Earl," Oswald said quietly, " but I as well as another might 
 take passage down by ship touching at Berwick or other port." 
 
 The earl's brow clouded. " 'T is a matter to be thought 
 over," he said moodily. " A ship might be captured, seeing 
 that there are often French freebooting vessels on the coast. 
 And what were your orders from Lord Percy ? " 
 
 "That I was to return immediately I had conveyed his 
 message to you." 
 
 " I would gladly hasten your departure," the earl said after 
 a moment's pause, " but you see great issues hang upon this 
 affair. However, I will think the matter over again, and will 
 see how it can be best managed." 
 
100 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 After leaving the castle, Oswald went to the convent where 
 the monk was lodged and asked for speech with brother Roger. 
 In a minute or two the latter came out. 
 
 "Are we off, young master? " he asked. '• In truth, it is as 
 bad here as at Alnwick, and after a taste of liberty I am long- 
 ing to be out again ; and, indeed, I have had some trouble in 
 accounting for my stay here instead of continuing my journey 
 to see my aged father." 
 
 "If it depended upon me I would say that we would start 
 forthwith, but what I have somewhat feared all along has 
 come to pass. I was the bearer of a certain message of much 
 importance from Hotspur to the earl, and I fear that the latter 
 will detain me. He thinks that I know more than I have 
 said, which indeed is true, and likes not that one who is so 
 entirely cognisant of his secret counsels and intentions should 
 go free. He put it down to the fact that I might be captured 
 on my way back and forced to confess the whole details of the 
 mission with which I am charged. It is possible that this is 
 so, but it is more likely that he dislikes that anyone should 
 know secrets that concern his safety ; and although he has not 
 said as much at present, I believe that it is his intention to 
 hold me here as prisoner, though doubtless with due courtesy 
 as befits Percy's messenger and esquire, until affairs come to 
 a head, which may not be for a year or two yet." 
 
 " Is there a guard over you at present? " 
 
 " Not that I know of, Roger, but it may be that the inn is 
 watched. At any rate, he would try to overtake me did I 
 attempt to leave without his permission." 
 
 "Then, Master Oswald, I should say let us be off at once." 
 
 " But how, Roger? On foot we should be speedily over- 
 taken, and if not watched at present, doubtless I shall be, after 
 my interview with the earl this morning. Were I to try and 
 buy horses I might be arrested at once. However, I have 
 
AT DUNBAR 101 
 
 been thinking that the best plan would be for you to go 
 round to the port and to bargain for a passage for us to Edin- 
 burgh. Then we would slip on board quietly half an hour 
 before she sailed. Methinks it were as well that you did not 
 go in your robes. I will purchase a dress suitable to a cattle 
 drover for you, and a similar one for myself. I will bring 
 yours for you here in an hour's time if you will wait a hundred 
 yards from the gate for me. Then you can go to some quiet 
 spot and change your garments, and then go down to the port. 
 I will be standing at the door of my inn, and as you pass say, 
 without checking your pace, the hour at which a boat sails to- 
 day or to-morrow, and then do you be near the hotel again an 
 hour before that time. Do not speak to me as I come out, but 
 keep a short distance behind me, and if you see that I am 
 followed by anyone, you must do your best to rid me of him. 
 You had better bring your present garments along with you, 
 they may be useful." 
 
 Roger assented joyously. The thought that at any rate for 
 a time he was to get rid of his robes filled him with joy, and 
 the possibility that there might be danger in the enterprise 
 only added to his pleasure. Feeling the need for great care, 
 Oswald walked for some little time before entering a shop, 
 passing through several quiet streets, and when assured that 
 he was not followed, he went into the booth of a clothier. 
 
 " I have occasion for two suits of clothes such as would be 
 worn by cattle drovers," he said. " I am about to travel, and 
 having money about me can best do so safely in such a gar- 
 ment. I want one suit to fit me, and another for a com- 
 panion who is a big stout man, a good deal above the ordinary 
 height." 
 
 " 'T is a wise precaution, your honour, for the roads are by 
 no means safe at present. I can fit you with ease, and will pick 
 out the largest clothes I have in stock for your companion." 
 
102 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 The purchase was soon made. It consisted of a rough smock 
 of blue cloth reaching to the knees and girded in by a strap at 
 the waist, and breeches of the same material reaching below 
 the knees, with strips of grey cloth to be wound round and 
 round the leg from the knee to the ankle. In addition, Oswald 
 bought two pairs of rough sandals and two lowland bonnets. 
 Each suit was done up at his request in a separate parcel, and 
 then, retracing his steps, he joined Roger and handed his 
 clothes to him. 
 
 " I will go outside the gates and change my things," Roger 
 said, " and then go down to the port. I will then come to 
 your hotel as you said. If no ship sails until to-morrow I have 
 only to put my robe on over these garments and return to the 
 convent. If there is one sailing this evening I shall not go 
 back there again, but will be on the look-out for you half an 
 hour before the boat leaves the port." 
 
 " The nearer the time of sailing the better, Roger, for if I 
 am watched, and there is any trouble with the man who follows 
 me, the sooner we are on board before any alarm is raised the 
 better. But I should hardly think a boat would start in the 
 evening." 
 
 "I don't know, Master Oswald. I was down at the port 
 yesterday and the tide was high at three o'clock, and methinks 
 that a boat would put out an hour or two before low tide, so 
 as to take the water with it as far as New Berwick and there 
 catch the flood flowing into the Firth. In that case the boat 
 would put out at six or maybe seven o'clock." 
 
 " I would that it had been two hours later, Roger. After 
 dark it were easy enough to silence a man without attracting 
 much attention, but in broad daylight it would not be so easily 
 done." 
 
 " Not if we went straight from the inn to the port, master, 
 but there is no need for you to take that route." 
 
AT DUNBAR 103 
 
 " You are right, Roger. Indeed, it would be better not to 
 do so, for were they to have an idea that we had escaped by 
 water the earl might send a fast boat after us. Therefore, 
 when I come out I will turn off and go by unfrequented streets 
 and lanes in the opposite direction. In that way you will be 
 better able to see if I am followed, and may find some quiet 
 place where you can give a man a clout on the head that will 
 rid us of him." 
 
 " Will you come out, Master Oswald, in your present attire, 
 or in your disguise ? " 
 
 " I will wear this cloak and head-gear, and will put these 
 leggings over the others, so that I shall have but to take them 
 off and fling them aside, and to throw off my cloak and cap and 
 put on this bonnet, all of which will not take a minute and can 
 be done in a doorway or passage without attracting observa- 
 tion. I should be afraid to go out in the drover's attire ; the 
 servants at the inn know me now, and, moreover, a man of 
 such condition would not think of going to the Falcon. Were 
 I to be noticed coming out it might be thought that I had 
 entered it for some evil purpose." 
 
 " I shall be on hand, master. I had thought of not return- 
 ing to the monastery, but I must do so, for I have left my staff 
 there and it will be as suitable for a drover as a monk. I shall 
 go to the harbour as soon as I have seen you, and if it is this 
 evening a boat sails, I shall go back at once and bid them 
 farewell, saying that a ship is sailing for Leith, and that I have 
 taken passage in her." 
 
 Oswald returned to the inn, and half an hour later went 
 down to the doorway, where he stood as if idly watching the 
 flow of traffic. A quarter of an hour later he saw Roger 
 approaching. He looked the character that he had assumed 
 to the life. He had dirtied his hands and face, and smudged 
 his smock with stains of mud. He strolled along with a free 
 
104 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 step and head erect. He did not look at Oswald as he passed, 
 but said, " Boat sails at seven to-night." 
 
 Oswald stood for some time longer. A short distance down 
 the street he observed two of the earl's retainers. They were 
 standing apparently looking at the goods in a mercer's window. 
 After a time they moved on a short distance, passed the inn 
 and stopped again to look in another shop twenty or thirty 
 yards away. Then Oswald left the door. The landlord was 
 standing in the passage and beckoned to him to enter his 
 private room. 
 
 "Young sir," he said, "I know not whether you have done 
 anything that has displeased the earl, nor is it any business of 
 mine, but you are a fair-spoken young gentleman, and I would 
 not that any ill came to you. I like not to meddle in the 
 earl's affairs, for he would think nothing of ordering my house 
 to be burnt over my head. However, I may warn you that he 
 is making inquiries about you. One of his retainers has been 
 here, two hours ago, with a confidential message from the earl 
 to inquire whether you had said anything about leaving, and 
 to bid me send a message to him secretly should you do so." 
 
 "I thank you warmly, my good host," Oswald replied. "I 
 have had no quarrel with the earl, but we have differed as to 
 the value of the goods he requires. He would fain have them 
 at last year's prices ; but wool has gone up, and we could not 
 sell them save at a loss. It may be that he thinks I shall go 
 away, and that if he finds I am about to do so he will send for 
 me and agree to my terms, which indeed are so low that they 
 leave but little profit. However, it were well that you should 
 let me know how much I owe you, and I will pay that at once. 
 Do not make up the account, but tell me roundly there or 
 thereabouts, and then should I leave suddenly you can say 
 truly that I had not asked for my bill, and that you were 
 altogether ignorant of my intention of leaving." 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 105 
 
 "There can be no occasion for that," the host said. "You 
 can pay me the next time you come should you decide to leave 
 suddenly." 
 
 " Nay, I would rather settle obligations, for if I do not do 
 business with the earl it may be some time before I return." 
 
 The landlord made rapid calculations and named a sum, 
 which Oswald at once handed to him, with warm thanks for 
 the warning he had given him. 
 
 " I may stay here three or four days longer," he said mean- 
 ingly, " as the earl may at the last moment come to an agree- 
 ment as to the price of the goods. I should be sorry to return 
 to my uncle without getting an order, for the earl has for years 
 been one of our best customers." 
 
 The landlord nodded. " I understand," he said. " It 
 would be as well, perhaps, that you should say as much in the 
 hearing of one of the drawers, so that if questioned I shall have 
 a witness who can bear me out." 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 BACK TO HOTSPUR 
 
 IT was still broad daylight when at half-past six Oswald left 
 the inn and sauntered at a leisurely pace down the street. 
 His eye at once fell on Roger's tall figure, and he also saw two 
 retainers of the earl loitering about. They were not the same 
 men he had seen in the morning, but doubtless had relieved 
 those on watch. He took the first turning off the main street, 
 and after passing through several lanes found himself at the 
 foot of the town-wall. A narrow lane ran between it and a 
 
106 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 row of small houses. No one was about, and he thought that 
 Roger would take advantage of the loneliness of the spot to 
 endeavour to rid him of his followers, whose footsteps he could 
 hear some distance behind him. Presently he glanced care- 
 lessly round. The men were some thirty or forty yards behind 
 him, and coming up with them at a rapid step was Roger. A 
 minute later he heard a voice raised in anger. 
 
 "Where are you going, fellow? There is plenty of room 
 to pass without pushing between us. You want teaching 
 manners." 
 
 Roger gave a loud laugh. " Who is going to teach me ? " 
 he said. 
 
 " I will ! " one of the men said, angrily placing his hand 
 upon his sword-hilt. 
 
 As he did so he was levelled to the ground by a tremendous 
 blow from Roger's staff. With a shout the other soldier drew 
 his sword, but before he could guard himself the staff again 
 descended, and he fell senseless beside his comrade. Roger 
 at once knelt beside them, tore off strips of their garments, 
 and, rolling them up, pressed them into their mouths, and with 
 string which he had brought for the purpose tied them in 
 their place ; then taking out a few pieces of cord he tied their 
 hands behind them and their ankles together, dragged them 
 into a dark entry, and left them lying there. The whole trans- 
 action had occupied but two or three minutes, and had 
 attracted no attention whatever. The soldiers' shout might 
 have been heard, but there was no clashing of weapons, and a 
 shout was too unimportant a matter for anyone within hearing 
 to take any trouble about. Oswald, seeing that Roger needed 
 no assistance, had occupied himself with stripping off the 
 outer pair of leggings, and had made these, with his cloak and 
 cap, into a bundle, and, pressing the drover's cap down over 
 his eyes, was ready by the time Roger came up to him. 
 
"WHO rs GOING TO I EACH Ml 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 107 
 
 " It was splendidly managed, Roger." 
 
 " It did well enough," the other said carelessly. " It may 
 be an hour before anyone stumbles over them, and long before 
 that we shall be at sea." 
 
 They made their way back through quiet lanes until near 
 the port, and then boldly went down to the side of a small 
 craft. 
 
 "You are just in time, my men," the skipper said. "In 
 another five minutes we should be throwing off the ropes and 
 hoisting sails. Now that you have come, we shall do so at 
 once. The tide is just right for us, and we have nothing 
 further to stop for." 
 
 The boat was a large fishing smack, and had put into 
 Dunbar but that afternoon with the intention of disposing of 
 the catch. Two others had, however, come in still earlier. 
 The market being glutted, the skipper had determined to take 
 his catch, which was a heavy one, on to Leith, and had agreed, 
 for a very small sum, to carry the two drovers to that port. 
 Oswald and Roger aided in getting up the sails, and in a few 
 minutes the smack was at sea. The wind was from the south- 
 west, and the boat ran rapidly up the coast. 
 
 " The earl will be in a nice way when he finds that you have 
 gone," Roger said as he stood in the stern to watch the rapidly 
 receding towers of Dunbar. " There will be a hot hue and cry 
 for you. The earl is not accustomed to be thwarted, and they 
 say that he is a mighty hot-tempered man. I have no doubt 
 that as soon as his fellows bring him word of what has hap- 
 pened to them, and he finds that you have quitted the inn, he 
 will send parties of horse out to scour the roads to Berwick 
 and Haddington, and to search the country far and near." 
 
 "He is welcome to do that," Oswald said. "My fear is, 
 that he will send down to the port to inquire if any craft put 
 out about the hour at which his men were attacked. But 
 
108 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 even if he does so, there is no great chance of our being over- 
 taken. We are travelling fast and in another hour it will be 
 dark, and long before daybreak we shall reach Leith, having 
 both wind and tide in our favour all the way." 
 
 They kept an anxious watch as long as there was light 
 enough for them to make out if a vessel left Dunbar. Both 
 fancied that they could see a sail just as twilight was falling, 
 but neither could be sure that it was not the effect of imagina- 
 tion. They were already ten miles away, and as the tide had 
 now begun to make along the shore it was certain that for 
 some time at least a ship, however fast she might be, would 
 gain but little upon them until she had fairly entered the 
 Firth. There would be no moon, and even should she over- 
 take them she might well pass them in the dark. When they 
 lay down they agreed that they would keep awake in turns, 
 and that if they made out a ship apparently pursuing them 
 they would offer the skipper the full value for his boat and 
 betake themselves to it and row for shore. 
 
 "The greatest danger," Roger said, "would be of their 
 passing us unseen and then lying-to near the entrance of the 
 port and overhauling us as we came in." 
 
 " That is a danger that we cannot guard against. Can you 
 swim, Roger?" 
 
 " It is years since I have done so," the monk replied, " but 
 I used to do so in the old days." 
 
 " There is an empty cask here by my side," Oswald went 
 on. " If we are challenged, the best plan would be to lower 
 it down quietly into the water and to hold on by it. The boat 
 would certainly go some distance before she had lost her way 
 and brought up, and we should be out of sight of both ships 
 before they came together." 
 
 " That is a good idea. If we hear a hail I will at once cut 
 a good length of rope and twist it round a barrel for us to hold 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 109 
 
 on by. But I don't think there is any chance of our being 
 overhauled." 
 
 " I agree with you in that respect ; still, it is just as well to 
 have our plans prepared in case it should happen." 
 
 They kept a vigilant watch through the night without catch- 
 ing sight of any craft proceeding in the same direction as 
 themselves. 
 
 It was still dark when the helmsman hailed the skipper, 
 " I see the lights of Leith ahead," and later they passed the 
 beacon fire that marked the entrance to the port. Five 
 minutes later Oswald and his companion, after paying the 
 sum agreed on, stepped on shore. 
 
 " That danger is over. I did not think that there was any 
 real cause for fear. I should like to see the earl as his bands 
 of horsemen ride in to-day with the news that they can hear 
 nothing of us." 
 
 " I should like to hit him just such a clout with my staff as 
 I gave his two retainers," Roger said. " Earl as he is, it was 
 scandalous, and contrary to all usages, to arrest a messenger, 
 especially when that messenger is an esquire of one of equal 
 rank to himself, and his message, as I suppose, a friendly 
 one." 
 
 " I don't so much blame him. He had no means of judg- 
 ing my discretion, and the consequences to him and others 
 had I fallen into the hands of Douglas, or those of a marauding 
 leader, might have been serious indeed. I doubt not that, had 
 I been content to stay with him, he would have treated me 
 with all honour. I might even have done so, and have got 
 him to send another messenger to Percy, but the latter bade 
 me to return at once, and, moreover, said that he had another 
 mission as soon as I had carried the present one to a successful 
 termination." 
 
 " And have you done so, Master Oswald ? " 
 
110 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 u Yes, I think so, Roger. I was to ascertain the earl's real 
 intentions regarding certain matters, and I think that he means 
 honestly to adhere to an offer he made. The very fear that 
 he has shown lest his intentions should be betrayed, seems to 
 prove that he is most anxious that nought should occur to 
 interfere with his plans." 
 
 " The Earls of Dunbar have ever been a treacherous race," 
 Roger said earnestly, " and ready to betray their own country- 
 men in order to curry favour with England and continue in 
 possession of their estates. However, as we have benefited 
 from it, we need not grumble if the Scots are contented. 
 Now, Master Oswald, what are we to do next ? " 
 
 " I should say that we had better find a corner to lie down 
 until daybreak ; I don't think that either of us have slept. 
 Then we will go into a tavern and breakfast, and afterwards go 
 on to Edinburgh. I should like to see the town and castle, 
 and the chance may never come again to me. Then to-mor- 
 row morning we will start in earnest. We shall have plenty of 
 opportunities to talk over our plans, so let us lose no time 
 now in looking for a bed." 
 
 Fortunately, they soon came upon some fishing-nets care- 
 lessly piled under the lee of a stack of timber. Here they 
 threw themselves down, and were soon fast asleep. When 
 they woke the sun was well up. Fishermen were preparing to 
 get up sail, and those who had, like themselves, come in during 
 the night were commencing to unload their cargoes. 
 
 " Look there ! " Oswald exclaimed, as he pointed to a vessel 
 from whose mast-head floated a flag with the arms of the Earl 
 of March. " She is just entering the port. They did chase 
 us after all, you see, but they did not gain on our fishing- 
 boat." 
 
 " Well, methinks that we had better be off at once," Roger 
 said. " They will soon learn which boat has come from 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 111 
 
 Dunbar, and find out from the men what were the disguises 
 worn by us. So we had best lose no time in getting out of 
 Leith." 
 
 " They would never dare to seize us here," Oswald said. 
 
 " I don't know that. If they have strict orders to bring us 
 back they would not feel much hesitation in seizing us wher- 
 ever they found us, knowing well enough that the burghers 
 of Leith would not concern themselves greatly about the cap- 
 ture of two drovers, who would probably be charged with all 
 sorts of crime. Were it one of their own citizens it would be 
 different ; but it is scarce likely that the burghers would care 
 to quarrel with a powerful noble for the sake of two strangers 
 of low degree. The gates will be open before this, and we 
 shall be safer in Edinburgh than we are here." 
 
 Accordingly they postponed their breakfast, and, passing 
 through the town without a pause, issued out by the south 
 gate, and walked briskly to Edinburgh. As soon as they 
 arrived they found a small tavern, and partook of a hearty 
 meal. Listening while they ate to the conversation going on 
 around them, they found that the young Duke of Rothesay 
 was at present staying at the castle. 
 
 " Men say that the disputes between him and his uncle, the 
 Duke of Albany, have of late grown hotter." 
 
 " That might well be," another said. " Rothesay is a man 
 now. He has shown himself a brave soldier, and it is not 
 likely that he would support with patience the haughtiness 
 and overbearing manner of Albany. It was an evil day for 
 Scotland when our good king, who was then but prince, lamed 
 himself for life, and so was forced on his accession to leave the 
 conduct of affairs to Albany, then Earl of Fife. The king, as 
 all men know, is just and good, and has at heart the welfare of 
 his subjects, but his accident has rendered him unfit to take 
 part in public affairs, and he loves peace and quiet as much as 
 
112 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Albany loves intrigues and dark and devious ways. 'T is a 
 sore pity that the king cannot make up his mind to throw 
 himself into the arms of Douglas, and call upon the nobility 
 to join in expelling Albany from his councils, and to give the 
 charge of affairs into the hands of Rothesay, or even to bestow 
 upon him the kingly dignity, while he himself retires to the 
 peaceful life he loves." 
 
 "That would have better done," the other said, "before 
 the young duke married, for many of the nobles, who would 
 have otherwise supported him, would hold aloof, seeing that 
 the accession of Rothesay would be but handing over the real 
 power of the state from Albany to Douglas. Men say that 
 the feud between March and Douglas grows hotter and hotter, 
 and that the boldness with which March upbraided the king for 
 the breaking off by Rothesay of his marriage with Elizabeth of 
 Dunbar, has so angered him, Rothesay, and Albany, who had 
 aided in bringing about the match with Elizabeth Douglas, 
 that 't is like that March will ere long be arraigned for his con- 
 duct and the threats that he uttered in his passion." 
 
 "Well, gossips, it matters little to us," an elderly man 
 said, " whether king or prince or duke is master, we have to 
 pay ; and assuredly, were Rothesay king, our taxes would not 
 abate, seeing that he is extravagant and reckless, though I say 
 not that he has not many good qualities. But these benefit 
 in no way men like ourselves, while the taxation to support 
 extravagance touches us all." 
 
 There was a murmur of assent from the little group who 
 were talking, who struck Oswald as being farmers who had 
 come in from the country to sell cattle to the butchers of the 
 town. They were interrupted in their talk by the landlord, 
 who came across to them. 
 
 " My good friends," he said, " I pray you talk not so loudly 
 concerning princes and nobles. It is true that we are a royal 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 113 
 
 city, and that the burghers of Edinburgh have their rights and 
 their liberties, nevertheless it were dangerous to talk loud con- 
 cerning nobles. We are quiet people all, and none here wear 
 the cognisance of Douglas or Albany, still, it would do me 
 much harm were it reported that there had been talk here 
 concerning such powerful nobles, and, though the Douglas 
 might care little what was said of him, methinks that there are 
 others — I name no names — who would spare neither great 
 nor small who incurred their resentment." 
 
 " I knew not that we were talking loudly, John Ker, and 
 methinks that none save the two men at the near table have 
 heard our words, and they look honest fellows enough. Still, 
 what you say is right, and while we may talk of these things 
 by our firesides 'tis best to keep a silent tongue while 
 abroad." 
 
 " You need not disquiet yourself about us," Roger broke in, 
 " we have no communion with lords or princes, and so that we 
 can drive our herds safely down into Cumberland, we care not 
 whether one noble or another has the king's ear. We have 
 but just returned from England." 
 
 " Well, man, I may put you in the way of getting a job if 
 you want one," the eldest of the party said. "I myself have 
 a small farm near Lavingston, and but breed cattle for the 
 Edinburgh market, but I have a brother at Lanark who buys 
 cattle up in the north, and, when there is peace between the 
 countries, sends the droves down to Carlisle and makes a good 
 profit on their sales. I saw him but two hours ago, and he 
 told me that he was daily expecting a lot of cattle from the 
 north, and that he intended to send them on without delay to 
 Carlisle. If you say to him that you have seen me, and that 
 I recommended you to call on him and see if he wanted any 
 drovers to aid in taking them down, I doubt not he will take 
 you on unless he has already engaged men." 
 
114 BOTH SIDES THE RORDER 
 
 "I thank you for the offer," Roger said, "but our home lies 
 near Roxburgh, and we intend to abide there for a time, for 
 the roads are by no means safe at present. Douglas is think- 
 ing more of his quarrel with Dunbar than of keeping down 
 border freebooters. We escaped them this time ; but we heard 
 of their taking heavy toll from some herds that followed 
 us, and of their killing two or three drovers who offered objec- 
 tion, so we have determined to abide at home for a time to 
 see how matters go." 
 
 After taking a brief view of the town, they started in the 
 afternoon to walk to Dalkeith, where they slept, and leaving 
 there at daybreak crossed a lofty range of hills and came down 
 into Lauderdale. They had no fear of any interruption such 
 as they had experienced before — as, had Douglas news of 
 negotiations going on between March and England, he would 
 not think it necessary to watch the road between Edinburgh 
 and the border — and late in the evening they arrived at An- 
 crum, on the Teviot, having done fully fifty miles since start- 
 ing. Ten miles in the morning took them to Roxburgh. 
 Here they put up at a small tavern, and Oswald donned the 
 servitor's suit that he had brought with him from Dunbar, 
 while Roger, to his great disgust, resumed his monk's gown, 
 which he put on over the drover's suit. Oswald then went to 
 the governor's. His former acquaintance happened to be at 
 the door, and endeavoured to atone for his former rudeness 
 by at once ushering him to the governor's room. 
 
 "Welcome back, Master Forster ! " the latter said; "your 
 mission, whatever it was, is speedily terminated. From what 
 you said I had not looked for you for another fortnight." 
 
 " If I had not come when I did," Oswald said, "my absence 
 might have been prolonged for months. However, all has 
 gone well, and I purpose starting at once for Alnwick, and 
 would fain reach Wooler by nightfall." 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 115 
 
 " That you can do easily enough. I will order the horses 
 to be saddled at once." 
 
 " I thank you, Sir Philip. I will mount here in the court- 
 yard. I care not now what notice may be taken of me, seeing 
 that there is but some ten miles to be ridden to the frontier." 
 
 " Nor, I warrant me, will you meet with interference on 
 the road," the knight said, "I have not heard of anyone being 
 stopped for toll for the past year between this and the border." 
 
 A quarter of an hour later they left Roxburgh, and travel- 
 ling at an easy pace arrived at Wooler before sunset, and on 
 the following evening entered Alnwick. They could have 
 reached it earlier, but Oswald thought it as well not to enter 
 the castle until after dark, as he did not wish to be noticed in 
 his present attire. Fastening the horses to hooks in the court- 
 yard, Oswald ran up to his apartment, which was next to that 
 of his uncle. 
 
 " Welcome back, Oswald ! " the latter said, as he opened his 
 door on hearing his footstep. " I had thought that you 
 would be longer away." 
 
 " I am back sooner than I expected, uncle. Will you order 
 supper to be brought up here for Roger and myself; we are 
 both hard set, though, indeed, we had a meal of bread and 
 cheese at noon at a wayside tavern." 
 
 "Brother Roger has behaved well? " 
 
 " Excellently ; he has cracked but two sconces since we 
 left, and these were on my behalf. He will sleep on some 
 rushes in my room to-night ; he hates the thought of returning 
 to the monastery, and has begged me most earnestly to ask 
 Percy to continue him in his employment." 
 
 As soon as Oswald had donned his ordinary attire he went 
 to Lord Percy's quarters. 
 
 " You are back sooner than I had expected, Oswald," Hot- 
 spur said as he entered; " nothing has gone wrong, I hope?" 
 
116 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " Nothing, my lord, but I was forced to leave Dunbar after 
 but three days' stay there, for the earl was so fearful that I 
 might be detected on my way back that he would have 
 retained me with him until the time for action came, sending 
 down another messenger by sea to you. As your orders were 
 to return with all speed I gave him the slip and made my way 
 back as quickly as possible." 
 
 "And March?" 
 
 " I think that the earl is in earnest in his professions, my 
 lord, and that you can rely upon him for such aid as he can 
 render; but from what I heard in Edinburgh — " 
 
 "In Edinburgh!" Hotspur said in surprise; "what took 
 you there ? " 
 
 " I will tell you, my lord ; but the point is that men said 
 openly there, that there was a report that he would be attainted 
 and deprived of his land for treasonable words spoken by him 
 to the king, the Duke of Albany, and the Duke of Rothesay. 
 If this is so, he will have to fly, for assuredly he has at present 
 no force gathered that could resist those of the king and 
 Douglas." 
 
 "Give me an account of what has happened," Hotspur said, 
 frowning. " I feared that March's impetuous temper would 
 lead him into trouble before we were in a position to march to 
 his assistance, and I heard rumours of a stormy scene between 
 him and Rothesay when he learned that he had been fooled, 
 but I knew not that the king himself was present." 
 
 Oswald related the story of his journey and the interruption 
 on the moor, and the reports that he had afterwards heard of 
 the stoppage of all travellers coming from the south by the 
 same band. 
 
 "The leader was evidently above the rank of an ordinary 
 marauder, and his followers obeyed him as men-at-arms would 
 obey an officer ; and it seemed to me, my lord, that Douglas 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 117 
 
 must have heard a vague report that the earl was in communi- 
 cation with England, and sought to intercept some messenger 
 on whom he might find a letter, or from whom he could 
 extract proofs of the earl's treachery." 
 
 "Tis like enough," Hotspur said. "When a man is so 
 rash as to upbraid the king, and still more Albany, he must 
 needs fall under suspicion. Now go on with your story." 
 
 When Oswald had brought his narration to an end, Percy 
 said : " You have done very well, Oswald, and have deserved 
 the confidence that I placed in you. You have shown much 
 circumspection, and you did well in escaping from Dunbar as 
 you did. The mad monk, too, seems to have behaved well. 
 I' doubted your wisdom in taking him, but he has certainly 
 proved a useful fellow." 
 
 " I would petition, my lord, that you should continue him in 
 your service, and that, should you employ me upon another 
 mission, you will again allow me to take him with me. He is 
 a shrewd fellow as well as a stout one, and I could wish for no 
 better companion ; though I own that, since he put on his 
 gown again at Roxburgh and rode hither, his spirits have 
 greatly failed him." 
 
 " I will arrange that with the abbot," Hotspur said ; " but 
 tell him that while he is here he must continue to wear his 
 robe. His face is too well known for him to pass as a man- 
 at-arms without being recognised by half the garrison. The 
 Lord Abbot would well object to one of his monks turning into 
 a swaggering man-at-arms at his very door. At any rate, I 
 shall tell the abbot that if he will consent quietly to the monk's 
 unfrocking himself until he can obtain for him release from his 
 vows, I will send him away to one of the other castles, whence 
 I can fetch him if you need him to accompany you on any 
 errand, and where he can form part of the regular garrison. 
 But the knave must be informed that it were best that he say 
 
118 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 nought about his former profession, and that he comport him- 
 self as quietly as is in his nature. I will give him a small 
 command as soon as may be ; for although a very bad monk, 
 he has proved himself to be a good soldier." 
 
 " I thank you greatly, my lord," Oswald said, " and will talk 
 seriously to the monk, who will be delighted when he hears that 
 the abbot will take steps to allow him to lay aside his gown." 
 
 Roger was indeed delighted when he heard the news, and 
 still more so when, three days later, Oswald informed him that 
 Hotspur had obtained from the abbot what was practically a 
 release from his vows. The good abbot said that he felt that 
 harm rather than good would ensue from keeping the monk a 
 member of the monastery. 
 
 " He infects the lay brothers with his talk," he said. " He 
 is a good instructor in arms, but he teaches not as one who 
 feels that it is a dire necessity to carry arms, but as one who 
 delights in it. Moreover, he causes scandals by his drinking 
 bouts, and does not add to the harmony of the place. At a 
 time like this, when the Scots may at any moment fall across 
 the border, such a fellow may do good service to his country, 
 and it is surely better that a man should be a good soldier 
 than that he should be a bad monk. Therefore I will let him 
 go, my lord ; but keep him away from here. It would be a 
 grave scandal were he to be brawling in the town, where he is 
 known. Therefore, I pray you, take him elsewhere. I have 
 striven long to make him a worthy member of his order, but 
 I feel that it is beyond me ; and it would be best, therefore, 
 that he should go his own way. He may come to be a worthy 
 soldier, and so justify me in allowing him to unfrock himself. 
 As he is abiding in your castle, I pray you bid him present 
 himself here to-morrow. I would fain speak to him, and give 
 him such advice concerning his future conduct as may be of 
 benefit to him." 
 
BACK TO HOTSPUR 119 
 
 When Roger returned from the monastery the next day he 
 wore a much more serious face than usual. 
 
 " The abbot has done me more good by his talk this morn- 
 ing," he said to Oswald, " than by all the lectures and pen- 
 ances he has ever imposed on me. In truth he is a good 
 man, and I had half a mind to say that I would return to the 
 convent and do my best to comport myself mildly and becom- 
 ingly. But I felt that it would not do, Oswald, the thing is 
 too strong for me, and, however I might strive, I know that 
 when the temptation came I should break out again, and so 
 I held my peace." 
 
 " What did he say to you, Roger? " 
 
 "He said many things, but the gist of it was that there 
 were as good men outside the walls of a monastery as there 
 were within it, and that a soldier has as many opportunities 
 — indeed many more opportunities — of showing himself a 
 good man as a monk has. In battle, he said, a soldier must 
 act as such and fight stoutly against the enemy, and take life 
 as well as risk his own ; but after the fight is over he should 
 show himself merciful, and if he cannot follow out the precept 
 to love his enemies, he should at least be compassionate and 
 kind to them. But above all, he should never oppress the 
 helpless, should comport himself honourably and kindly to 
 women and children, and, if necessary, draw sword in their 
 defence against those who would ill-use them. And though 
 the spoils of war were honourable and necessary when cap- 
 tured in fair fight, yet the oppression and robbery of the poor 
 were deadly crimes. 
 
 " ' Comport yourself always, Roger, as if, though a soldier 
 in arms, you were still a monk at heart. You are brave and 
 strong, and may rise to some honour ; but whether or no, you 
 may bear yourself as if you were of gentle blood and wore 
 knightly spurs. Not all who are so are honourable and merci- 
 
120 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 ful, as they have vowed to be. Remember, I shall hear of you 
 from time to time through my Lord Percy, and that it will 
 gladden me to have a good account of you, and to feel that I 
 have not done wrong in letting you go forth from this house of 
 rest to take part in the turmoil and strife of the world.' He 
 said more than this, but this is the pith of it. I knelt down 
 and swore that I would strive to the utmost in my power to do 
 as he bade me, and he put his hands on my head and bade me 
 go in peace ; and I tell you I mean to prove to him that his 
 words have not been in vain." 
 
 Two days later Oswald started with Roger, and rode to 
 Warkworth Castle, some ten miles away, bearing an order to 
 the governor to add Roger to the strength of the garrison, 
 telling him that he had shown himself to be a brave soldier 
 and a skilful one, and that he could place confidence in him 
 and appoint him to any sub-command that might become 
 vacant. On the way they entered a wood. Here Roger took 
 off his monastic garb and clad himself in armour such as was 
 worn by the garrison of Alnwick. The monk's clothes were 
 made up into a bundle and left in the wood, Oswald saying, 
 " I will carry them back with me on my return, Roger. It 
 may be that they may come in useful yet if you and I travel 
 together again in the Percys' service." 
 
 A month passed, and then the Earl of March came by sea to 
 Alnwick. Douglas and the regent had marched against him 
 with an overwhelming force, and as they were both personal 
 enemies he knew that his fate would be sealed if he fell into 
 their hands, and he had therefore been driven to declare 
 himself openly as a vassal of the English king. On the day 
 after his arrival he happened to be in Hotspur's room when 
 Oswald entered. 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! " he said, " this is your messenger, Percy. You 
 left me with scant notice, sir." And he smiled. 
 
jack, io Horsiv: 121 
 
 " I was forced to do so, my lord earl, for in truth I was not 
 sure that you would not prevent me from following my lord's 
 orders to return after seeing you." 
 
 " You were right. In the first place I was not sure that you 
 were a true messenger, and in the second place I feared that 
 you might on return fall into the hands of the Douglases, who 
 would speedily find means to wring from you an account of 
 your mission. Therefore I thought that it were best that you 
 should tarry a while with me at Dunbar. The young fellow 
 has a good head, Lord Percy, and is as hard to hold as a wild- 
 cat. I put the matter of watching him into the hands of two 
 or three of my men whose wits I have tried more than once, 
 and know them to be among the most trustworthy of my 
 followers. This lad, however, outwitted them, — how, they have 
 never been able to explain ; but my fellows were found trussed 
 up like fowls for roasting, in an alley into which they had been 
 thrown, having, as they declared, been knocked down by a 
 giant fellow, who sprung from they knew not where, just as 
 they were about to lay hands upon your messenger. After 
 they had vanished none had seen him pass the walls, and we 
 judged that he must have started in a craft that sailed up the 
 Forth. Fearing that if they landed he might speedily fall into 
 the hands of Douglas, I sent a vessel in chase, but they missed 
 him ; and indeed from that time to this I knew not, save by 
 your letter to me, whether he had reached here safely." 
 
 After a short stay the Earl of March was about to return to 
 Dunbar, when he heard that the king himself was coming north 
 with an army for the invasion of Scotland, and would then 
 confer with him and consider the terms on which he proposed 
 to transfer his allegiance to him. 
 
 A month later the king arrived at Alnwick, and there George 
 Dunbar, Earl of March, entered into an agreement with him, 
 in which he renounced all fealty to the King of Scotland, in 
 
122 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 consideration for which he was granted an estate in Lincoln- 
 shire and other revenues. It was also agreed that the subjects 
 of the King of England should support the earl in time of 
 necessity, and should be supported by him and received into 
 his fortresses. 
 
 He was not now in a position to render any very efficient 
 aid to the king, for Robert Maitland, his nephew, to whom he 
 had committed the castle of Dunbar, had been summoned by 
 Douglas, who had marched there with a strong force by order 
 of the king, and had surrendered the stronghold to him. How- 
 ever, he brought Dunbar's wife and family, and a considerable 
 force of his retainers, safely across the border. He and Percy 
 together then made a raid into the Douglas territory, and pene- 
 trated as far as Haddington, and collected much spoil from the 
 country round. Douglas, however, came suddenly upon them 
 in great force, and they were obliged to retreat hastily across 
 the frontier again, abandoning their baggage and booty. 
 
 The king's invasion was no more satisfactory. The Earl of 
 March was unable to place Dunbar in his hands, and as the 
 Scots declined battle in the open he laid siege to Edinburgh, 
 but without success. Dunbar being closed to him, he was 
 unable to obtain provisions, and was forced to fall back to 
 England, having accomplished nothing. 
 
 During his invasion he had shown much more leniency than 
 had been the custom with his predecessors. He had taken 
 what was necessary to support the army, but had abstained 
 from wasting the country, destroying villages and towns, and 
 slaughtering the country people ; and so far from embittering 
 the animosity between the two nations he had produced a 
 better state of feeling, and a truce was in consequence con- 
 cluded for a year at Kelso by special commissioners from both 
 kings on the 21st of December, 1400. 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 123 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 LUDLOW CASTLE 
 
 OSWALD FORSTER had not been present when, in June, 
 1400, the king arrived at Alnwick. A few days after the 
 coming of the Earl of March, Hotspur received a letter from 
 Sir Edmund Mortimer, the brother of his wife, asking him to 
 send a body of men-at-arms under an experienced captain who 
 could aid him to drill newly-raised levies, for that one Owen 
 Glendower had taken up arms against the Lord Grey de 
 Ruthyn, and that turbulent men were flocking to his standard, 
 and it was feared that serious trouble might ensue. Percy 
 was in a position to send but few men, for with war with the 
 Scotch imminent he could not weaken himself by sending off 
 a large force. However, he sent for Alwyn Forster. 
 
 " I need twenty picked men for the service of Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer, Alwyn. I would send more were it not for the 
 position of affairs here. What say you to taking the command 
 of them?" 
 
 " I would gladly do so, my lord, if it be that there is a 
 chance of something more lively than drilling hinds and 
 turning them into men-at-arms, which has been my business 
 for years now, without a chance of striking a blow in earnest." 
 
 " I think that there will be a certainty of fighting, Alwyn. 
 The Welshmen are growing troublesome again, and Sir Ed- 
 mund thinks that there may be tough work on the Welsh 
 marches, and has written to me for aid. With the king com- 
 ing hither, there is a chance that the Earl of March and my- 
 self will open the war by harrying the Douglas's lands. I can 
 spare no great force, but even twenty tried men-at-arms would 
 no doubt be welcome. As the king is going to march into 
 
124 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Scotland, there is no fear that there will be any serious inva- 
 sion by the Scots, and therefore you can be spared for a while. 
 I think not that any of my knights would care to go in com- 
 mand of so small an array, but I thought that you might like 
 to take it." 
 
 " I shall be right glad to do so, my lord." 
 
 " I shall send your nephew with you. He is a shrewd and 
 gallant young fellow, and I know he would far rather be tak- 
 ing part in active service against the Welsh than spending his 
 time in idleness here. He has been too long used to a life on 
 horseback to rest contented to be cooped up in a castle. 
 Besides, there will be a good opportunity of distinguishing him- 
 self, and of learning something of a warfare even wilder and 
 more savage than that in these northern marches." 
 
 " I should like much to have him with me, my lord. Me- 
 thinks that he has the making of a right good knight ; and, 
 young as he is, I am sure that his head is better than mine, 
 and I should not be too proud to take counsel of him if needs 
 be." 
 
 "That is settled then, Alwyn. Choose your men and set 
 off to-morrow morning. Ralph Peyton, your lieutenant, shall 
 take the command of the garrison until you return." 
 
 Oswald was delighted when his uncle told him of the mis- 
 sion with which he was charged, and that he himself was to 
 accompany him. 
 
 " You are to have the choice of the men-at-arms, uncle ? " 
 
 " Yes, Oswald. I know what you are going to say. You 
 would like to have that mad monk of yours as one of them." 
 
 " That should I, uncle. You have no stouter man-at- 
 arms in all your band, and he has proved that he can be 
 discreet when he chooses, and did me good service in my last 
 expedition." 
 
 "Very well, lad, we will take him. I will send one of the 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 125 
 
 men over at once for him to join us on the road to-morrow. 
 I shall choose young and active fellows, of whom we have 
 plenty. I have never fought against the Welsh ; but they are 
 light-footed and agile, and their country is full of hills and 
 swamps. The older men would do as good service here were 
 the castle besieged in our absence, of which, however, there is 
 but slight chance ; but for work against the Welsh they would 
 be of little use." 
 
 Hotspur himself spoke to Oswald that evening. 
 
 "Here is a missive to give to Sir Edmund Mortimer. I 
 have commended you to him, telling him that, though young, 
 there is not one of my squires in whom I could more implicitly 
 trust, and that you had carried out a delicate mission for me 
 with rare discretion and courage. Your uncle, as an old 
 retainer and a good fighter and the captain of my garrison, 
 goes in command of the men-at-arms, and in regular fighting 
 one could need no better officer ; but in such warfare as that 
 against the Welsh is like to be, yours will be the better head 
 to plan, and as my squire you will represent me ; I have spe- 
 cially commended you to him as one always to be depended 
 upon." 
 
 " I am greatly beholden to your lordship," Oswald said, 
 " and will try to justify the commendations that you have 
 given me." 
 
 At daybreak on the following morning the little party rode 
 out from the castle. Oswald with his uncle rode in front, the 
 former in the highest spirits, while the sturdy old soldier was 
 himself scarce less pleased at this change from the monotony 
 of life in garrison. 
 
 " Years seem to have fallen off my shoulders, lad," he said, 
 " and I feel as young as I did when I fought at Otterburn." 
 
 " That was a bad business, uncle, and I trust that no such 
 misfortune as that will befall us this time." 
 
126 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I hope not indeed, Oswald. It was a sore fight, and we 
 are scarce likely to have a pitched battle with these Welsh 
 carls. They fight not much in our fashion as I have heard, 
 but dash down from their hills and carry fire and sword 
 through a district, and are off again before a force can be 
 gathered to strike a blow. Then there are marches to and 
 fro among their hills, but it is like chasing a will-o'-the-wisp, 
 and like enough just when you think you have got them 
 cooped up, and prepare to strike a heavy blow, they are a 
 hundred miles away plundering and ravaging on our side of 
 the frontier. They are half-wild men, short in stature, and 
 no match for us when it comes to hand-to-hand fighting, but 
 broad in the shoulder, tireless, and active as our shaggy ponies, 
 and well-nigh as untamable. 'T is fighting in which there is 
 little glory and many hard knocks to be obtained, but it is a 
 good school for war. It teaches a man to be ever watchful 
 and on his guard, prepared to meet sudden attacks, patient 
 under difficulties, and, what is harder, to be able to go without 
 eating or drinking for a long time, for they say that you 
 might as well expect to find corn and ale on the crest of the 
 Grampians as you would on the Welsh hills." 
 
 "The prospect doesn't look very pleasant, uncle," Oswald 
 laughed. " However, their hills can scarcely be more barren 
 than ours, nor can they be quicker on the stroke than the 
 border raiders, and for such work we of the northern marches 
 have proved far more useful than the beefy men of the south." 
 
 " No doubt, no doubt ; and maybe that for that reason Sir 
 Edmund prayed Hotspur to send a detachment to his aid, for 
 he would know that we are accustomed to a country as rough 
 and to a foe as active as he has now to meet. I wonder what 
 has stirred up the Welsh now, knowing as they do that although 
 they may gain successes at first, it always ends in the harrying 
 of their lands and the burning of their castles and villages. 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 127 
 
 They have been quiet for some years. But they are always like 
 a swarm of bees ; they will work quietly enough till they take 
 offence at something, then they will pour out in a fury, attack- 
 ing all they come across, and caring nothing about death, so 
 that they can but prick an enemy with their stings. Maybe 
 it is the report that the king is engaging in another Scotch war, 
 and they think that it is a good time to gather spoil from their 
 neighbours. They used to be mightily given to warring among 
 themselves, but of late I have heard but little of this. 
 
 " It is a hundred years now since they were really trouble- 
 some, and rose under Morgan ap Madoc, and Edward II. 
 had himself to reduce them to submission, and build strong 
 castles at Conway, Beaumaris, and other places. There have 
 been one or two partial risings since then, but nothing of much 
 consequence. It may well be that the present generation, who 
 have not themselves felt the power of English arms, may have 
 decided to make another stroke for independence, and if so, 
 it will need more than Mortimer's force or that of the other 
 border barons to bring them to reason, and as for our little 
 detachment, it will be but a drop in the ocean. However, it 
 may be that this is a mere quarrel between Mortimer and some 
 of his neighbours. I have heard somewhat of the Welshman 
 Owen Glendower, who lives in those parts. He has a griev- 
 ance against Lord Grey of Ruthyn, who, as he says, unjustly 
 seized a small estate of his. I know that he petitioned Parlia- 
 ment for redress, but that his petition was lately refused." 
 
 '* 'T is strange that such a man should have known enough of 
 English law to have made a petition to our Parliament." 
 
 " Yes ; but he is no common man. He went to England and 
 studied at our universities, and even lived in the inns of court, 
 and learned the laws of this country. Then, strangely enough, 
 he became an esquire in the household of King Richard, and 
 did good service to him, and when the court was broken up on 
 
128 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Richard being dethroned, he went away to his estate in Wales. 
 Since then I have not heard of him, save as to this dispute 
 with Lord Grey and his petition to Parliament thereon ; but 
 men who were at Richard's court have told me that he was a 
 courteous gentleman of excellent parts and, it was said, of 
 much learning." 
 
 " Such a man might be a formidable enemy," Oswald said, 
 " and if he has been robbed by Lord Grey, he might well head 
 an insurrection to recover his estates from that noble." 
 
 In the course of their ride they were joined by Roger, who 
 warmly thanked Alwyn for having selected him as one of his 
 band. The other soldiers received him heartily, for the fight- 
 ing monk had been a familiar personage at Alnwick, and his 
 mighty strength and jovial disposition rendered him very 
 popular among the soldiers of the garrison. There had been 
 general satisfaction among them when it was known that he 
 had laid aside his monk's gown and had become one of the 
 Percys' men-at-arms, and there had been many expressions of 
 regret that he had been sent off, instead of forming one of the 
 garrison of Alnwick. Two or three of them addressed him as 
 usual as monk, but he said : 
 
 " Look here, comrades, I have been a monk, and a bad one, 
 and the less said about it the better. I am no longer a monk, 
 but a man-at-arms, and as I am not proud of my doings as a 
 monk, I have given up the title as I have given up the garb. 
 Therefore I give fair notice that whosoever in future shall 
 address me as monk will feel the weight of my arm. My 
 name is Roger, and as Roger let me be called henceforth." So 
 saying, he fell into his place in the line, when the cavalcade 
 continued their way. 
 
 The journey was a long one. Oswald had been well supplied 
 with funds, and seldom found difficulty in obtaining lodgings 
 for the party. The sight of an esquire with a small troop of 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 129 
 
 men-at-arms wearing the Percy cognisance excited no curiosity 
 as they rode south, but when they turned westward it was 
 otherwise, and at their halting-places Oswald and his uncle, 
 who dined apart from the others, were always questioned as 
 to their destination. But when it was known that they were 
 travelling to the castle of Mortimer, whose sister was the wife 
 of their lord, none were surprised, for rumours were already 
 current of troubles on the Welsh border ; and when they 
 entered Shropshire they heard that Owen Glendower with a 
 considerable force had fallen suddenly upon the retainers of 
 Lord Grey de Ruthyn, had killed many, and had reocccupied 
 the estates of which he had been deprived by that nobleman. 
 On the fifteenth day after leaving Alnwick they arrived at 
 Ludlow Castle, of which Mortimer was the lord. Oswald was 
 at once conducted to the hall where the knight was sitting. 
 
 " I am bearer of a message from Sir Henry Percy," he said ; 
 " he has sent hither a party of twenty men-at-arms under the 
 command of the captain of his garrison at Alnwick." 
 
 " I had hoped for more," the knight said, taking the missive 
 and opening it ; " but I can understand that now the king is 
 marching against Scotland Percy cannot spare troops to de- 
 spatch so long a distance. I trust that he and my sister, his 
 wife, and the earl are in good health?" 
 
 " I left them so, sir." 
 
 The knight read Hotspur's letter. 
 
 " He speaks in terms of high commendation of you, young 
 sir," he said as he laid the letter down on the table. "Such 
 commendation is rarely bestowed on one so young. I mar- 
 velled somewhat, when you entered, that Sir Henry Percy 
 should have sent so young a squire, but from what he says I 
 doubt not that his choice is a good one ; and indeed it is plain 
 that your muscles have had rare exercise, and that you can 
 stand fatigue and hardship better than many older men. It is 
 
130 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 like that you will have your share, for the whole border seems 
 to be unsettled. You have heard that this Glendower has 
 boldly attacked and driven out Lord Grey's retainers from the 
 estates he had taken. 
 
 "As to the rights of that matter I have nought to say. 
 Lord Grey manages the affairs with the Welsh in his own 
 county of Denbighshire and along the north, and I keep their 
 eastern border, and I meddle not with his affairs nor he with 
 mine. I know that this Glendower is a supporter of King 
 Richard, of whom there are many tales current, some saying 
 that he escaped from Pomfret, and is still alive, though I doubt 
 not that the report that he died there is true. We know that 
 there is in Scotland a man whom it pleases Albany to put for- 
 ward as Richard, but this, methinks, is but a device to trouble 
 our king. Whether this Glendower believes in this man or 
 not I know not, but certain it is that he would embrace any 
 opportunity to prove his hostility to Henry, whom he professes 
 to regard as a usurper. Whether it is on account of his hold- 
 ing such opinions, and foolishly giving expression to them, that 
 Lord Grey thought fit to seize his estates I know not, nor in- 
 deed do I care. Now, however, that the man has taken up 
 arms, and by force has dispossessed Lord Grey, the matter 
 touches all of us who are responsible for the keeping of peace 
 in the Welsh marches. 
 
 " Were it only a quarrel between Lord Grey and this man, 
 it would matter but little, but from all I hear he exercises a 
 strange influence over his countrymen, who deem that he has 
 mysterious powers, and can call up spirits to aid him. For 
 myself, I have never known an instance where necromancy or 
 spirits have availed in any way against stout arms and good 
 armour, but such is not assuredly the opinion of the unlearned 
 either in this country or in Wales. But these mountaineers 
 are altogether without learning, and are full of superstitions. 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 131 
 
 Even with us a man more learned than the commonalty is 
 deemed by them to dabble in the black art, and it may well be 
 that this reputation Glendower has obtained is altogether due 
 to the fact that he has much knowledge, whereas the people 
 have none. However that may be, there is no doubt that the 
 Welsh people are mostly ignorant, and that at the call of this 
 Glendower men from all parts are hastening to join his banner. 
 Even on this side of the border there are complaints that the 
 Welsh servants are leaving, not openly and after a due termi- 
 nation of sendee, but making off at night and without a word 
 of warning. 
 
 " All this would seem to show r that there is trouble on hand, 
 and it behoves us to be watchful, and to hold ourselves in 
 readiness lest at any time they should, as in the days of old, 
 cross the border, and carry fire and sword through Shropshire 
 and Hereford. The royal castles in Wales could doubtless 
 hold out against all attacks, but the garrisons would have to 
 remain pent up within their walls until succour reached them. 
 Fortunately most of them are situated near the sea, and could 
 be relieved without the troops having to march through places 
 where a heavily armed man can scarce make his way, and 
 where these active and half-clad Welshmen can harass them 
 night and day without ever giving them a chance of coming to 
 close quarters. A messenger from Lord Grey arrived here 
 yesterday. Indeed, since the attack on his retainers we have 
 been in constant communication. At first he made light of 
 the matter, and said that he should like to have the Welshman 
 hanging from the battlements of his castle, but during the last 
 week his messages have been less hopeful. Glendower had 
 disappeared from the neighbourhood altogether, leaving a sort 
 of proclamation to Lord Grey affixed to the door of his house, 
 saying that next time he heard of him no mercy would be 
 shown, and every man would be slain. He now says that 
 
132 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 rumours reach him of large gatherings and that there are bon- 
 fires nightly on the hill-tops. He doubts not that the troubles 
 will soon be suppressed, but admits that much blood may have 
 to be spilt ere it is done. I can bear testimony to the bon- 
 fires, for from the top of the keep a dozen can be seen any 
 night blazing among the hills." 
 
 " Of course, sir, your messenger, asking Lord Percy to send 
 a body of men-at-arms here, was despatched before Glendower's 
 attack on Lord Grey? " 
 
 " Certainly ; but it is three months now since Parliament 
 refused Glendower's appeal for justice against Lord Grey, and 
 rumours have been busy ever since. Some said that he was 
 travelling through the valleys, accompanied by some of the 
 harpers, who have always taken a leading part in stirring up 
 the Welsh to insurrection. Some avow that he has retired to a 
 fortress, and was there weaving designs for the overthrow of 
 Lord Grey, and even of the whole of the English castles. Some 
 say that he claims to be a descendant of Llewellyn, and the 
 rightful king of Wales. There is some foundation for this, for 
 I have talked to some of the better class of Welsh, who have, 
 like Glendower, studied in our universities. The Welsh are, 
 above all things, fond of long pedigrees, and can trace, or 
 pretend to trace, the lineage of all their principal families up 
 to Noah ; and some of them admit that there is some ground 
 for the claim Glendower is said to have made. 
 
 " Still, all these rumours make me feel uneasy. As we have 
 had many years of quiet here, it has not been necessary to 
 keep up more than a sufficient number of men-at-arms for the 
 defence of this castle. I might have increased the force, for 
 the people of these parts bear a deep animosity against the 
 Welsh, and dread them greatly, as they may well do from the 
 many wrongs and outrages they have suffered at their hands. 
 One reason why I have not taken on many men since the talk 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 133 
 
 of coming troubles began is that, close to the border as we are, 
 many have connections with the Welsh by business or marriage, 
 and these, if enrolled in the garrison, might serve as spies, and 
 give warning of any movement we might undertake. I had 
 hoped that Percy could have spared me a hundred good men- 
 at-arms. I would rather have had his men than others, because 
 they have been trained in border warfare by the constant 
 troubles in Scotland, and would, moreover, come to me with a 
 better heart than others, since Sir Henry's wife is my sister, 
 and it is therefore almost a family quarrel upon which they 
 have entered. 
 
 " Had I known, when I wrote, that the king was on his way 
 north, I should have taken steps to raise my strength else- 
 where, as of course Percy would have occasion to use every 
 lance he could muster. Lord Grey has sent off a messenger to 
 the king begging him to denounce this fellow as an outlaw, 
 and should he be troublesome, he himself may, after he has 
 done with the Scots, send hither a force, for although we may 
 hope, with the aid of the levies of the border counties, to 
 drive back the Welsh in whatever force they may come, 't is 
 another thing to march into the mountains. The matter has 
 been tried again and again, and has always taxed the power of 
 England to the utmost. 
 
 " 'T is of no use lamenting over spilt milk, but for my part 
 I regret that Parliament did not give a fair hearing to Glen- 
 dower's complaint against Lord Grey. The refusal to do so 
 was a high-handed one. It has driven this man to desperation, 
 and has enlisted the sympathies of all Welshmen who have 
 English neighbours ; for they cannot but say among themselves, 
 ' If he is to be plundered and despoiled and his complaints 
 refused a hearing, what is to prevent our being similarly de- 
 spoiled? 'T is surely better to take up the sword at once and 
 begin again the fight for our independence.' As it is, it may 
 
134 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 cost thousands of lives, immense efforts, and vast trouble before 
 things are placed on their former footing. Doubtless the cap- 
 tain of the men-at-arms you have brought is a good soldier, 
 since Percy says that he is captain of his garrison at Alnwick? " 
 
 " He bears a high reputation in Northumberland, Sir Ed- 
 mund. I may say that he is my uncle, and 't is from his 
 recommendation that Lord Percy in the first place took me 
 into his household." 
 
 " I will go down and speak with him," the knight said. " I 
 gave orders, as soon as I heard who had arrived, that proper 
 entertainment should be given to all ; yet it is but right that 
 I should myself go down to thank them for having come so far, 
 and to welcome their captain, whose experience will be of no 
 small use to my own men, who have never been engaged in 
 border war. Some have fought in France, but under conditions 
 so different that their experience will aid them but little, save, 
 indeed, if the Welsh grow so strong and so bold that they 
 venture to attack this castle." 
 
 Percy's men, when the knight descended, had indeed sat 
 down to supper with the retainers of the castle, while Alwyn 
 was being entertained by the captain of his men-at-arms. All 
 rose to their feet when Sir Edmund entered, but he waved 
 his hand to them to be seated. 
 
 " Finish your meal," he said, " and afterwards if you will 
 muster in the court-yard I will inspect you and see what stout 
 Northumberland men Lord Percy has sent me." He then 
 went up to the top of the keep with Oswald, pointed out the 
 distant hills, and told him what valleys and villages lay among 
 them, and the direction in which such roads as there were ran. 
 By the time they had descended, Percy's men were drawn up 
 in the court-yard. 
 
 "This is my uncle, Captain Alwyn Forster," Oswald said, 
 "of whom Lord Percy has written to you." 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 135 
 
 " I am glad to see so stout a soldier here," the knight said, 
 holding out his hand to Alwyn, " and I am grateful to Lord 
 Percy for sending, in answer to my request, one in whom he 
 has such perfect confidence : and I specially thank you for 
 having willingly relinquished so important a post, to head so 
 small a following." 
 
 " I was glad to come, Sir Edmund, for I had rested so long 
 at Alnwick that I longed for some brisk action, and fell gladly 
 into my lord's view when he requested me to come hither. I 
 can answer for my men, for they are all picked by myself from 
 among the stoutest of Sir Henry's following." 
 
 "That I can well believe," the knight said, as he looked at 
 the twenty troopers. " Tall, strong men all, and as brave as 
 they are strong, I doubt not. I shall be glad to have so stout 
 a band to ride behind me if these Welshmen break out. You 
 are all accustomed to border warfare, but this differs a good 
 deal from that in Northumberland. While the northern forays 
 are mostly made by horsemen, it is rare that your Welshman 
 adventures himself on horseback. But they are as active as 
 your wild ponies, and as swift, and if the trouble increases they 
 will give you plenty to do. I learn from your lord's letter that 
 you will be, as usual, under pay from him while you are with 
 me. I shall pay you as much more. 'T is meet that if you 
 render me service I should see that you are comfortable and 
 well contented." 
 
 There was a murmur of satisfaction among the men, and 
 after recommending them to the care of the captain of the 
 garrison, and bidding Alwyn speak in the name of his men 
 fearlessly for anything that should be lacking, Sir Edmund 
 left the court-yard. The seneschal of the castle, Sir John 
 Wyncliffe, requested Oswald to follow him. He first showed 
 him the chamber in one of the turrets that he was to occupy, 
 and then took him down to the hall, where two other knights, 
 
136 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 four esquires, and two or three pages were assembled in readi- 
 ness for the supper. Mortimer, with his wife and two daugh- 
 ters, presently came down and took his place at the head of 
 the table, at which the others sat down in order of their rank. 
 As a guest, Oswald was placed among the knights. Before 
 sitting down, Sir Edmund presented him to his wife and 
 daughters. 
 
 "This is one of Sir Henry Percy's esquires," he said, "and 
 can give you more news of Sir Percy's wife, of whom, beyond 
 saying that she sends her greetings to you all, Hotspur tells us 
 nothing." 
 
 "Have you been long a member of Sir Henry Percy's 
 household?" 
 
 " But a year, my lady." 
 
 " Hotspur speaks of him in very high terms, and says that 
 he has rendered him great services, and that he has the 
 highest confidence in him." 
 
 "To what family do you belong, sir?" the dame asked. 
 " From my husband's sister who was staying here some 
 months since, I learned much of your northern families." 
 
 " I am the son of John Forster of Yardhope, who has the 
 reputation of being as hard a fighter as any on the border. 
 He is not a knight, though of fair estates ; for, although Earl 
 Percy offered him knighthood for his services at the battle of 
 Otterburn, he said that he preferred remaining plain John 
 Forster, as his fathers had been before him. My mother was 
 a daughter of Sir Walter Gillespie, and my uncle is captain of 
 the garrison of Alnwick, and it was for his good-will towards 
 him and my father that Sir Henry appointed me one of his 
 esquires, thinking, moreover, that I might be more useful than 
 some, because I know every foot of the border, having rela- 
 tions on the Scottish side of it." 
 
 They now sat down to supper. After it was over, Sir 
 
LUDLOW CASTLE 137 
 
 Edmund took Oswald with him to his wife's bower. "There," 
 he said, " you can talk at your ease, and tell us how my sister, 
 your mistress is, and the children." 
 
 " Did you not say, Sir Edmund," his wife asked, " that it 
 was the captain of his men-at-arms that Sir Hotspur sent 
 hither in command of the band?" 
 
 "That is so, dame." 
 
 " Then surely he should have been at our table." 
 
 " I asked him," Sir Edmund replied, " but he said that htf 
 would rather, with my permission, lodge with John Baldry, 
 who is, like himself, a stout soldier, but who likes better hisr 
 own society than that of the high table. He said that except 
 upon rare and special occasions he always has been accus- 
 tomed to take his meals alone or with some comrades whom 
 he could take to his room. As this is also John Baldry'a 
 habit, he prayed me to allow him to accept his invitation to 
 share his room." 
 
 " What he says about his habits is true, my lady. I can 
 well understand my uncle cares not for company where it 
 would not be seemly for him to raise his voice or to enter into 
 a hot argument on some point of arms." 
 
 " What were the services of which Sir Henry speaks? " 
 
 " It was a mission with which he charged me, and which 
 involved some danger." 
 
 "By the way," Dame Mortimer said, "my sister-in-law 
 wrote to me some time since, telling us of a strange conflict 
 that was held between one of the squires and another who 
 had been newly appointed, and who on one of the mountain 
 ponies worsted his opponent, although the latter was much 
 older, and moreover clad in full armour and riding a heavy 
 war-horse. Was it you who were the victor on that occasion? " 
 
 " I can scarce be said to have been the victor, my lady. It 
 was indeed hardly a combat. But I maintained that one ac- 
 
138 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 customed to the exercises in use among our border men, and 
 mounted on one of our ponies accustomed to move with great 
 rapidity and to turn and twist at the slightest movement of 
 the rider's knee, would be a match for a heavy-armed knight 
 in single combat, although a number would have no chance 
 against the charge of a handful of mailed knights, and Sir 
 Henry put it to the proof at once." 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 THE WELSH RISING 
 
 FOR a time the garrison at the castle had but little to do. 
 Lord Grey had taken no steps to recover the estates from 
 which his retainers had been so unceremoniously ejected. He 
 had, indeed, marched a strong force through them, but the 
 Welsh had entirely withdrawn, and it would be necessary to 
 keep so large a force unemployed, were he to reoccupy the 
 land, that he abstained from taking any decisive action prior 
 to the return of the messenger whom he had despatched to 
 inform the king of the forcible measures that Glendower had 
 taken to recover the estate. It would have been no trifling 
 step to take to carry his arms into Wales, and so bring on a 
 fresh struggle after so many years of peace, and he would not 
 move in the matter until he had the royal authority. 
 
 Henry lost no time in replying. Glendower had been an 
 open supporter of Richard, and had retired from court rather 
 than own his successor as king. He had made his complaints 
 against Lord Grey before Parliament, and his appeal had been 
 rejected by an overwhelming majority. His attack upon Lord 
 Grey was therefore viewed in the light of an insult to the 
 
THE WELSH RISING 139 
 
 royal power, and a fortnight after Oswald and his party 
 arrived at Sir Edmund's a messenger arrived with a royal 
 order to all barons holding castles on the border to proclaim 
 Owen Glendower an outlaw, and to take all measures neces- 
 sary to capture him. Sir Edmund shook his head as he read 
 the proclamation, copies of which were to be fixed to the 
 castle gate and in other conspicuous places. 
 
 " Lord Grey has stirred up a fire that it will be difficult to 
 extinguish. It were as wise to kick over a hive of bees when 
 naked to the waist as to set Wales in a ferment again. Had 
 this proclamation been sent to me only, I would have taken it 
 upon myself to hold it over until I had myself made a journey 
 north to see the king, and to submit to him my views on the 
 subject, and to point out how dire might be the consequences 
 to the inhabitants of our marches, and how great would be the 
 effort required if Glendower should be supported by the whole 
 of his countrymen, as I believe he will be. However, as it has 
 been sent to all the keepers of the marches, this cannot be 
 done, and I shall at once send orders to the sheriffs of Shrop- 
 shire and Hereford to warn the militia that they may be called 
 out at any moment and must hold themselves in preparedness, 
 having every man his arms and accoutrements in good condi- 
 tion and fit for service according to the law. I shall also 
 issue orders to my own tenants to be ready to take up arms, 
 and to drive their herds away, and bring their wives and 
 families into the castle, as soon as the beacon fire is lighted 
 on the summit of the keep." 
 
 This was said to Oswald, to whom Sir Edmund had taken 
 a strong liking, and to whom he spoke more freely than he 
 might have done to his own knights and officers, as being in 
 Earl Percy's service and having no personal interest in the 
 matters in debate. 
 
 " You yourself have heard the tales that have been brought 
 
140 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 in to me, showing how greatly the people have been stirred by 
 the belief in Glendower's powers of necromancy ; how blue 
 flames have been seen to issue from every window and loop- 
 hole of his house ; how red clouds of various strange shapes 
 hover over it, and mysterious sounds are heard throughout the 
 night. For myself, I believe not these tales, though I would 
 not take upon myself to say they are false, since everyone 
 knows that there are men who have dealings with the powers 
 of darkness ; still, I should have myself to see these things 
 before I gave credence to them. That, however, makes no 
 difference in the matter ; true or not, they seem to be believed 
 by the Welsh, and cannot but increase his power. Well, we 
 shall soon hear what reply he makes to the proclamation, 
 of which he will certainly hear within a few hours of its 
 posting." 
 
 The answer, indeed, was not long in coming, for within a 
 week a copy of the reply sent by Glendower to the king ap- 
 peared side by side with every proclamation put up, none 
 knowing who were daring enough to affix them. In this, 
 Glendower no longer spoke of his grievance against Lord Grey, 
 but declared that with the will of the people he had assumed 
 the sovereignty of Wales, to which he was legally entitled by 
 his descent from her kings. He called upon every Welshman 
 in England to resort at once to his standard. 
 
 " The die is cast now," Sir Edmund said, as he read the 
 paper affixed to the castle gate. " It is no longer a question 
 whether Glendower is wrongfully treated by Lord Grey, it is 
 a matter touching the safety of the realm and the honour of 
 our lord the king. There is, I have now learned, some founda- 
 tion for Owen's claim to be the representative of the kings 
 of Wales, through his mother, Elinor. She was the eldest 
 daughter of Elinor the Red, who was daughter and heiress of 
 Catharine, one of the daughters of Llewellyn, the last Prince 
 
THE WELSH RISING 141 
 
 of Wales. For aught I know there may be others who have 
 a better claim than he, but at least he has royal blood in his 
 veins. At present that matters little. He has usurped the 
 title of King of Wales, and is evidently a most ambitious and 
 dangerous fellow, and none can doubt that this scheme has 
 not just sprung from his brain, but has long been prepared, 
 and that his quarrel with Lord Grey has but hastened the out- 
 break. 
 
 " I shall myself ride to Ruthyn and consult with Lord Grey 
 as to the measures to be taken. It may be that our forces may 
 be sufficient to crush the movement ere it gains strength, though 
 I greatly doubt it. Still, it would be well that we should act in 
 concert. Sir John Burgon and Sir Philip Haverstone, do you 
 take half a dozen men-at-arms and ride through the country, 
 bidding all the tenants assemble here next Saturday in their 
 arms and harness that I myself may inspect them. You may 
 tell them that a third of their number must be in readiness to- 
 night, and must ride hither by morning. The others must, on 
 an alarm being given, gather in strong houses, selected by them- 
 selves as the most defensible in their district, with their wives 
 and families, so as to repel any attack the Welsh may make, 
 leaving behind them the boys and old men to drive off their 
 flocks and herds either towards the nearest castle, or to Here- 
 ford or Shrewsbury, as may be nearest to them." 
 
 When the knights had left, messengers were sent out to all 
 the owners of castles in Radnor, Hereford, and Shropshire, 
 bidding them assemble in four days' time at Ludlow. On the 
 day of the meeting nearly three hundred tenants and vassals 
 presented themselves. To them Sir Edmund, having first in- 
 spected them and their arms, explained the situation. Then 
 each man was asked how many he could bring into the field 
 in accordance with the terms of his holding, and it was found 
 the total amounted to nigh eight hundred men. 
 
142 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I know not when the affair is likely to begin, and will there- 
 fore call only for a quarter of your force. Send your sons and 
 unmarried men. At the end of a month they can return to 
 you, and if needs be you can send as many more in their places. 
 It may be that I shall not require these, but possibly every 
 man may have to come out ; but you must bear in mind it is 
 not for the defence of this town and castle that men are 
 required, for the garrison and burghers can hold out against 
 any attack, but to save your homesteads from destruction." 
 
 The news had created a deep sensation. Although none of 
 those present had experienced the horrors of border warfare, 
 there was not one but had heard from their fathers tales of 
 burning, massacre, and wholesale destruction by the Welsh 
 forays. But so long a time had passed since the last serious 
 insurrection, that the news that Wales might shortly be in arms 
 again, came as a terrible blow to them. All agreed to send in 
 their proportion of men at once, and to see that the rest were 
 all ready to assemble immediately the summons came. The 
 next day some forty knights, owners of the castles thickly 
 scattered through the border counties, assembled in Ludlow 
 Castle. There was a long consultation ; arrangements were 
 made for the despatch of messengers by those nearest to the 
 frontier with news of any Welsh raid ; points were fixed upon 
 where each should assemble with what force he could gather, 
 thence to march to any threatened place, or to assemble at 
 Ludlow Castle, Mortimer being the warden of the marches 
 along that line of the border. 
 
 On the following day Sir Edmund rode with two of his 
 knights to hold council with Lord Grey at Ruthyn. * The 
 distance was considerable, and he was absent six days from his 
 castle. Before he returned, an event happened that showed 
 Glendower was in earnest, and intended to maintain his pre- 
 tensions by the sword. At daybreak, on the third day after 
 
THE WELSH RISDJG 143 
 
 Mortimer had left, a messenger arrived at the castle with 
 news that a large body of Welsh had, the evening before, 
 entered Radnor by the road across the hills from Llanidloes, 
 and were marching towards Knighton, burning the villages as 
 they went, and slaying all who fell into their hands. The 
 horn was at once sounded, and Sir John Wyncliffe and the 
 other knights hastily assembled in the court-yard. Here, after 
 a short consultation, it was determined that a mounted party 
 should be at once despatched to endeavour to harass the 
 advance of the Welsh, the troop consisting of Alwyn's men- 
 at-arms, twenty men of the garrison, and fifty mounted men 
 who formed part of the new levy. Four hundred foot- 
 men were to follow at once. Sir John Wyncliffe at first 
 thought of taking the command himself, but it was pointed 
 out to him that his presence would be required in Ludlow to 
 marshal the forces that would speedily arrive from all the 
 country round. Sir John Burgon, therefore, a valiant knight, 
 who had greatly distinguished himself against the French, was 
 unanimously chosen by his companions as leader of the whole 
 party, while with him rode Sir Philip Haverstone and Sir 
 William Bastow. 
 
 " This reminds one of one's doings at home, Oswald," his 
 uncle said, as he formed up his little troop. " I trust the 
 Welsh will not retreat until we have had a taste of their 
 quality ; but I doubt much if they will prove as formidable 
 foes as the Scotch borderers." 
 
 For a considerable portion of the distance the roads led 
 through forests, which at that time covered the greater part 
 of the country. Oswald, at the invitation of the knights, rode 
 with them at the head of the cavalcade. The way was beguiled 
 by anecdotes, that had been passed down from mouth to mouth, 
 of the last Welsh war. They reached Knighton by nine 
 o'clock. The enemy had not as yet come within sight of the 
 
144 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 town, but throughout the night the sky to the west had been 
 red with the flames of the burning villages and homesteads. 
 The male inhabitants were all under arms ; many had already 
 sent their wives and children in waggons towards Ludlow, but 
 as the town had a strong wall the men were determined upon 
 making a stout defence. 
 
 They crowded round the newly arrived troops with loud 
 cheers, which were raised again and again when they heard 
 that by mid-day four hundred footmen would arrive to their 
 assistance. It had been arranged that Sir Philip Haverstone 
 should remain in the town to take charge of the defence, and 
 that the mounted men should, under Sir John Burgon, en- 
 deavour to check the Welsh plundering parties in the open. 
 Sir William Bastow was to remain to assist Haverstone in the 
 defence of the town. There was no great fear of this falling, 
 as before the day was out four or five thousand men would be 
 assembled at Ludlow, and would be able to march to its re- 
 lief. These matters being arranged, Sir John Burgon led his 
 little troop out of the town. 
 
 The accounts of the Welsh forces were very conflicting, but 
 the balance of opinion was that there were not less than four 
 or five thousand of them. Beyond the fact that they were 
 skirting the hills and advancing towards Knighton the terrified 
 fugitives could say nothing save of their own experiences. It 
 was evident, however, that the Welsh force was not keeping 
 together, but after crossing the border had broken up and 
 scattered over the country, burning and slaying. Some of the 
 bands had approached to within five miles of the town, and 
 they might not improbably come in contact with fresh bands 
 of the enemy crossing the hills near the source of the Severn. 
 As soon as they had sallied from the castle and left the town 
 behind them Sir John halted his party. 
 
 " Now, men," he said, " there is one thing that you should 
 
THE WELSH RISING 145 
 
 remember — these Welshmen are not to be despised. Doubt- 
 less you will be able to ride over them, but do not think that 
 when you have done so you have defeated them. They will 
 throw themselves down on the ground, leap up as you pass 
 over them, stab your horses from below, seize your legs and 
 try to drag you from your saddles, leap up on to the crupper 
 behind you, and stab you to the heart. This is what makes 
 them so dangerous a foe to horsemen, and at Crecy they did 
 terrible execution among the French chivalry; therefore be 
 careful and wary. Spit all you see on the ground with your 
 lances, and hold your swords ever in readiness to strike them 
 down as they rise up beside you. Keep in as close order as 
 you can, for thus you will make it more difficult for them to 
 rise from the ground as you pass over." 
 
 He then formed his troop into two lines. In the centre of 
 the front line he placed the twenty men-at-arms from the 
 castle, with fifteen of the tenants on either hand. Oswald's 
 troop formed the centre of the second line, with ten of the 
 tenants on either flank. Another of the knights was in com- 
 mand in this line. They were to ride some fifty paces behind 
 the first, to cut down all who rose to their feet after the first 
 line had passed ; and if the resistance were strong, and the 
 first line brought to a stand, they were to ride up and rein- 
 force them. They had ridden some three miles when they 
 saw a column of smoke rise half a mile away. The pace was 
 quickened, and they had gone but a short distance when some 
 panic-stricken men came running down the road. 
 
 "How many Welshmen have attacked your village?" Sir 
 John asked. 
 
 " Hundreds of them, Sir Knight," one of the men panted 
 out, "at least, so it seemed to me; but indeed we were this 
 side of the village when they rushed into it, and, seeing that 
 nought could be done f <^ r esist them, we fled at once." 
 
146 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 When within three hundred yards of the village they entered 
 open ground, and at once formed up in the order the knight 
 had directed. Oswald took his place by the side of his uncle, 
 a couple of lengths in advance of their own troop. Scarce a 
 word was spoken in the ranks. Here and there dead bodies 
 were scattered over the ground, showing that the pursuit of 
 the fugitives had been maintained thus far. From the village 
 the wild shouts of the triumphant Welsh sounded plainly, but 
 mingled with these came occasionally a cry of pain, that seemed 
 to show that either the work of slaughter was not yet com- 
 pleted, or that some of the villagers still held one of the houses, 
 and were defending themselves until the last. 
 
 Every face was set and stern. The tenants knew that at 
 any moment similar scenes might be enacted in their own 
 villages ; while the men-at-arms were eager to get at the foe 
 and take vengeance for the murders they had perpetrated. 
 
 " Be sure you keep your ranks," Sir John said ; " remember 
 that any who straggle may be attacked by a score of these 
 wild men, and slain before others can come to their help. 
 Ride forward in perfect silence till we are within striking 
 distance." 
 
 At a gallop the troop swept down upon the village. As they 
 reached the first houses they saw that the road was full of wild 
 figures. Some were emerging from the houses laden with such 
 spoil as could be gathered there, chiefly garments ; others with 
 torches were setting fire to the thatched roofs ; while in the 
 middle of the village a number were attacking a house some- 
 what larger and more massively built than the rest. Sir John 
 raised his sword with the shout of " A Mortimer ! a Mortimer ! " 
 The shout was re-echoed by his followers, and a moment later 
 they dashed into the midst of the Welsh. At first they swept 
 all before them ; but speedily the mountaineers, running out 
 from the houses, gathered thickly on each side of the road. 
 
THE WELSH RISING 147 
 
 and as the first line passed, closed in behind it, and running 
 even more swiftly than the charging horses, strove to leap up 
 behind. 
 
 Some struck at the horses with their swords, hamstringing 
 several of them, and slaying their riders as they fell. 
 
 "Ride, ride !" the knight in command of the second line 
 shouted, and at even greater speed than before his followers 
 rode hotly forward, and came ere long on the straggling mass, 
 for the first line were now endeavouring to turn so as to face 
 their assailants. With a great shout the second line fell upon 
 them, the war-cries of" A Percy ! a Percy ! " being mingled with 
 those of " A Mortimer ! " Their approach had been unnoticed 
 by the Welsh, and their onslaught was irresistible. The Welsh 
 were hurled to the ground by the impetus of the charge, and 
 the two lines joined hands. 
 
 " Forward again ! " Sir John shouted, and the troop dashing 
 forward were soon hotly engaged with the enemy, who were 
 in strong force at the point where they were attacking the 
 house. The orders of their commander were now impossible 
 to follow. It was a fierce mel£e, where each fought for himself. 
 
 " Face round ! " Oswald shouted. " Now, men, lay about 
 you. A Percy ! a Percy ! " 
 
 The active little horses swung round instantly and faced the 
 crowd surging up against them. This was the style of fighting 
 to which the border men were accustomed. Active as the 
 Welsh were, the border ponies were as quick in their move- 
 ments, wheeling and turning hither and thither, but keeping 
 ever within a short distance of each other. The troopers 
 hewed down the foe with their heavy swords, and being partly 
 protected by their armour they possessed a great advantage 
 over their opponents. Oswald and his uncle fought slightly in 
 advance of the others, lending a helping hand to each otlier 
 when the pressure was greatest. On one occasion a Welshman 
 
148 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 seized Alwyn's leg while he was engaged with a foeman on the 
 other side, and strove to throw him from his horse. 
 
 Oswald wheeled his pony, and with a sweeping blow rid his 
 uncle of his foe ; but at the same moment a man leapt up 
 behind him, while two others assailed him in front. The 
 Welshman's sinewy arms prevented him from again raising his 
 sword, and he would have been slain by those in front had he 
 not at the moment slipped his right foot from his stirrup and 
 thrown himself from his horse, his leg sweeping off the man 
 who held him behind, and hurled him to the ground beneath 
 him. The Welshman's grasp instantly relaxed, but as Oswald 
 tried to rise, a blow fell upon his helmet, and four Welshmen 
 threw themselves upon him. He threw his arms around two 
 of them and rolled over and over with them, thereby frus- 
 trating the efforts of their companions to strike or stab him 
 through some unguarded point in his armour, when suddenly 
 there was a mighty shout, two tremendous blows were struck 
 in quick succession, then there was a shout, " Hold them still, 
 Master Oswald, hold them still ! " 
 
 Oswald tightened his grasp on his assailants, who were now 
 striving to rise. There was another crashing blow, and then 
 his last opponent slipped from his grasp and fled. 
 
 " Thanks, Roger," he said, as he leapt to his feet, " you 
 were but just in time ; another minute and those fellows 
 would have got their knives into me." 
 
 " I have had my eye upon you, master, all the time, and 
 while doing a little on my own account have kept myself in 
 readiness to come to your aid if need be." 
 
 Roger was fighting with a heavy mace, and the number . of 
 men lying round with their skulls crushed in showed with 
 what terrible effect he had been using it. Oswald again leapt 
 on to his horse, which had been too well trained to leave his 
 master's side, and had indeed in no small degree aided him, 
 
1SWALIJ IIIKI-.W HIS ARMS ROUND TWO OF THEM. 
 
THE WELSH RISING 149 
 
 by kicking furiously at the Welsh as they strove to aid their 
 comrades on the ground. By this time the combat was well- 
 nigh over. The protection afforded by Alwyn's band against 
 any attack on their rear had enabled Sir John's men-at-arms 
 and the tenants to clear the street in front of them ; but the 
 Welsh, though unable to hold their own in open fight, had 
 now betaken themselves to their bows and arrows, and from 
 behind every house shot fast. 
 
 The door of the house that had still resisted had been 
 thrown open, and eight men had come out followed by some 
 twenty women and children. 
 
 " Do each of you leap up behind one of us ! " Sir John 
 shouted. "Help the women up, men, then right-about and 
 ride out of the village. It is getting too hot for us here." 
 
 The order was quickly obeyed, and placing the horses carry- 
 ing a double burden in the centre, the troop rode out in a 
 compact body. The Welsh poured out into the road behind 
 them. 
 
 " Level your spears ! " Alwyn shouted to his men, who had 
 by his orders fallen in, in the rear of the others. The long 
 spears were levelled and with a shout the twenty men rode 
 down on their pursuers, bursting their way through them as if 
 they had been but a crowd of lay figures ; then, wheeling, they 
 returned again, none venturing to try to hinder them, and 
 rejoined the main body. 
 
 " Well done, indeed ! " Sir John Burgon exclaimed, " and 
 in knightly fashion. Verily those long border spears of yours 
 are right good weapons when so stoutly used." 
 
 Once outside the village the troop rode quietly on to the 
 spot at which they had first charged, then the villagers 
 dismounted. 
 
 "You made a stout defence, men," Sir John said. " It was 
 well that you had time to gain that house," 
 
150 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " It was agreed that all should take to it, Sir Knight," one 
 of the men said ; " but the attack was so sudden that only we 
 and these women had time to reach it before they were on us, 
 and had it not been for your arrival they must soon have 
 mastered us, for they were bringing up a tree to burst in the 
 door ; and as none of us had time to catch up our bows and 
 arrows we had no way of hindering them. Still, methinks 
 many would have fallen before they forced their way in." 
 
 The men now fell in again. Their numbers were counted. 
 The losses were by far the heaviest in the front line. Five of 
 the castle men-at-arms and fourteen of the levy were killed, 
 several others had gashes from the long knives and light axes 
 of the Welsh. Five of the tenants in the second line had 
 fallen, but none of Alvvyn's band, although most of the latter 
 had received wounds more or less serious in their combat with 
 the Welsh. 
 
 "The loss is heavy," Sir John said, "but it is as nought to 
 that inflicted upon the Welsh. I did not count them as we 
 rode back, but assuredly over a hundred have fallen, not count- 
 ing those who were slain in that last charge of yours, Alwyn ; 
 truly your men have fought gallantly, as was shown by the pile 
 of dead where your men-at-arms defended our rear. The 
 Welsh will be moving ere long. Half the village is already 
 burning, and you may be sure that there is nothing left to 
 sack in the other houses. If they come this way we must fall 
 back, for in the forest we shall be no match for them. If they 
 move across the open country we may get an opportunity of 
 charging them again." 
 
 He told two of his men to dismount and to crawl cautiously 
 along, one on each side of the burning village, and to bring 
 back news the moment the Welsh began to leave it. In 
 twenty minutes both returned saying that the enemy were 
 streaming out at the other end of the village laden with 
 
THE WELSH RISING 151 
 
 plunder of all kinds. There seemed to be no order or disci- 
 pline among them, each trooping along at his pleasure. 
 
 "Good!" the knight said; "we will give them another 
 lesson, and this time on more favourable terms than the last." 
 
 The troops formed into column and galloped at a canter 
 through the burning village. At the other end they came 
 upon a number of stragglers who were at once killed. Then 
 they emerged into the fields beyond and formed line. The 
 plain was dotted with men, the nearest but a hundred yards 
 away, the farthest nearly half a mile. In a single line the 
 horsemen swept along. The rearmost Welshmen turned 
 round at the tramp of the horses, and at once, throwing to 
 the ground the bundles that they carried, took to their heels 
 with shouts of warning. As these were heard the alarm spread 
 among the rest, who, believing that their foes had ridden away 
 through the forest, were taken completely by surprise. 
 
 A panic seized them ; leaders in vain shouted orders, their 
 voices were unheard among the cries of the men. Some, in- 
 deed, gathered together as they ran ; but the greater portion 
 fled in various directions, to escape the line of spears venge- 
 fully following them. Those unable to avoid the charge stood 
 at bay like wild animals. First shooting their arrows, they 
 drew their short axes or their knives as the horsemen came 
 within a short distance of them. Few had a chance of striking, 
 most of them falling pierced through and through by the 
 spears. Those who by swiftness of eye escaped this fate 
 sprung at the horses like wild-cats, clinging to the saddles, 
 while they strove to bury their knives in the riders' bodies. 
 
 Their back-pieces now served the troopers in good stead, as 
 did their superior personal strength. Some beat their assail- 
 ants down on to the pommel of their saddles and throttled or 
 stabbed them, while in many cases where they were hard 
 pressed the sword of a comrade rid them from their foes. So 
 
152 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the line held on its way until they reached the head of the 
 body of fugitives, then in obedience to the shout of Sir John 
 Burgon they turned, broke up into small bodies and scoured 
 the plain, cutting down the flying foe, and did not draw bridle 
 until what remained of the enemy had gained the shelter of 
 the wood. Then, at the sound of their leader's trumpet they 
 gathered around him in the centre of the plain. Two or three 
 had fallen from the Welsh arrows, and not a few had received 
 ugly slashes from their knives, but with these exceptions all 
 had come scathless through the fray. At least two hundred 
 dead Welshmen were scattered on the plain. 
 
 " You have done your work well, men," Sir John said, " and 
 taught them a lesson that they will not forget. Now, let us 
 ride back to Knighton and see how matters go there." 
 
 On arriving at the little town they found that all was quiet 
 and that no bodies of Welsh had approached the town. The 
 party of horse were again sent out in various directions, the 
 smoke serving them as a guide ; the villages were found to 
 be entirely deserted, but pushing farther on many fugitives 
 came out from hiding-places. Their reports were all of the 
 same character. The Welsh were in full retreat for their own 
 country. By the time the troops returned with the news to 
 Knighton, the footmen from Ludlow had marched in and were 
 being entertained by the inhabitants, who, now that the danger 
 had passed, had returned. 
 
 "Retired, have they, Sir John?" his two fellow-knights 
 said, as he arrived with his following. " It was but a raid for 
 plunder then, and not an invasion. Doubtless Glendower 
 merely wished to warm their blood, and to engage them so 
 far in his enterprise that they could no longer draw back. 
 They must have carried off some hundreds of cattle and sheep, 
 to say nothing of other plunder, and had it not been for our 
 having the news soon enough to get here before they retired, 
 
THE WELSH RISING 153 
 
 they would have got off scathless. As it is, they have learned 
 that even a well-planned foray cannot be carried out with im- 
 punity, but the loss of three hundred lives will not affect them 
 greatly, when it is clear that they have murdered twice that 
 number as well as enriched themselves with plunder." 
 
 " I think not that we shall hear of them again," Sir John 
 said. " Glendower has shown us without doubt what are his 
 intentions, and he may now wait to see what comes of last 
 night's work. I expect that he will keep among the hills, 
 where he can fight to better advantage, for horsemen are of 
 little use where there are mountains and forests." 
 
 After a consultation between the knights it was agreed that 
 two hundred of the footmen were to remain for two or three 
 days at Knighton in case the retreat of the Welsh might be a 
 feigned one, intended to lull the inhabitants into a state of 
 security and then to make a sudden night attack upon the 
 walls. The whole force remained until the next morning, and 
 then, leaving Sir Philip Haverstone in command of the party 
 remaining at Knighton, the rest, horse and foot, marched back 
 to Ludlow. 
 
 " Your band have indeed distinguished themselves, Oswald," 
 Sir John had said on the previous evening as they talked on 
 the events of the day. "Truly they are as stout men as I 
 have ever seen fighting. And you have escaped without a 
 wound, though I marked that your armour and clothes were 
 covered with mire, as if you had been rolling in the road." 
 
 "That is just what I have been doing, Sir John. One of 
 them leaped on to the horse behind me and pinioned my arms, 
 while two or three others made at me with axes and staves. 
 The clasp of the fellow was like an iron band, and, seeing that 
 my only chance was to rid myself of him, I slung my leg over 
 my horse, and we came down together, he undermost. Whether 
 the fall killed him or not I cannot say, but his arms relaxed ; 
 
154 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 half a dozen sprang on me, and in another minute I should 
 have been killed had not that big trooper of mine come to my 
 aid, and with a mighty mace dashed out their brains well-nigh 
 before they knew that they were attacked." 
 
 " A stout fellow indeed," Sir John said, " and one I should 
 like to have to ride behind me on the day of battle. I had 
 marked him before, and thought that I had never seen a more 
 stalwart knave, though methinks that he would look better did 
 he not crop his hair so wondrously short." 
 
 Oswald laughed. " He does it not to beautify himself, Sir 
 John, but to hide the fact that the hair on his crown is but of 
 six weeks' growth." 
 
 And then he related the circumstances under which Roger 
 came to be a member of his troop. 
 
 "By my faith, he has done well ! " Sir John said ; "a man 
 with such sinews as that is lost in a cloister. He is a merry 
 fellow too. I have often marked him at the castle, and his 
 laugh is a veritable roar that would sound strange echoing 
 along the galleries of a monastery. The abbot did well to let 
 him go, for such a fellow might well disturb the peace and 
 quiet of a whole convent. You say that he has skill in 
 war? " 
 
 " Yes, Sir John. He has been the instructor in arms of the 
 lay brothers, and of some of the monks too, and he led the 
 contingent of the abbey at Otterburn ; and although the day 
 went against the English he and his followers greatly distin- 
 guished themselves." 
 
 " If you would part with him I would better his condition, 
 Master Oswald, for on my recommendation Sir Edmund would, 
 I am sure, make him captain of a company." 
 
 " I should be sorry indeed to part with him, Sir John, and 
 the more so since he has saved my life to-day ; but even were 
 I willing I feel sure he would not leave me, as we have gone 
 
THE WELSH RISING 155 
 
 through some adventures together, and he believes that it is to 
 me that he owes his escape from the convent." 
 
 " What were these adventures, Oswald? " 
 
 " It was a matter touching the Earl of March — not Sir 
 Edmund's nephew, now in the care of the king, but the Scot- 
 tish earl, George, Earl of Dunbar, also bearing the title of Earl 
 of March. Now that he has taken the oath to King Henry 
 there is no reason why I should not speak of it." And he 
 then gave them an account of his visit to Dunbar and of his 
 escape. 
 
 " And why did the earl wish to keep you? " 
 
 " Maybe, sir, that he had not then made up his mind, and 
 thought that affairs might yet have been accommodated be- 
 tween himself, Douglas, and the Scottish king." 
 
 " Perhaps that was so," Sir John agreed ; " he is a crafty as 
 well as a bold man. However, you were well out of Dunbar, 
 and you and your monk managed the affair well. Think you 
 that the earl is to be trusted? " 
 
 " I should say so. These great Scottish nobles deem them- 
 selves well-nigh the king's equal, and carry on their wars 
 against each other as independent lords. His castle of Dunbar 
 is in the hands of his bitterest enemy, and Douglas will come 
 into no small portion of his estates. Without the aid of 
 England he could not hope to recover them, and his interests 
 therefore are wholly bound up with ours." 
 
 " 'T is strange that there should be two Earls of March of 
 different families and names, and now that Dunbar has become 
 a vassal of the king it will make the matter stranger. How- 
 ever, at present no mistakes can arise, seeing that the one is 
 an able warrior and the other a mere boy. But in the future, 
 were the two Earls of March at the same time at the court of 
 our king, mistakes might well be made and strange complica- 
 tions take place. 
 
15G BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " Doubtless you are aware that Sir Edmund's nephew is by 
 right of birth King of England. He was, you know, sprung 
 from the Duke of Clarence, the elder brother of the Duke of 
 Lancaster. The duke died without male issue, and his rights 
 fell to Edmund Mortimer, Earl of March, the husband of his 
 daughter Philippa. From their marriage was born the Roger 
 Mortimer who was lord-lieutenant of Ireland during a part of 
 King Richard's reign, and was killed in the wars of that country. 
 He left two sons, of whom the elder was but eight or nine 
 years old when Richard was dethroned, and he and his brother 
 are now living at Windsor, and are well treated there by the 
 king. Had my lord's nephew attained the age of manhood at 
 the deposition of Richard, many would doubtless have sup- 
 ported his right to the throne, but for a child of eight to rule 
 this realm and keep in check the turbulence of the great lords 
 would be so absurd that no one even mentioned his name, 
 and Henry of course ascended the throne as if by right of 
 conquest." 
 
 " I have heard something of this before, Sir John, but as 
 the Percys were among the chief supporters of Henry the fact 
 that there was one who had greater rights to the throne was 
 never talked of at Alnwick, although by Percy's marriage with 
 Sir Edmund's sister he became uncle of the young Earl of 
 March." 
 
 " I can understand that, and indeed Sir Edmund himself 
 has never in the most intimate conversation with us expressed 
 any opinion that the young earl would, if he had his rights, 
 be King of England." 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 157 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 A BREACH OF DUTY 
 
 TWO or three hours after the return of the force to Ludlow 
 Sir Edmund Mortimer returned, having ridden almost 
 without a halt since he received the news of the Welsh incur- 
 sion. His knights met him in the court-yard. 
 
 " Well, my friends, I hear you have sent the Welsh back 
 again as fast as they came." 
 
 "We cannot say that, Sir Edmund," Sir John Wyncliffe 
 replied. " Sir John Burgon went out with ninety horse, and, 
 coming upon a party of five or six hundred of them, killed 
 half their number and put the rest to flight, but their main 
 body left of their own free-will and without any urging. 'T is 
 a pity that they were so hurried, for in another twenty-four 
 hours we should have had some four thousand men on the 
 march against them, besides those who first went on." 
 
 " Have they done much damage? " 
 
 " There is scarce a house left standing between the hills on 
 this side of Llanidloes atfid Knighton. From what we can 
 gather they must have slain three or four hundred at least. 
 At first the total was put much higher, but as soon as they 
 retired many fugitives made their way into Knighton, having 
 slipped away in the darkness when their villages were attacked, 
 and concealed themselves in the woods or among the rocks." 
 
 "There has been fighting up in the north too," Sir Edmund 
 said. " When I got to Ruthyn I found that Lord Grey was 
 away, but I talked over matters with his knights. I was to 
 have left on the morning of the fifth day alter leaving here, 
 but at night (ilendower's men raided almost up to the gates of 
 
158 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the castle. Their plans were well laid, for just at midnight an 
 alarm was given by a sentry on the walls. Everyone ran to 
 arms the instant the warder's horn was sounded, but when I 
 reached the top of the walls fires were bursting out in twenty 
 places. It was not long before the knights rode out with a 
 hundred and fifty men-at-arms, but the Welsh were already 
 gone. It seems that they had laid an ambuscade round every 
 village, and on the signal being given, fell at once upon the 
 sleeping inhabitants, put all to the sword, fired the houses, 
 and in ten minutes from the first alarm made off, driving 
 horses, cattle, and sheep before them. I was with the party, 
 and we rode hard and fast, but we came up with none of them. 
 Each party must have gone its own way, striking off into the 
 hills. As soon as we returned to the castle I started with my 
 four men-at-arms, and we have lost no time on the road, 
 especially after the rumour reached us that there had been a 
 Welsh raid here also. Now, Sir John Burgon, will you give 
 me an account of the doings of your party?" 
 
 The knight reported their proceedings after leaving Ludlow, 
 and concluded : 
 
 " It is like that the story would not have so run, Sir Edmund, 
 had it not been for the bravery shown by the northern men 
 under the young squire Oswald and his captain, Alwyn. So 
 furiously did the Welsh assail us in rear that we should have 
 suffered heavily, indeed, even if we had not met with a grave 
 disaster, had it not been that this band covered our rear while 
 we charged forward, fighting so stoutly that the spot where they 
 posted themselves was thickly covered with dead. I found 
 time to look round now and then, for they made but a poor 
 resistance to our advance. Never did I see stronger fighting. 
 I have questioned the men. All say that none fought more 
 bravely than young Oswald, and his uncle gives him warm praise. 
 The lad, however, would have lost his life had it not been for 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 159 
 
 that stout fellow who stands half a head above his comrades, 
 and is a very giant in strength. Oswald himself told me how 
 it came about," and he repeated the account of the incident. 
 
 " It was a quick thought to throw himself and the fellow who 
 held him off the horse, though it would not have availed him 
 much had not this stout man-at-arms been at hand. Still, in 
 no case could he have defended himself single-handed against 
 five of these knaves, though doubtless he would have given a 
 good account of some of them had not his arms been held. 
 Alwyn said that three times during the fray the young esquire 
 saved his life by cutting down men who were attacking him 
 from behind while he was occupied by other opponents in 
 front." 
 
 " He will make a valiant knight some day, Sir John. Sir 
 Henry Percy would not have written so strongly about him 
 had he not good reason for feeling that he would not do dis- 
 credit to his recommendation. Well, Sir Knights, you have 
 all merited my thanks for the manner in which you have dis- 
 charged your duties during my absence. Of course you were 
 perfectly right, Wyncliffe, in remaining here until, at any rate, 
 the knights brought in their following from the country round. 
 It was important to save Knighton, but vastly more so to pre- 
 vent their overspreading the whole country, which might, for 
 aught we can tell, have been Glendower's object ; and it is 
 as well that Haverstone and Bastow should have remained at 
 Knighton. Now, as I have not broken my fast, and have 
 ridden since midnight without a stop, I will breakfast, and 
 we can then talk over the plans to be pursued, for there is no 
 disguising the fact that the Welsh are up in arms, and that we 
 have long and heavy work before us. 
 
 " However, it is a matter too serious for us to undertake by 
 ourselves, but is for the king himself to take in hand. A raid 
 can be punished by a counter-raid; but now that Glendower 
 
1G0 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 has declared himself sovereign of Wales, and that everything 
 points to the fact that the men of his nation are all ready to 
 support him, it is a matter that touches his majesty very 
 closely, and I doubt not that as soon as he has finished this 
 war with the Scots he will march hither at the head of his 
 army. However, I shall send out a summons to the tenants 
 of all my nephew's estates in Herefordshire, and order them to 
 hold themselves in readiness should Glendower venture to in- 
 vade us ; but I think not that he will do so. He knows that 
 these counties bristle with castles in which the people could 
 find refuge, and that if he undertook to besiege them he would 
 speedily lose the best part of his army. 
 
 " None of his people have experience of war, and to besiege 
 a strong place needs machines of all kinds, and of these Glen- 
 dower has none, nor is it likely that he can construct them. 
 Besides, while marching out he would be exposed to an attack 
 by the garrisons of these castles sallying out in his rear. There- 
 fore I think not that he will be foolish enough to undertake 
 any great enterprises, though he may make raids and carry off 
 booty and cattle as he has now done. Moreover, I cannot 
 keep the vassals in the field longer than their feudal obliga- 
 tions compel them to stay, unless I pay and feed them, which 
 might be done readily enough for two or three months; but 
 the war may last for years, and I must reserve my means and 
 strength till they are urgently needed. Lord Grey will doubt- 
 less be of my opinion, but is sure to do what he can to capture 
 Glendower, as he will consider him not only as an enemy of 
 the king but as a personal foe. However, powerful as he is, I 
 think not that he will venture alone to lead an army into the 
 Welsh hills until he receives assistance from the king." 
 
 Two days later news came that the king, as soon as he heard 
 of Glendower's proclamation, had sent orders to Lord Grey 
 and Lord Talbot to punish him. 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 161 
 
 "They will reach Chester two days hence," Sir Edmund 
 said. " After the raid they made here, I would gladly take 
 some small share in punishing this rebel. You, Sir John 
 Burgon, have had a full share of honour by your defeat of 
 him the other day ; therefore I will send Sir William Bastow. 
 Do you, Sir William, take thirty of the best mounted men of 
 the garrison, together with Lord Percy's troop, and ride to 
 Chester. I will give you a letter to Lord Talbot, saying that, 
 being anxious to aid in the punishment of the rebel who has 
 just raided my marches, I have sent you in all haste, with fifty 
 stout men, to aid him in striking a blow, and, if possible, in 
 effecting Glendower's capture before he can do further harm 
 to the king's loyal subjects." 
 
 Half an hour later the troop mounted. Oswald was in high 
 spirits, for Sir Edmund had spoken a few words to him, when 
 telling him of the service to which he had appointed him. 
 
 " I am sending your troop with Sir William Bastow," he said, 
 " chiefly in order that I may give you another opportunity of 
 distinguishing yourself, and also because I am sure that Percy 
 would be glad that his men should take part in an enterprise 
 in which there may be honour and credit. Lastly, because I 
 would that my party should do me credit, and the fighting the 
 other day showed me that your followers better understand 
 warfare of this kind than do mine." 
 
 The troop arrived at Chester the second day after leaving, 
 and rested their horses for twenty-four hours. On the arrival 
 of the Earl of Talbot and Lord Grey, Sir William Bastow called 
 at the inn where they put up and delivered the letter from 
 Sir Edmund Mortimer. 
 
 " 'T is well done of Sir Edmund," the Earl of Talbot said ; 
 "and although Ruthyn lies beyond his government of the 
 marches, he is defending his own command by aiding Lord 
 Grey and myself against this presumptuous traitor. I will 
 
 4A, 
 
162 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 gladly take your clump of spears with me, among whom are, I 
 see, a small party of Lord Percy's men-at-arms. I hear that 
 Sir Edmund's men inflicted a sharp blow upon the Welsh near 
 Knighton. I met his messenger bearing his report to the king, 
 as we came along, and he gave me the particulars, from which 
 it seems that the fight was for a time a hard one, and that the 
 Welshmen fought, as they used to do, with much bravery." 
 
 " They did, my lord. I was not with the party that defeated 
 them, having been left at Knighton to aid in the defence there 
 should the Welsh attack the town ; but Sir John Burgon, who 
 commanded, said that in the village they fought as if they 
 cared not for their lives, though they made scarce any defence 
 when he fell upon them as they retired in disorder. The 
 success he gained he attributes in no small degree to Percy's 
 little troop, led by their captain, a stout soldier who commands 
 the garrison of Alnwick, and by a young squire of Sir Henry 
 Percy, who, though but a lad, fought with extreme bravery. 
 He is with me now. Sir Henry places great trust in him, 
 and wrote most warmly concerning him to Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer." 
 
 " We are just going to supper, sir," the earl said ; " I hope 
 that you will join us. And I pray you tell me where this 
 young squire is lodging, that I may send for him at once, as I 
 would fain learn from his lips some closer account of the fight- 
 ing, which may be of utility to us in our adventure." 
 
 Oswald arrived just as supper was brought in, and was intro- 
 duced to the earl and Lord Grey by Sir William Bastow. 
 
 "Sit down with us, young sir," the earl said kindly. "You 
 are an esquire, I hear, of my good friend Sir Henry Percy. 
 As you eat, I pray you tell me about this fight with the Welsh. 
 Sir Edmund himself was not in command, I hear." 
 
 " No, my lord, he was away at the time, having ridden to 
 Ruthyn to hold council with Lord Grey." 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 163 
 
 " Ah 1 I had not heard that he had been there," Earl Grey 
 said. 
 
 " He arrived the day before the Welsh raid on your estate, 
 sir. Finding that you were absent, he intended to return 
 home the next morning ; but the matter delayed him for a 
 day, as he rode out with your knights to punish the ma- 
 rauders, who, however, made off before they could be 
 overtaken." 
 
 " When you see him, I pray you give him my thanks for so 
 doing ; and now tell us what happened." 
 
 " Sir William Bastow can better inform you, sir, of what 
 took place until we rode away from Knighton, where he 
 remained with Sir Philip Haverstone to take command of the 
 townspeople in case the Welsh should arrive before strong aid 
 should come." 
 
 Sir William then related the measures that had been decided 
 upon and the steps taken to call out the levies, and how he 
 and his brother knights had ridden to Knighton with the 
 intent to hinder as far as possible the Welsh advance, until the 
 footmen could reach the town, to be followed shortly after- 
 wards by the troops that would come in from the castles of 
 Radnor. Oswald then continued the story, and gave an 
 account of the fight in the village, and the manner in which 
 the Welsh were attacked while retiring with their booty, and 
 completely routed. 
 
 " Their tactics have in nowise changed, then," the earl said, 
 " since the days of Griffith and Llewellyn. Against a direct 
 charge they were unable to stand, but they attacked with fury 
 whenever there was an opportunity of fighting under cir- 
 cumstances when our weight and discipline gave us little 
 advantage. I hear from Sir William Bastow that your little 
 band covered the rear of Sir John Burgon's troop, and suc- 
 ceeded in keeping them at bay until he had broken the resist- 
 
164 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 ance in front, and carried off a small party of villagers who 
 were still defending themselves." 
 
 "That was so, my lord. Our men were all accustomed to 
 border warfare, and had for the most part, before entering 
 Percy's service, been often engaged in border forays, and had 
 taken to soldiering after their own homes had been burnt and 
 their cattle driven off by Scottish raiders. Therefore they were 
 accustomed to fight each for himself, instead of in close order. 
 Their horses, too, bred on the moors, are far more active and 
 nimble than are the heavier horses of the south, and enter 
 heart and soul into a fray, kicking and plunging and striking 
 with their fore-legs at any who approached to assail their riders. 
 Thus it was that they were able to hold the Welsh carles at 
 bay far better than men otherwise trained and mounted would 
 have been. Another thing is, that in these Border conflicts 
 each man is accustomed to keep his eye on his neighbour, and, 
 if he sees him hard pressed, to give him aid. Therefore it is 
 not surprising that, while the men slew many of the Welsh, 
 they themselves escaped with but a few cuts from blows and 
 hatchets." 
 
 " But you yourself were unhorsed, Sir William tells me, and 
 were in great peril. How did that come about? " 
 
 " Both my unhorsing, sir, and my rescue were the result of 
 what I just said, our habit of keeping an eye on our neigh- 
 bours. A Welshman was on the point of attacking Captain 
 Alwyn when he was engaged with two others in front ; I struck 
 the man down, but as I did so a Welshman sprang on to my 
 horse behind and pinned my arms to my side, while four 
 others rushed at me." 
 
 He then related how he had thrown himself and his assail- 
 ant off his horse, and had been saved by Roger. 
 
 " It was a good device, and quickly carried into effect," Earl 
 Talbot said, " though it was well that the man-at-arms next to 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 165 
 
 you was watching you, just as you had watched his captain, 
 else it must have gone hard with you. It is evident that if you 
 continue as you have begun you will turn out a right valiant 
 knight. Your narrative is useful, and I see that when we fall 
 in with the Welsh it will be necessary to have a picked body 
 of men-at-arms, whose duty shall be to cover the rear of the 
 main attack, for it seems that this is the real point of danger. 
 Should we come into conflict with them, I will assign to you a 
 body of men-at-arms, who with Percy's men shall, under your 
 command, fulfil that duty. This would at once be of signal 
 benefit to us, and will give you another opportunity of distin- 
 guishing yourself, and winning your spurs when the time 
 comes." 
 
 " I thank you greatly, my lord, and trust that I may so bear 
 myself as to merit your approbation." 
 
 The next morning the force mounted at daybreak. It con- 
 sisted of two hundred horse that the earl had brought with 
 him, and which was to be joined at Chirk by a hundred and 
 fifty of Lord Grey's men from Ruthyn, orders having been 
 already sent on for them to hold themselves in readiness. 
 This was to be done quietly and without stir, as word would be 
 sure to be sent to Glendower were it to be known in the town 
 that preparations had been made for an expedition. They 
 were to start from the castle at ten o'clock at night, when the 
 town would be wrapped in sleep, and would arrive at Chirk 
 before daybreak. 
 
 On arriving at the castle it was found that the troops from 
 Ruthyn had duly come in. They were received by the senes- 
 chal of William Beauchamp, Lord of Abergavenny. Chirk 
 Castle had passed through many hands, having been several 
 times granted to royal favourites, being a fine building, stand- 
 ing on a lofty eminence, which afforded a view of no less than 
 seventeen counties. It was square and massive, with five 
 
166 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 flanking towers, and its vast strength was calculated to defy 
 the utmost efforts of the Welsh to capture it. It was but a 
 short distance thence to the valley of the Dee, in which was 
 the estate of Glendower, extending for some eight miles north 
 into what is now the neighbourhood of Llangollen. 
 
 As one of the detachments had arrived before daybreak, and 
 the other two hours after dark, it was improbable that their 
 advent had been noticed, and at the request of the knight who 
 commanded the troop from Ruthyn the gates of the castle had 
 been kept closed all day, no one being allowed to enter or 
 leave. At daybreak the next morning the whole force sallied 
 out. Three-quarters of an hour later they dashed down into 
 the valley at a point about half a mile distant from Glendower's 
 dwelling. This was a very large and stately building. Near it 
 stood a guest-house and a church, and all the appurtenances 
 of a man of high rank. It was called Sycharth. Here Glen- 
 dower maintained an almost princely hospitality, for in addition 
 to this estate he possessed others in South Wales. 
 
 More especially bards were welcomed here ; some resided 
 for months, others, who simply paused on their rambles through 
 the country, remained but for a few days ; but all were received 
 with marked honour by Glendower, who was well aware of the 
 important services that they could render him. Indeed it was 
 on them that he relied to no small extent to arouse the feelings 
 of the populace, and his hospitality was well repaid by the 
 songs they sung in hall and cottage in his praise, and by their 
 prophecies that he was destined to restore the ancient glories 
 of the country. The house was surrounded by a moat and 
 wall, but had otherwise no defensive works, as for a hundred 
 years the English and Welsh had dwelt peaceably side by side ; 
 many of the castles were indeed held by Welshmen, and there 
 were few garrisons but had a considerable proportion of W T elsh 
 in their ranks. 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 167 
 
 It was singular that Glendower should, after his defiance of 
 the king, and the raids that had lately been made, have con- 
 tinued to dwell in a spot so open to attack, and within striking 
 distance of the three great castles of Ruthyn, Chirk, and Holt. 
 Certain it is that he kept no garrison that would suffice to offer 
 a stout defence against a strong band, although the precaution 
 was taken of keeping a watchman night and day in one of the 
 turrets. The sound of his horn was heard by the horsemen as 
 soon as they began to descend the hill. 
 
 " A pest on the knave ! " Lord Grey exclaimed. " He will 
 slip through our fingers yet." 
 
 It was scarce a minute later when a mounted man was seen 
 to dash out at full speed from the other side of the building. 
 He was evidently well mounted, and although the pursuit was 
 hotly kept up for two miles, he gained the forest while they 
 were still a quarter of a mile behind him, and was lost to view, 
 for although they beat the wood for some distance they could 
 find no traces of him. When passing by the house a detach- 
 ment of a hundred men were ordered to surround it, and to 
 suffer none to enter or leave it. On the return of the pursuing 
 party the house was entered, and ransacked from end to end. 
 The male retainers found in it were ruthlessly killed ; the fur- 
 niture, which showed at once the good taste and wealth of the 
 owner, was smashed into pieces, the hangings torn down, and 
 the whole place dismantled. Only two female attendants were 
 found, and these were suffered by Earl Talbot's orders to go 
 free. 
 
 " This is evidently the ladies' bower when they happen 
 to be here," Lord Grey said, as an hour later he entered a 
 room in one of the turrets which had been already plundered 
 by the soldiers. " 'T is a pity that we did not find one or two 
 of Glendower's daughters here ; they would have been invalu- 
 able as hostages. We were too hasty, Talbot. We should 
 
168 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 have closely questioned some of the men or those two women, 
 and should have found means to learn whether they were stay- 
 ing here. It may be that it was so, and that they are even 
 now concealed in some secret hiding-place hard by." 
 
 He at once called up several of his men, and set them to 
 search every room in the turret for some sign of an entrance 
 to a secret chamber ; but although the walls were all tapped, 
 and the floors examined stone by stone, no clue was found to 
 such an entrance if it existed. The house, which was built 
 entirely of stone, offered no facilities for destroying it by fire. 
 The doors were all hewn down, the gates in the wall taken off 
 their hinges and thrown into the moat, being too massive to 
 be destroyed by the arms of the soldiers. The outlying 
 buildings were all burned down, the vineyard rooted up, and 
 the water turned out of the fish-pond. Then, greatly vexed at 
 their failure to seize Glendower himself, the two nobles rode 
 back to Chirk, leaving a hundred men, of whom the band 
 from Ludlow formed part, under two of Earl Talbot's knights, 
 to retain possession of the house until it should be decided 
 whether it should be levelled stone by stone, or left stand- 
 ing to go with the estate to whomsoever the king might 
 assign it. 
 
 By Lord Grey's advice, sentries were posted outside the 
 walls from nightfall till daybreak, to prevent any risk of sur- 
 prise by Glendower, whose spies might take him word that the 
 main body of the assailants had left. One of the great halls 
 had been left untouched to serve for the use of the garrison, 
 and as an abundance of victuals were found in the house and 
 the cellar was well stocked with wines, it was but a short time 
 before the garrison made themselves thoroughly comfortable. 
 As soon as it became dark twenty men were placed on watch. 
 Oswald with his party were to take the third watch at midnight, 
 and Mortimer's men-at-arms the second. The captain of each 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 169 
 
 band was to place the men at such points as he might select. 
 Alwyn talked the matter over with his nephew. 
 
 "It seems to me," the former said, "that there is but a 
 small chance of anyone trying to leave the castle, and at any 
 rate if they did so it would scarcely be over the wall, for a 
 splash in the moat would at once betray them. Moreover, I 
 love not killing in cold blood, and should any poor fellows be 
 stowed away somewhere, I should be willing enough to let 
 them go free." 
 
 " I agree with you altogether, Alwyn," Oswald, who had 
 not heard the talk between Grey and Talbot concerning Glen- 
 dower's daughters, replied heartily. " I would have gladly 
 saved the men who were killed to-day. It is one thing to 
 slay in battle, but to slaughter unresisting men goes altogether 
 against my grain." 
 
 " Then as we are agreed on that, Oswald, I should say that 
 we had best place the greater portion of our men well away 
 from the wall. We can leave two at the gate, and set two 
 others to march round and round the moat. I should say we 
 had best plant the others in pairs a quarter of a mile round 
 the house. It is vastly more important to prevent Glendower 
 from recapturing his house by surprise than it is to take 
 prisoners two or three fellows making their escape." 
 
 " I agree with you, Alwyn." 
 
 Accordingly when they filed out from the gate four were 
 posted as Alwyn had suggested ; the rest were disposed in 
 pairs in a circle at a distance round the house." 
 
 " I will keep watch with Roger," Oswald said. " T is some 
 time since I have had an opportunity for a talk with him. I 
 will take the next post if you like. The wood comes closer 
 to the house there than at any other point, and there are 
 patches, behind which an enemy might creep up. My eyes 
 and ears are both good ; and as for Roger, if he lifts that 
 
170 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 mighty voice of his in tones of alarm it will reach the ears of 
 all the others, and be the signal for them to run back to the 
 gate at the top of their speed." 
 
 "Very well, Oswald. I shall walk round the ground and 
 see that all are vigilant. We know not where Glendower's 
 men were lying ; it may hap they were twenty miles away, but 
 even so he would have had plenty of time to have brought 
 them up by now. I don't think there is much chance of any 
 of our men being surprised, most of them having in their time 
 been so used to midnight rides across moor and hill, and so 
 accustomed to see in the dark, that, crafty as the Welshmen 
 may be, I do not think there is a chance of their getting within 
 a hundred yards of any of our posts without being seen, espe- 
 cially as the moon is still half full." 
 
 " Do you think that there is any chance of our being dis- 
 turbed, Master Oswald?" Roger said, as they took up their 
 post under a low, stunted tree. 
 
 " I do not think so. If Glendower's spies have told him 
 that the main body of those who surprised him this morning 
 have returned to Chirk, he may be sure that enough have been 
 left to hold the place successfully against him and his wild fol- 
 lowers till assistance can reach us ; and he would have nothing 
 to gain by recapturing his house, for he could not hold it long 
 against the force assembled at Chirk. Besides, he must know 
 well enough that if he is to fight successfully it must be in the 
 woods. Whether he has studied the black art or no, there is 
 little doubt that he has turned his attention greatly to military 
 matters, and that he is a foe who is not to be despised. He is 
 playing a deep game, and will give us a deal of trouble, unless 
 I am greatly mistaken, before we have done with him." 
 
 " I hear all sorts of strange stories of his powers, Master 
 Oswald." 
 
 "Yes; but you see, Roger, the spirits who, as they say, 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 171 
 
 serve him, cannot be of much use, or they would have warned 
 him of the coming of Talbot, and we should not have taken 
 him unawares this morning." 
 
 "That is true enough," Roger said in a tone of relief. " For 
 my part I am not greatly alarmed at spirits. The good abbot 
 used to threaten me that I should be carried off by them unless 
 I mended my ways, but I always slept soundly enough, and 
 never saw aught to frighten me. They used to say that the 
 spirits of some of the dead monks used to walk in the convent 
 garden, but though my cell looked down upon it, and I have 
 often stood there by the hour, never did I see anything to 
 frighten me. If the Welsh do come, what are we to do, 
 master? — fight them?" 
 
 " By no means, Roger. Our duty is to watch and not to 
 fight. You must lift up your voice and shout as loud as you 
 can, and then we must run to the gate. There we can make a 
 fight till the rest join us. But, whatever you do, do not shout 
 until I tell you. A false alarm would raise the whole garri- 
 son, and, if nought came of it, would make us a laughing- 
 stock." 
 
 While they were talking, both were keeping a close look-out 
 on the ground in front of them, and also to the right and left, 
 for the watches were two hundred yards apart, and they had 
 to make sure that no party of the enemy slipped unseen be- 
 tween them. Suddenly Roger plucked Oswald's sleeve, and 
 said in a whisper : 
 
 " Unless my eyes deceive me, master, I saw two dark figures 
 flit from that clump of bushes some forty yards away to those 
 next to them. There they go again ! " 
 
 " I see them, Roger. It may be that they are spies who 
 have crept up close. Let us give chase to them." 
 
 "Shall I shout, master?" 
 
 " No, no. This is not an attack. Stoop as low as you can, 
 
172 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 or if they look back they will see that great figure of yours and 
 be off like hares. Run as softly as you can." 
 
 Stooping low they set off at a run, and being certain that 
 the figures were making straight for the forest, they did not 
 pause to get another glimpse of them, but ran straight on. 
 They had gone some seventy or eighty yards when they heard 
 a stifled exclamation, and then, without further attempt at 
 concealment, two figures rose from a bush twenty yards ahead 
 and fled for the forest. There was no more occasion for stoop- 
 ing, and at the top of their speed Oswald and Roger pursued 
 the fugitives. These ran fast, but Oswald, who had outpaced 
 his heavier companion, came up to them when within fifty 
 yards of the edge of the forest, and, passing them, drew his 
 sword and faced them. 
 
 "Surrender," he said, "or I will cut you down." 
 
 Instead of the fierce spring that he had anticipated, the two 
 figures stopped suddenly, exchanged a word in Welsh, and then 
 dropped their cloaks. To Oswald's astonishment two young 
 women stood before him. They evidently belonged to the 
 upper class. Both were richly dressed ; they wore heavy gold 
 chains round their necks, and bracelets of the same metal set, 
 as Oswald noticed by the reflection of the moon, with jewels. 
 They had also brooches, and their girdles were held in with 
 massive gold clasps. 
 
 By this time Roger had come up and stood staring with 
 astonishment. 
 
 " Take these, good fellows," the girl said in English, as she 
 began to unfasten her necklace. " Take these and let us go ; 
 they will make you rich." 
 
 " I am an esquire of Sir Henry Percy," Oswald said, "and I 
 rob not women. By your appearance I should judge you to 
 be daughters of Glendower." 
 
 " It would be useless to deny it," one of the girls said 
 proudly. 
 
rO OSWALDS ASTON1SHMEN1 TWO YOUNG WOMEN STOOD 
 BEFORE HIM. 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 173 
 
 "Why do you come spying here?" Oswald said. "Surely 
 among your father's warriors others better suited for such 
 work might have been found." 
 
 "We were not spying," the girl replied. "We have lain 
 hidden all day, and were but making our escape." 
 
 " How can that be, madam ? We had a guard all round the 
 castle, and know that none can have escaped." 
 
 " Being an esquire, you are a gentleman, sir, and will not 
 disclose what I am about to tell you ; though, indeed, now that 
 /,ur father's house is in your hands, it boots not much whether 
 the secret is known. There is a secret passage from the 
 castle that opens into these bushes, and it was through that 
 that we issued out, having been in hiding all day in the secret 
 chamber from which it leads. Well, sir, we are your prisoners, 
 and shall, I suppose, be sent to London, there to be held until 
 our father is in the usurper's hands, which will not be, believe 
 me, for years yet." 
 
 Oswald was silent. The two girls, some seventeen or 
 eighteen years of age, both possessed singular beauty they 
 had inherited from their father, and bore themselves with an 
 air of fearlessness that won his admiration. He was still but a 
 lad ; and thinking of the years these fair girls might pass in a 
 prison, he felt a deep pity for them. He drew Roger aside. 
 
 " What think you, Roger, must we send these fair young 
 girls to prison?" 
 
 " In faith, I know not, master. Having been shut up many 
 a time in a cell, I have a sort of fellow-feeling for prisoners ; 
 and indeed two fairer maidens I have never seen. Our orders 
 were to look after Welshmen, and see that they did not 
 attack us ; no word was said of Welsh women. And besides, 
 they were running away, and not thinking of attacking us." 
 
 " That is all very well, Roger, but I cannot deceive myself. 
 There is no doubt that it is our duty to take these two 
 
174 710TH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 maidens prisoners, but my heart aches at the thought that 
 they might pass years of their lives in a prison. They are not 
 responsible for their father's misdeeds and ambition, and it 
 may be that, if they are restored, Glendower may be induced 
 to treat those who fall into his hands mercifully. None but 
 ourselves know of this, and no one need ever know. I will 
 risk it anyhow," he said after a short pause ; " I know that 
 I am not doing my duty in letting them go, and that were 
 it ever known, I should lose all chance of further advance- 
 ment, if indeed I did not lose my life. However, it need never 
 be known, and my conscience would sorely trouble me whenever 
 I thought of them shut up in one of King Henry's prisons." 
 
 He turned to the girls again. 
 
 "Think you, ladies," he asked, "that were you in the king's 
 hands your father would make terms and submit himself? " 
 
 " Certainly not," the one who had spoken before said. 
 " He has other children — sons and daughters — and he 
 would not dream of abandoning his rights and betraying his 
 country to obtain the liberty of two of us." 
 
 " In that case, then, your imprisonment would in no degree 
 stop this war or bring about a renewal of peace between the 
 two countries? " 
 
 " Certainly not ; and as for us, we would strangle ourselves 
 in prison did we think that any thought of us would turn our 
 father from his noble purpose." 
 
 " Then in that case," Oswald said quietly, " it is clear that 
 your captivity would do nought to bring about peace or to 
 allay the troubles that have now begun. Therefore I will take 
 on me to let you go, though in so doing I maybe failing some- 
 what in my duty. Only promise me that in the future you 
 will use what influence you may possess with your father to 
 obtain kind treatment for prisoners who may fall into his 
 hands." 
 
A BREACH OF DUTY 175 
 
 The expression of haughty defiance that they had hitherto 
 worn faded from the girls' faces. 
 
 " We shall never forget your kindness, sir," one said in a 
 low voice. " We thank you with all our hearts, not so much 
 for our own sake as for our father's. He has been cruelly ill- 
 used, he has much to trouble him, and although I know that our 
 captivity would not turn him from his purpose, it could not 
 but greatly grieve and trouble him, and he has already troubles 
 enough on his shoulders. Will you accept one of these jewels 
 as a token only of our gratitude for your kindness shown this 
 night to us?" 
 
 " Thanks, lady, but no gift will I take. I am failing in my 
 duty, but at least it shall not be said that I received aught for 
 doing so." 
 
 " Then at least — " the girl began, turning to Roger. 
 
 " No, lady," the man-at-arms said. " I am neither knight 
 nor esquire, but a simple soldier, but I take no presents for 
 saving two maidens from capture and captivity. I have been 
 a monk all my life, though now a man-at-arms. Never before 
 have I had an opportunity of doing aught of kindness for a 
 woman, and I am glad that the chance has fallen in my way." 
 
 "May I ask the name of one who has done us such kind- 
 ness?" the girl said, turning to Oswald. 
 
 " It were best not, lady. It is a service that might cost me 
 my head were it to be bruited about. 'T is best, then, that 
 even you should not know it. I doubt not that you would 
 preserve the secret ; but you would perhaps mention it to 
 your father, and it were best that it were known to none." 
 
 The girls were silent for a minute. 
 
 " Sir," the elder said, after exchanging a word or two with 
 her sister, " we would ask a boon of you. The successes in a 
 war are not always on one side. My sister and I will think 
 often of one who has so greatly befriended us, and were you 
 
17G BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 by any accident of war to fall into the Welsh hands, and 
 should evil befall you, it would be a deep grief to us. We 
 pray you then, sir, to accept this little gold necklet. Its value 
 is small indeed, but it was given to me when a child by my 
 father. My name and his are engraved on the clasp. Should 
 you at any time of stress send this to my father, right sure am 
 I that on recognising it he would treat as dear friends those 
 who have done so much for his daughters. I pray you to 
 accept it, and to wear it always round your neck or wrist, and 
 if it should never prove useful, to you it will at least recall us 
 to your thoughts." 
 
 " I cannot be so churlish, lady, as to refuse your token so 
 offered ; and though I hope that it will not be needful to use it 
 as you say — for indeed, I expect to return very shortly to my 
 lord in Northumberland — it will be a pleasant remembrance 
 of the service that a good fortune has enabled me to render to 
 two fair maidens. Be assured that I shall ever keep your 
 necklet for the sake of the givers. And now, farewell ! We 
 must be back at our post, for the captain of the guard will be 
 going his round, and we might be missed." 
 
 " We shall never forget you, sir. May the blessing of God 
 fall on you for your kind deed ! " 
 
 " May all good fortune attend you ! " Oswald answered ; and 
 then with Roger he made his way back to his post, while the 
 girls hurried on and entered the forest. 
 
BAD NEWS 1 1 i 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 BAD NEWS 
 
 " r \ A HIS has been a strange adventure, Roger." 
 
 J. " A very strange one, master. Lord Grey would tear 
 his hair if he knew that those two pretty birds had been 
 hiding in the cage all day and he never knew it. However, I 
 see not that it can do us harm ; nay, more, there is a proba- 
 bility that it may even benefit us, for if it should happen by 
 ill-fortune we should ever fall into the hands of the Welsh, 
 and they should abstain from cutting our throats then and 
 there, perchance these young ladies would repay the service 
 we have rendered them by taking us under their protection." 
 
 " It may be so, indeed, Roger, though I hope that I shall 
 never hear more of to-night's adventure. We may reason as 
 we will, but there is no doubt that although we had no instruc- 
 tions touching the capture of women we have failed in our 
 duty." 
 
 " That will in no way trouble me, Master Oswald. When I 
 was a monk I failed in my duty scores of times, and am no 
 whit the worse for it, rather the better indeed, since it is 
 owing to my failures that I am now a free man-at-arms, in- 
 stead of being mewed up for life in a convent. I shall not 
 sleep one wink less for having saved two of the prettiest girls 
 I ever saw from having been shut up for years in a prison." 
 " I am afraid your sense of duty is not strong, Roger." 
 " I am afraid not, master, saving in the matter of doing my 
 duty in face of an enemy." 
 
 " You mean, Roger, that you will do your duty when it so 
 pleases you, and not otherwise." 
 
178 BOTH SIDES THE EORDER 
 
 " I expect that is the way with a good many of us," Roger 
 laughed. " I wonder whether Lord Grey had any idea that 
 Glendower's daughters were in the house when we arrived 
 there?" 
 
 " I know not, but I remember now that they had men 
 searching for some time for signs of secret passages, — whether 
 it was from any idea that Glendower's daughters might be 
 hidden away I know not." 
 
 " Truly it might have been," Roger said, " for I saw among 
 the spoil that was carried off, when the others rode for Chirk, 
 some silks and stuffs that looked like feminine garments. 
 There is somebody coming across from the next post," he 
 broke off. " Doubtless it is the captain. You would not tell 
 him what we have done ? " 
 
 " Certainly not, Roger. My uncle is an old soldier, and 
 though he would not for my sake say anything about it, I 
 think not that he would approve of what has been done. 'T is 
 best, at any rate, to keep it entirely to ourselves." 
 
 "All quiet here as elsewhere?" Alwyn asked as he came up. 
 
 "All quiet, uncle." 
 
 " 'T is well ; for, although methinks that we could hold the 
 place against the Welshmen, we could hardly hope that some 
 of our posts would not be cut off before they could reach the 
 house. It is well to keep watch, but the more I think of it 
 the more I feel that Glendower will scarce attack us. He 
 could not hold the place did he gain it, and it might well be 
 that after we were turned out again the place would be de- 
 stroyed, seeing that it would need two or three hundred men 
 to be shut up here in garrison." 
 
 After waiting half an hour Alwyn again made the round of 
 the posts, and then went in to rouse the party that were to 
 relieve them. As soon as these issued out the sentries were 
 called in, and stretched themselves for three hours' sleep. 
 
BAD NEWS 179 
 
 Before day dawned a messenger rode in from Chirk, bearing 
 Earl Talbot's orders for the evacuation of the house, as there 
 could be no advantage in retaining it, and were it empty 
 Glendower might return there and afford them another oppor- 
 tunity for capturing him. On the following day the party 
 broke up. Lord Grey rode with his men to Ruthyn, and the 
 forty men-at-arms from Ludlow returned to that town, where 
 a few days later the news arrived that Glendower with a large 
 following had established himself on the rugged height of 
 Corwen, and was engaged in strengthening the ancient for- 
 tifications on its summit. 
 
 For a time there was quiet on the border, and then came 
 the startling news that Glendower had suddenly surprised, 
 plundered, and burnt to the ground the town of Ruthyn, 
 where a fair was being held at the time. Then, having ob- 
 tained great booty and greatly injured his enemy, Lord Grey, 
 he again retired. It was evident that no local force of suffi- 
 cient strength could be found to pursue Glendower into his 
 fastnesses on the ranges of Berwyn and Snowdon, and noth- 
 ing was done until, three months later, the king, on his return 
 from Scotland, marched into Wales with the levies of War- 
 wickshire, Leicestershire, and eight other adjacent counties, 
 while orders were issued to the people of Shrewsbury and 
 other towns on the eastern border to hold themselves in readi- 
 ness to repel any movement of the Welsh in that direction. 
 
 The king, however, accomplished nothing. Glendower with 
 his following took refuge among the forests of Snowdon, and 
 the English army marched along the north coast, putting to 
 the sword a few bands of peasantry who ventured to oppose 
 them, crossed to the Isle of Anglesey, and entering the Fran- 
 ciscan monastery of Llanfaes slew some of the monks and 
 carried the rest to England, and established a community of 
 English monks in the convent. This was done because the 
 
180 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Franciscans had been supporters of the late king, and were 
 believed to have given aid and encouragement to Glendower. 
 The Welsh expedition was therefore no more successful than 
 the Scotch had been. 
 
 For a time matters settled down. Glendower was occupied 
 in strengthening his position. So much' had his reputation 
 spread that large numbers of Welshmen who had settled in 
 England now sold their property, gave up their positions and 
 abandoned their careers, and made their way across the border 
 to join him. Still, for some months no operations were under- 
 taken on either side, and a week after the return of the king 
 and his forces Sir Edmund Mortimer said to Oswald : 
 
 " I will no longer keep you and your following from your 
 lord's side. I have largely strengthened my garrison, and 
 twenty men, however valiant, are no longer of importance. 
 As you know, I should not have asked Percy to aid me had I 
 not thought that perchance he might have come himself, bring- 
 ing with him two or three hundred men, and that my sister 
 might have accompanied him. Maybe, if matters go on quietly 
 on the northern marches, he may be able to do so yet ; but I 
 fear that the Scotch will take advantage of the troubles here, 
 and may, for aught I know, have entered into communication 
 with Glendower so that they may together harass the kingdom. 
 I have written several times to him telling him what good 
 service you and his men have rendered, and that I would I 
 had five hundred such good fighters with me, in which case I 
 would undertake single-handed to bring this fellow to reason. 
 
 " I have written a letter which I will hand you to deliver, 
 saying that, as at present things are quiet and Glendower is in 
 hiding among the mountains, I have sent you back to him, not 
 without the hope that, should greater events take place, he 
 himself will come hither for a while to give me the benefit of 
 his knowledge of border warfare, even if he comes accom- 
 
BAD NEWS 181 
 
 panied only by my sister and a dozen spears. I may tell you 
 that some two months since he wrote saying that he should be 
 glad to have you and the captain of his garrison of Alnwick 
 back again, and I then wrote to him saying that while the 
 king was in Wales I would hold you, seeing that Glendower 
 might make a great foray here while the king was hunting for 
 him in the north, but that as soon as he left with his army I 
 would send you home." 
 
 Alwyn and the men were all well pleased when they heard 
 that they were to return, for since the raid on Glendower's 
 house their life had been a dull one, to which even the fact 
 that they were receiving pay from Sir Edmund as well as from 
 Percy was insufficient to reconcile them, and it was with light 
 hearts that they started on the following morning for the 
 north, arriving at Alnwick ten days after leaving. Sir Hotspur 
 came down into the court-yard as they rode into the castle. 
 
 " Welcome back, Oswald, and you, my trusty Alwyn ! I 
 thank you all, my men, for the manner in which you have 
 borne yourselves, and that you have shown the men of the 
 west how stoutly we Northumbrians can hold our. own in the 
 day of battle. I am glad indeed to find that all that went 
 have returned home, some bearing scars indeed, but none dis- 
 abled. I will instruct your captain to grant all of you a month's 
 leave to pay a visit to your families. You must sup with us 
 to-night, Alwyn, and give us a full account of your doings, and 
 also your frank opinion as to the state of things in the west, 
 and the probability of long trouble with this strange Welshman 
 who has so boldly taken up arms and defied the strength 
 of England." 
 
 It was nearly a year since the party had left Alnwick, and 
 Oswald had in that time greatly increased in height and 
 strength. He was now eighteen, and as he was nearly six feet 
 in height, and his figure had filled out greatly since he had 
 
182 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 left his home, he might well have passed as three or four years 
 older than his real age. That evening Alwyn gave a full 
 account of their fray with the Welsh. 
 
 " These men fight stoutly, Alwyn," Percy said, when he had 
 concluded his story. 
 
 " Right stoutly, Sir Henry, and were their discipline equal 
 to their bravery they would be formidable opponents indeed ; 
 but as it is, they are quite unable to stand against men-at-arms 
 in a set battle. In this respect they are by no means equal to 
 the Scotch, but for surprises or irregular fighting I could wish 
 to see no better men." 
 
 " It is an unfortunate affair," Percy said. " It seemed that 
 we had finished with Wales at Llewellyn's death, and that the 
 two nations had become one. In London and many other 
 places they were settled among us. Numbers of them studied 
 at our universities, and in Shropshire, Radnor, Flint, and other 
 border counties I have heard that most of the labouring men 
 were Welsh and have come to speak our language, and indeed 
 they form no small portion of the garrisons of the castles ; so 
 much so that I fear that should the Welsh really ravage the 
 border counties 't is like that not a few of the castles will fall 
 into their hands by the treachery of their fellow-countrymen 
 in the garrisons. Sir Edmund speaks very highly of you, 
 Oswald, not only for your behaviour in the fight, which was 
 reported to him by Sir James Burgon, a knight well fitted to 
 judge in such matters, but as an inmate of his castle. He 
 said that, from your conversation, he has conceived a high 
 opinion of you. At present things are somewhat quiet here, 
 and it were well that you should, like your uncle, take a 
 holiday for a time and visit your father and mother. They 
 have sent over several times for news of you." 
 
 The next morning Oswald mounted and rode off, attended 
 by Roger, who had asked Oswald to take him with him, as 
 
BAD NEWS 183 
 
 he had no relations he cared to visit. Alwyn was going for a 
 few days only, and indeed would probably have declined to 
 take a holiday at all had not Oswald earnestly begged him to 
 go with him. 
 
 " Tis two years since you have been there," Oswald said. 
 
 " That is so, Oswald, but I have often been longer without 
 seeing my brother ; and, in truth, of late I have had so little 
 to do, with but twenty men to look after, that I long for reg- 
 ular work and drill again. Still, it were best that I went with 
 you. There are turbulent times on hand, both on this border, 
 in Wales, and maybe in France. I may get myself killed, and 
 your father's house may be harried again by the Bairds, and 
 he may not succeed in getting off scathless as he did last time, 
 and I should blame myself afterwards if I had not seen him 
 and shaken his hand when I had an opportunity such as the 
 present." 
 
 Oswald had seen so much during the two years that had 
 passed since he first left the hold, that, as he rode towards it, 
 it seemed strange that everything should be going on as if it 
 was but the day before that he had ridden away — the only 
 difference being that the hold looked strangely small and of 
 little account after the many strong castles he had seen. As 
 soon as they reached the moor within sight of the hold a 
 horseman was seen to leave it, and ride at a gallop towards 
 them. 
 
 "That is ever the way," Oswald said; "we like to know, 
 when a visitor is seen, whether he comes as friend or foe." 
 
 As the moss-trooper rode up and was about to put the cus- 
 tomary question, he recognised Oswald, and wheeling his pony 
 without a word clashed off at full gallop, waving his spear and 
 shouting as he approached the hold. They rode at a canter 
 after him, and as they reached the entrance his father and 
 mother appeared at the door at the top of the steps. The 
 
184 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 latter ran down the steps, and as Oswald leapt from his horse, 
 threw her arms around his neck. 
 
 "Thank God you are back again, my boy!" she cried; 
 " though as yet I can hardly believe that this tall fellow is my 
 Oswald. But otherwise you are in no way changed." 
 
 " I think, mother, that you are looking better than when I 
 saw you last." 
 
 " I am well, dear," she said. " We have had a quiet year, 
 and no cause for anxiety, and things have gone well with us ; 
 and it has been pleasant indeed for us to have received such 
 good news of your doings, and to know that you stood so well 
 with Hotspur." 
 
 Oswald now ran up the steps to greet his father, who was 
 already talking with Alwyn, who had slipped off his horse and 
 run to speak to his brother while Oswald was occupied with 
 his mother. 
 
 " Well, lad," John Forster said, laying his hand upon his 
 shoulder and looking him up and down, " you have grown 
 well-nigh into manhood. I always said that you would over- 
 top me, and though methinks that I have still three inches 
 of advantage, you have yet time to grow up to look down 
 on me. Well, you have done credit to us, boy, and your 
 monkish reading and writing has not harmed you, as I was 
 afraid it would. Alwyn tells me that no man of Percy's troop 
 did better than you in that fight with the Welsh, save, may- 
 hap, that big man-at-arms down there, who, he tells me, 
 cracked the skulls of four Welshmen who were trying to stab 
 you, besides those he disposed of on his own account." 
 
 " I owe him my life, indeed, father. He is a man after 
 your own heart, strong and brave and hearty, even jovial 
 when occasion offers. He can troll out a border lay with the 
 best, and can yet read and write as well as an abbot. His> 
 name is Roger." 
 
BAD NEWS 185 
 
 " Come up, Roger," John Forster shouted, " and give me a 
 grip of your hand. You have saved my son's life, as he tells 
 me, and so long as you live there will be a nook by the fire 
 here and a hearty welcome when you are tired of soldiering. 
 In truth, you are a mighty man," he went on, after he and 
 Roger had exchanged a grip that would have well-nigh broken 
 the bones of an ordinary man. " I have been looked upon as 
 one able to strike as hard a blow as any on the border, but 
 assuredly you would strike a heavier one. Why, man, you 
 must be five or six inches bigger round the chest than I 
 am." 
 
 "You have been an active man from your youth," Roger 
 replied, " ever on horseback and about, while I spent years 
 with nought to do but eat and drink and build up my frame 
 in a monastery." 
 
 " Oswald told us in his letters that you had been a monk, 
 but had, with the consent of the abbot, unfrocked yourself." 
 
 " It was so," Roger replied with a laugh. " Methinks that 
 it was a happy day for the abbot as well as for myself when 
 I laid aside my gown, for I fear that I gave him more trouble 
 than all the rest of his convent. Besides, it was as if a wolfs 
 cub had been brought up among a litter of ladies' lap-dogs — it 
 was sure to be an ill time for both." 
 
 " And for how long are you at home with us, brother 
 Alwyn? " John Forster asked presently. 
 
 " I am here for a week only, John ; but Oswald has leave 
 for a month, seeing that at present there is no great chance 
 of Hotspur needing his services. The Scotch are quiet since 
 the king returned, I hear." 
 
 " Ay, they are as quiet as is their nature to be, but 't is not 
 likely to last long. I went not with the army, but I hear 
 that Henry behaved so gently that the Scotch feel that it 
 would be almost an act of ingratitude to meddle with us for 
 
186 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 a time. However, that will not last long; next spring they 
 will doubtless be storming down over the hills again." 
 
 The holiday passed delightfully to Oswald. Roger enjoyed 
 it even more. It was so long since the latter had been per- 
 mitted the freedom of riding at will over mountain and moor 
 that he was like a schoolboy enjoying an altogether unwonted 
 holiday. He and Oswald scoured the country, sometimes re- 
 turning late in the afternoon, but often staying for the night 
 at the houses of one or other of Oswald's friends. Once they 
 crossed the border, and rode to the Armstrongs', where they 
 stopped for a couple of days, bringing Allan and Janet back 
 with them ; for Roxburgh was still held by the English, and 
 unless when hostilities were actively going on, the people of 
 the border, save the marauders who were always ready to seize 
 any opportunity that offered of carrying off booty, were on 
 friendly terms and maintained frequent intercourse with each 
 other. 
 
 Alwyn had returned to Alnwick when his leave was up. He 
 had spent his time quietly at the hold. He and his brother 
 had discussed many plans by which its defences could be 
 strengthened, but arrived at the same conclusion, that it could 
 defend itself at present against any small party, but must yield, 
 however much its defences were increased, at the approach of 
 an invading army, since, even with the assistance of the inhabi- 
 tants of the surrounding districts, it could not maintain itself 
 until an army was gathered and the invaders driven out. 
 Occasionally an afternoon was devoted to sports on the moor, 
 and on one occasion John Forster sent messengers down to 
 Yardhope and other villages on the Coquet, and to the holds 
 of his neighbours, inviting them to come to a gathering at 
 which there would be prizes for riding, wrestling, running, 
 shooting, and feats of arms on horseback and foot, and at which 
 all comers would be entertained. 
 
BAD NEWS 187 
 
 The result was a gathering such as had not taken place in 
 that part of the country for years. Over a thousand people 
 assembled, comprising women as well as men. The sports be- 
 gan early, and the various events were all eagerly contested. 
 Ralph Gray won the horse-race, a horse which he had brought 
 from the south being far superior in speed to any of the smaller 
 border horses, although, had the trial been for endurance, it 
 would have had but small chance with them. The shooting 
 was close, one of Percy Hope's men winning at last. The 
 quarter-staff prize was awarded to Long Hackett, one of John 
 Forster's retainers. At wrestling Roger bore off the palm. 
 Some of his opponents were, in the opinion of lookers-on, 
 more skilled at the sport, but his weight and strength more 
 than counterbalanced this, and one after another tried in vain 
 to throw him to the ground, succumbing themselves as soon as 
 he put out his strength and theirs began to be exhausted, when, 
 drawing them up to him with irresistible strength, he laid them 
 quietly on the ground. 
 
 Oswald himself carried off the palm in a mile foot-race. At 
 one o'clock the sports were concluded. While they had been 
 going on a score of men were attending to the great joints 
 roasting over bonfires, six bullocks having been slaughtered 
 the day before. Ducks, geese, and chickens innumerable were 
 also cooking ; while, for the table in the hold, at which the 
 principal guests sat down, were trout, game, and venison 
 pasties. Here wine was provided, while outside a long row 
 of barrels of beer were broached for the commonalty. Dinner 
 over, there was singing and dancing. Alwyn had engaged 
 and sent from Alnwick a score of musicians. These were 
 divided into five parties, stationed at some little distance apart, 
 and round these the younger portion of the gathering soon 
 grouped themselves ; while the elders listened to border lays 
 sung by wandering minstrels. The days were shortening fast, 
 
188 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 and as many of those present had twenty miles to ride, by six 
 o'clock the amusements came to an end, and the gathering 
 scattered in all directions, delighted with the clay's proceed- 
 ings, which, although they would have been thought of but 
 small account in the southern counties, were rare indeed in a 
 district so thinly populated and so frequently engaged in tur- 
 moil and strife. 
 
 Except in the running match, Oswald had engaged in none 
 of the contests, he being fully occupied in aiding his mother 
 in welcoming the guests and seeing to their comfort, while his 
 father, assisted by his friends, Hope, Gray, and Liddel, super- 
 intended the arrangements for the sports and acted as judges. 
 In the afternoon Oswald and his cousins had joined heartily in 
 the dances, and enjoyed the day to the full as much as their 
 visitors. 
 
 Gatherings of this kind were not uncommon. Shooting, 
 wrestling, and sword-playing for the men, and dancing on the 
 green for the young people, took place at most of the village 
 fairs, but the gathering at Yardhope was long talked about 
 as a special occasion, from the hospitality in which all were 
 included, and the number of the heads of the border families 
 who were present and took part in the proceedings. Oswald's 
 mother had been the prime mover in the matter. She was 
 proud of her son, and thought that it was a good occasion to 
 present him to the countryside as one who was now arriving 
 at manhood, and was likely in time to make a figure on the 
 border. John Forster had at first declared that it was wholly 
 unnecessary, and that such a thing had never taken place in 
 his time or in his father's before him. 
 
 " That may be, husband," she said, " but Oswald has been 
 away from us for two years, and it may be as much more 
 before he returns. He is like to become a knight before long 
 — Alwyn said that the lad was sure to win his spurs — and it 
 
BAD NEWS 189 
 
 would be well that he should not slip out of the memory of 
 folks here. Besides, we have his cousins, and it is well that 
 they should carry back news that in spite of the troublous 
 times we can yet be merry on suitable occasions. The cost 
 will not be very great. The meat can scarcely be counted, 
 seeing that we have as many cattle on the moor as can pick up 
 a living there. Moreover, our neighbours all gave us a helping 
 hand to repair the hold after it was sacked last year, and 't is 
 but right that we should hold some sort of gathering, and this 
 will do for the two purposes." 
 
 The last argument had more weight with John Forster than 
 the former ones. Once having consented, he took as much 
 interest in it as did his wife, and dug up the pot in which 
 he stowed away any sums that remained at the end of each 
 year over and above the expenses of the hold, and provided 
 all that was required without stinting. Three days after the 
 gathering, the Armstrongs returned home, and Oswald rode 
 with Roger to Alnwick. The next three months passed quietly 
 and uneventfully. Snow was lying deep on the Cheviots, and 
 until spring there was little chance of the Scotch making a 
 foray. 
 
 Oswald worked hard in the hall, where the knights kept 
 themselves in exercise, practised with the young squires, and 
 superintended the drilling and practice of the men-at-arms, of 
 whom the number at the castle had been much increased, for 
 none doubted that in the spring the Scots would, after Henry's 
 invasion, pay a return visit to England, and that the northern 
 counties would need a very strong force to hold them in check. 
 He was several times sent by Percy with messages to the 
 governors of Roxburgh and Jedburgh, and to other com- 
 manders, calling upon them to be vigilant, and to send in lists 
 of arms and stores required, so that all should be in good order 
 to make a stout resistance when the need came. When he 
 
190 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 had received no special orders to return with speed to Alnwick, 
 Oswald generally found time to pay a visit of a few hours to 
 the Armstrongs. 
 
 On these excursions Roger and another man-at-arms always 
 rode with him, for it would not have been becoming for a squire 
 and messenger of Hotspur to ride without such escort. Alwyn 
 had picked out for Roger's use one of the strongest horses in 
 the castle. It was not a showy animal, having a big ugly head 
 and being vicious in temper ; therefore, after some trial, it had 
 been handed over to the men-at-arms, instead of being retained 
 for the service of the knights. It had at first tried its best to 
 establish a mastership over the trooper, but it soon found that 
 its efforts were as nothing against the strength of its rider, and 
 that it might as well try to shake off its saddle as to rid itself 
 of the trooper, the grip of whose knees almost stopped its 
 breathing. 
 
 Oswald, too, was very well mounted, Sir Edmund Mortimer 
 having presented him with one of the best horses in the stable 
 upon his leaving him. Upon nearing Hiniltie one day, just as 
 the new year had begun, Oswald was alarmed at seeing smoke- 
 wreaths ascending from the knoll behind the village upon 
 which the Armstrongs' hold stood. Galloping on he soon saw 
 that his first impressions were correct, and that his uncle's 
 tower was on fire. He found the village in confusion. 
 
 "What has happened?" he asked, reining in his horse for 
 a moment. 
 
 "The hold was suddenly attacked two hours ago," a man 
 said. "A party of reivers rode through here. None had seen 
 them coming, and there was no time for us to take our women 
 and children and hurry to the shelter of the hold. Adam 
 Armstrong is away at Roxburgh. Young Allan, with what few 
 men there were at the hold, had but just time to shut the 
 gates, but these were hewed down in a short time by the 
 
BAD NEWS 191 
 
 troopers. There was a stout fight as they entered. Allan was 
 cut down and left for dead, and the troopers were all killed. 
 Dame Armstrong was slain and her daughters carried off by 
 the reivers, and these, as soon as they had sacked the house, 
 set it alight and galloped off. Most of the men here were 
 away in the fields or with the flocks in the valleys, and we were 
 too few to hinder them, and could but shut ourselves up in 
 the houses until they had gone." 
 
 Oswald had dropped his reins in speechless dismay. " It is 
 terrible," he said at last. "Aunt killed, Janet and Jessie 
 carried away, and Allan wounded, perhaps to death ! " 
 
 " Whence came these villains ? " he asked suddenly. " From 
 beyond the Cheviots? It can hardly be so, for this part is 
 under the governor of Roxburgh, and no English raiders would 
 dare to meddle with any here. Besides, my uncle has always 
 been on good terms with them, holding himself aloof from all 
 quarrels, and having friends and relations on both sides of the 
 border." 
 
 " We believe that it was the Bairds," a man said. " There 
 has long been a standing quarrel between them and the Arm- 
 strongs, partly about stolen cattle, but more, methinks, because 
 of the relationship between the Armstrongs and your people " 
 — for Oswald's visits to his uncle had made his face familiar 
 to the villagers — " and they say that the Bairds have sworn 
 that they will never rest until they have slain the last of the 
 Forsters." 
 
 " Where is Allan Armstrong? " 
 
 " They have carried him down to the last house in the vil- 
 lage. The priest and Meg Margetson, who knows more of 
 wounds and simples than anyone here, are with him." 
 
 " Has his mother's body been recovered?" 
 
 The man shook his head. 
 
 "The hold was on fire from roof to cellar before they left," 
 
192 ROTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 he said. " I and others ran up there directly they had 
 galloped away. The house was like a furnace. And indeed 
 we knew not of her death until a boy who had seen her slain, 
 and had dropped from a window and hidden himself till they 
 had gone, came out and told us. He and two or three others 
 are the only ones left alive of those in the hold when we arrived 
 and saved young Allan ; and, indeed, whether he lives now or 
 not I know not. The priest said, when we carried him in, 
 that his state was almost beyond hope." 
 
 Oswald galloped on to the end of the village, leapt from his 
 horse, and threw the reins to Roger, who had been muttering 
 words that he certainly would not have found in the missals or 
 the books of the monastery. 
 
 " Is there nothing to be done, Master Oswald ? " 
 
 " Not at present. We must wait till my uncle returns." 
 
 Then he entered the house. He had met the priest fre- 
 quently during his stay with the Armstrongs ; as he entered 
 the room he was standing by a pallet on which Allan was laid, 
 while a very old woman was attending to a decoction that was 
 boiling over the fire. 
 
 " Is there any hope, father? " 
 
 "I know not," the priest replied, shaking his head sorrow- 
 fully. " We have stanched the wounds, but his head is well- 
 nigh cleft open. I have some skill in wounds, for they are 
 common enough in this unfortunate country, and I should say 
 that there was no hope ; but Meg here, who is noted through 
 the country round for her knowledge in these matters, thinks 
 that it is possible he may yet recover. She is now making a 
 poultice of herbs that she will lay on the wound, or rather on 
 the wounds, for he has no less than four." 
 
 " I think that he will live, young master," the old woman 
 said in a quavering, high-pitched voice. " 'T is hard to kill an 
 Armstrong. They have ever been a hardy race, and, save the 
 
BAD NEWS 193 
 
 lad's father, have ever been prone to the giving and taking of 
 blows. I watched by his grandfather's bed when he was in as 
 sore a strait as this, but he came round, and was none the 
 worse for it, though the blow would have killed any man with 
 a softer skull. A curse upon the Bairds, I say; they have 
 ever been a race of thieves and raiders, and it is their doings 
 that have brought trouble on the border as long as I can 
 remember." 
 
 " Has any gone to bear the news to Adam Armstrong, 
 father?" 
 
 " Yes. I sent off a messenger on horseback as soon as they 
 had gone. Adam left early, and the man will meet him on his 
 way back." 
 
 Half an hour later, indeed, x\dam Armstrong rode in. 
 Oswald met him outside. His face was set and hard, and 
 Oswald would scarce have recognised the kindly, genial man 
 who had always received him so heartily. 
 
 "There are hopes that he will live," Oswald said. There 
 was a slight change in the expression of Armstrong's face. 
 
 u 'T is well," he said, " that one should be saved to take 
 revenge for this foul business. All the others are gone." 
 
 " I hope we may rescue my cousins." 
 
 " We might as well try to rescue a young lamb that had been 
 carried off by an eagle," he said bitterly. " Even could an 
 archer send a shaft through the bird's breast-bone, the lamb 
 would be bleeding and injured beyond all hope ere it touched 
 the ground. We may revenge, Oswald, but I have no hope 
 of rescue." Then he went into the house without further 
 word. 
 
 »3 
 
194 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 A DANGEROUS MISSION 
 
 HALF an hour later Adam Armstrong came out of the 
 cottage where his son was lying. His mood had changed. 
 He had gathered hope from Meg Margetson's confident assur- 
 ances that there was ground for it. 
 
 " Now, let us talk of what had best be done, Oswald," he 
 said, as he led the way into the next cottage, where the 
 woman at once turned her children out and cleared a room 
 for him. 
 
 " What force could you gather, uncle ? " 
 
 " In my grandfather's time," he said, " two hundred Arm- 
 strongs and their followers could gather in case of need ; but 
 the family was grievously thinned in the days when Edward 
 carried fire and sword through Scotland, and for the last fifty 
 years Roxburgh and these parts have been mostly under English 
 rule, and in that time we have never gathered as a family. 
 Still, all my kin would, I know, take up this quarrel, and I 
 should say that in twelve hours we could gather fifty or sixty 
 stout fighting men. But the Bairds would be expecting us, 
 and can put, with the families allied to them and their 
 retainers, nigh three hundred men under arms. Their hold is 
 so strong a one that it took fifteen hundred Englishmen under 
 Umfraville three weeks to capture it. It was destroyed then, 
 but it is stronger now than ever. Could we get aid from Rox- 
 burgh, think you?" 
 
 " I fear not, uncle. I know that the governor has strict 
 orders not to give Douglas any pretext for invading us, and to 
 hold his garrison together, since the earl may at any moment 
 endavour to capture the town before help could arrive. And 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 195 
 
 even were he to send four or five hundred men, the Bairds could 
 hold out for a fortnight at least, and long before this Douglas 
 would be down with an array to his rescue. I have been talk- 
 ing it over with my trusty companion here, and he agrees with 
 me that unless a body of men-at-arms that would avail to cap- 
 ture the fortalice by a sudden assault can be raised, we must 
 trust to guile rather than force ; and I propose that he and I 
 shall at once start for the hold and see how matters stand, and 
 where the prisoners are confined, and what hope there is of 
 getting them free. I propose to send my other man to Yard- 
 hope to tell my father what has happened, and to ask him to 
 warn his friends to be ready to cross the border and to join 
 any force you can gather for an attack on the Bairds. It is 
 true that stringent orders have been issued that there is to be 
 no raiding in Scotland, but my father would not heed that for 
 a moment : the attack that has been made upon you, the killing 
 of his wife's sister, the wounding of Allan, and carrying off of 
 his nieces would be deemed by him a grievance sufficient to 
 justify his disregarding all orders. Besides which he has the 
 old grievance against the Bairds, which is all the more bitter 
 since they led the Scots to attack Yardhope. I can guarantee 
 that when he gets word from you as to the day and place he 
 will meet you there with at least a hundred spears. It is true 
 that with this force and that which you can bring he could not 
 hope to capture the Bairds' hold, but together you could carry 
 sword and fire through his district before he could gather a 
 force to meet you in the field." 
 
 " I fear that would not do, Oswald ; William Baird would 
 be capable of hanging the girls from the battlements when 
 the first fire was lit." 
 
 Oswald was silent. From the tales he had heard of the 
 ferocity of these dreaded marauders, he felt that it was more 
 than probable that his uncle was right. 
 
196 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " It seems to me," he said after a pause, " that it were best 
 for you to send two men to Parton, which is, as I have heard, 
 though I have never been there, ten miles south of the Bairds'. 
 Let them give the name of Johnstone, and at the tavern where 
 they put up say they expect a relative of the same name. As 
 soon as I can find out how the affair had best be managed, 
 I will give them instructions as to the plans I propose ; one 
 will carry them to you and the other to my father. Will Parton 
 be a good place for you to join forces? " 
 
 " As well as any other, Oswald. Your plan seems to me a 
 good one, at any rate I can think of nothing better, my brain 
 is deadened by this terrible misfortune. Had I my own will 
 I would ride straight to the Bairds' hold and challenge him 
 and his brothers and sons to meet me one after another in fair 
 combat, and should be well contented if I could slay one or 
 two of them before being myself killed." 
 
 " I can quite understand that, uncle ; but your death would 
 be in no way an advantage to the girls, nay, would rather 
 render them more helpless, therefore I pray you to let me 
 carry things out as I have planned." 
 
 His uncle nodded. " I shall send out a dozen runners to my 
 friends," he said, " and beg them to be here to-morrow morn- 
 ing early. Then, when I have talked matters over with 
 them, I shall ride to Roxburgh and lay the matter before the 
 governor. 1 know that I shall get no help from him, but at 
 least when he hears of a gathering here, he will know that 't is 
 with no evil intention against the English." 
 
 Ten minutes later Oswald's messenger started for Yardhope 
 with a full account of the step he was taking, and of the 
 arrangements that had been made. This done he had a long 
 talk with Roger. 
 
 " Now, Roger," he said, " this will be the most dangerous 
 business in which we have been concerned, and I should not 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 197 
 
 venture to undertake it did I not know that I could rely 
 absolutely upon you." 
 
 " I will do my best, master, and will adventure my life all 
 the more willingly since it is in the service of Allan and Janet 
 Armstrong. They were always pleasant and friendly with me 
 at Yardhope, and I like them for themselves as well as be- 
 cause they are your cousins. Now, master, what is to be 
 done?" 
 
 " Have you your gown with you, Roger ! " 
 
 " No, master. I know you always told me to take it with 
 me, thinking that it might come in useful, and I carried it 
 under my saddle all the time we were in Wales ; but, seeing 
 that this was but a ride to Jedburgh and back, I thought that 
 there would be no occasion for it." 
 
 " That is unfortunate, Roger, for it is upon this that we 
 must depend to get an entry into the Bairds' hold." 
 
 " Well, master, I can doubtless get some rough cloth of the 
 colour at Jedburgh; and indeed there is a small monastery 
 about three miles hence on the road, and it may be that if 
 Adam Armstrong will go with us and say wherefore it is 
 wanted, the prior will let him have one." 
 
 " I will see him at once, no time must be lost. While he is 
 away you must shave your head again." 
 
 Roger's face fell. " 'T is hard, master, after it has grown so 
 well to match the rest ; still, for so good a purpose I must even 
 give in." 
 
 On hearing what was wanted Armstrong mounted and rode 
 off at once, and while he was away one of the villagers shaved 
 the top of Roger's head again. In an hour Armstrong brought 
 back a monk's gown. 
 
 " He was loath to let me have it even for such a purpose, 
 though I told him that you were once a monk of the order. 
 Finally he said that his conscience would not allow him to lend 
 
198 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 it, but that he would sell it to me for six pennies, which I 
 gladly gave him." 
 
 " It is dark now," Oswald said, " and I know not the road. 
 Can you give me some man to put me on the way? We will 
 not make straight for the Bairds', but will strike the road from 
 Glasgow some ten or twelve miles north of his place, so that 
 we can come down from that direction ; then our guide, after 
 taking us on to the road, had best take charge of the horses 
 and lead them to Parton, there to remain with them until 
 your messenger and the one from Yardhope arrive. It would 
 be as well to have the horses there, for we cannot know what 
 need we may have of them." 
 
 "That I will arrange at once, Oswald; is there aught 
 else?" 
 
 " Yes, uncle, I must leave my armour and clothes here, and 
 borrow others that will pass as a disguise." 
 
 " How would you go, Oswald? " 
 
 " In truth it is a difficult matter. That of a minstrel would 
 be the best passport, but I know nought of harp or other 
 instrument. I might go as a vender of philters and charms, 
 a sort of half-witted chap, whose mother concocted such 
 things." 
 
 "They would never let you into the Bairds' castle, Oswald." 
 
 " Then I must be a rough man-at-arms, one who had been 
 in the service of the Earl of March, and who, when he turned 
 traitor and went over to the English, found himself without 
 employment, and asked nothing better than to enter the ser- 
 vice of someone who will give him bread and meat in return 
 for any services that he can render, whether in hunting up any 
 cattle among the hills or striking a shrewd blow in the service 
 of his employer if needs be." 
 
 " That must do if we can think of nothing better, Oswald. 
 I will speedily bring you the things you require, as they will 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 199 
 
 be found in every house in the village, and some, alas ! will be 
 needed no more by those who wore them." 
 
 "They must be of good size, uncle." 
 
 "Ay, ay, lad. There must have been some tall fellows 
 among those they slew to-day." 
 
 Half an hour later Roger and Oswald mounted. His uncle 
 sent two of his men with them, saying that it would look 
 strange were one man to come with two horses to Parton, but 
 that two, saying that their masters would follow, would seem a 
 more probable tale. 
 
 " They will, if they can, find some quiet farmhouse a mile 
 out of the village, and there get lodgings for themselves and 
 beasts. You can arrange with them to take up their station 
 on the road, so that you can, if needs be, find them." 
 
 It was with a sigh that Roger flung himself into the saddle. 
 It was not the horse on which he had ridden there, but a 
 strong shaggy pony. 
 
 " He does not look much," one of the men said, " but there 
 is no better horse of the sort in the country ; he has both 
 speed and bottom, and can carry you up or down hill, and is 
 as sure-footed as a goat." 
 
 Roger had assented to the change, for his own horse was as 
 unlike one that a monk would have bestrode as could be well 
 imagined. He had obtained a stout staff, to which the village 
 smith had added two or three iron rings at each end, render- 
 ing it a formidable weapon indeed in such hands. 
 
 " It reminds me of our start for Dunbar, master," he said. 
 " One might have a worse weapon than this ; " and he swung 
 it round his head in quarter-staff fashion ; " still I prefer a 
 mace." 
 
 " That staff will do just as well, Roger. A man would need 
 a hard skull indeed to require more than one blow from such 
 a weapon." 
 
200 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Now that Adam Armstrong had done all that there was to 
 do, he went again to the cottage where Allan lay. He had 
 paid several visits there in the afternoon, but there was nought 
 for him to do, and no comfort to be gained from the white face 
 of the insensible lad. Meg assured him, however, that he was 
 going on as well as could be expected. 
 
 " He is in a torpor at present," she said, "and may so lie 
 for two or three days ; but so long as there is no fever he will, 
 I hope, know you when he opens his eyes. There is nought 
 to do but to keep wet cloths round his head, and to put on a 
 fresh poultice over the wound every hour." 
 
 Now Armstrong took his place by his son's pallet. For a 
 time the work of making preparations for Oswald's departure, 
 and of sending off messages to his friends, had prevented his 
 thoughts from dwelling upon his loss. Throughout the night 
 the picture of his home as he had left it when he rode out 
 that morning, and the thought that it was now an empty 
 shell, his wife dead, his daughters carried off, and his son lying 
 between life and death, came to him with full force and well- 
 nigh broke him down. In the meantime the little party were 
 making across the hills, and before morning they came upon 
 the northern road fifteen miles from the Bairds' hold. Here 
 Oswald and Roger dismounted. It was arranged that the men 
 should return with the horses into the hills and should there 
 rest until late in the afternoon, and then mount and ride for 
 Parton. One or other of them was to come down at seven 
 o'clock each evening to the road half a mile from the village, 
 and was there to watch till nine. If no one came along they 
 were then to return to their lodging. 
 
 " I feel stiff in the legs, master," Roger said ; " a fifty-mile 
 ride up and down the hills is no joke after a hard day's work." 
 
 " They will soon come right again, Roger ; I feel stiff myself, 
 though pretty well accustomed to horse exercise. However, 
 
ARMSTRONG rOOK III— I'LACl KY III- SUN'S PALLET, 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 201 
 
 when we present ourselves at the hold dusty and footsore we 
 shall look our characters thoroughly." Neither were sorry 
 when they arrived at a small village a quarter of a mile from 
 the Bairds' hold. They went in together to the little ale-house 
 and vigorously attacked the rough fare set before them. 
 
 "Hast thou travelled far?" their host asked as he watched 
 them eating. 
 
 •'Indifferently far," the monk said: "'tis five-and-twenty 
 miles hence to Moffat, and it would have seemed farther to 
 me had not this good fellow overtaken me and fell in with my 
 pace. He is good company, though monkish gowns have but 
 little in common with steel-pot and broadsword; but his talk 
 and his songs lightened the way." 
 
 " Whither are you going, father? " 
 
 " I am making my way to Carlisle," he said. " I have a 
 brother who is prior in a small monastery there, and it is long 
 since I have seen him. Who lives at the stronghold I saw on 
 the hills but a short distance away? " 
 
 " It is the hold of William Baird, the head of that family, of 
 whom doubtless you may have heard." 
 
 " I have heard his name as that of a noted raider across the 
 border," the monk said, " a fierce man and a bold one. Has 
 he regard for the Church? if so, I would gladly take up my 
 abode there for a day or two, for in truth I am wearied out, 
 it being some years since my feet have carried me so long a 
 journey." 
 
 "As to that I say nothing," the host said. "It would 
 depend on his humour whether he took you in or shut the 
 gates in your face without ceremony ; but methinks at present 
 the latter were more likely than the former, for his hold is full 
 of armed men, and I should say it were wisest to leave him 
 alone, even if you had but the bare moor tc sleep upon." 
 
 " Nevertheless I can but try," the monk said ; " he may 
 
202 LOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 be in one of those good tempers you spoke of. And I suppose 
 he has also a priest in his fortalice ? " 
 
 " Ay, the Bairds are not — ; but I would rather not talk of 
 them. They are near neighbours, and among my very best 
 customers." As he spoke four armed men came in at the 
 door. 
 
 " Good-day, Wilson ! whom have you here? An ill-assorted 
 couple surely, a monk, though a somewhat rough one, and a 
 man-at-arms." 
 
 " Fellow-travellers of a day," Roger said calmly. " We met 
 on the road, and as I love not solitude, having enough and to 
 spare of it, I accosted him. He turned out a good com- 
 panion." 
 
 " You are a man of sinew yourself, monk, and methinks that 
 you would have made a better soldier than a shaveling." 
 
 " I thought so sometime, myself," the monk said ; " but my 
 parents thought otherwise, and it is too late to take up another 
 vocation now." 
 
 " Is that staff yours ? " the soldier asked, taking it up and 
 handling it. 
 
 "Yes, my son. In these days even a quiet religious man 
 like myself may meet with rough fellows by the way, and while 
 that staff gives support to my feet, it is an aid to command 
 decent behaviour from those I fall in with. I have not much 
 to lose, having with me but sufficient to buy me victuals for 
 my journey to Carlisle, where, as I have just told our host, 
 I am journeying to see a brother, who is prior at a convent 
 there." 
 
 "This fellow — where did you fall in with him? " 
 
 " He overtook me some twenty miles north on the road to 
 Glasgow." 
 
 " And are you travelling to Carlisle too?" the man said to 
 Oswald. 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 203 
 
 " Nay," he said, " I purpose not going beyond the border. 
 I have lost my employment, and have tried in vain to find 
 another as much to my liking. I have come south to seek 
 service with one who will welcome a strong arm to wield a 
 sword." 
 
 " Hast tried the Douglas? " 
 
 " No," he said, " the Douglas has men enough of his own, 
 and methinks I should not care to be mewed up in one of his 
 castles. I have had enough of that already, seeing that I was 
 a man-at-arms with George Dunbar till he turned traitor and 
 went over to the English." 
 
 " You look a likely fellow ; but, you know, we do not pay 
 men here to do our fighting for us. 'T is all very well for 
 great nobles like Dunbar and Douglas to keep men always in 
 arms, and ready to ride at a moment's notice to carry fire and 
 sword where they will. War is not our business, save when 
 there is trouble in the air, or mayhap we run short of cattle or 
 horses, and have to go and fetch them from across the border. 
 It is true that there are always a score or two of us up there, 
 for somehow the Bairds have enemies, but most of the fol- 
 lowers of the house live on their holdings, raise cattle and 
 mountain sheep, grow oats, and live as best they can." 
 
 " For myself, I would rather live with others," Oswald said. 
 " I am used to it, and to live in a hut on the moors would in 
 no way be to my fancy ; and if I cannot get a place where I 
 have comrades to talk to and crack a joke with, I would rather 
 cross the seas, take service with an Irish chieftain, or travel to 
 Wales, where I hear men say there is fighting." 
 
 " You need not go very far if it is fighting that you want," 
 the man said. " Those who ride with the Bairds have their 
 share and more of it. If you like to stop here a day or two I 
 will take an opportunity to talk to William Baird, or to one of 
 his sons, if I find a chance ; but I cannot take you up there 
 
204 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 now. At the best of times they are not fond of visitors, and 
 would be less so than usual now." 
 
 Other armed men had come in while the conversation was 
 going on. No further attention was paid to the travellers. 
 The others, sitting down at a table across the room, talked 
 among themselves. 
 
 " I care not for the work," one said presently, raising his 
 voice to a higher pitch than that in which the others had 
 spoken. " xA.cross the border I am as ready for work as 
 another, but when it comes to Scot against Scot I like it 
 not." 
 
 " Why, man," another said, " what qualms are these ? Is n't 
 Scot always fighting against Scot, ay, and has been so as far 
 back as one has ever heard. It does not take much for a 
 Douglas or a Dunbar to get to loggerheads ; and as to the 
 wild clans of the north, they are always fighting among 
 themselves." 
 
 " Yes, that is all very well," the other said, " and there is 
 no reason why neighbours should not quarrel here ; but I 
 would rather that they each summoned their friends, and met 
 in fair fight and had it out, than that one should pounce upon 
 the other when not expected, and slay and burn unopposed." 
 
 " Ay, ay," two or three others of the men agreed, " it were 
 doubtless better so, when it is Scot against Scot." 
 
 " 'T is border fashion," another put in. " There is no law on 
 the border, and we fight in our own fashion. To-day it is our 
 turn, to-morrow it may be someone else's. We follow our 
 chiefs, just as the northern clansmen do ; and whether it is a 
 Musgrave or a Baird, a Fenwick or an Armstrong, he is chief 
 in his own hold, and cares neither for king nor earl, but fights 
 out his quarrel as it may please him. I am one of William 
 Baird's men, and his quarrel is mine ; and whether we ride 
 against the King of Scotland or the King of England, against 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 205 
 
 a Douglas or a Percy, an Armstrong or a Musgrave, it matters 
 not the value of a stoup of ale." 
 
 "That is so, Nigel, and so say we all. But methinks that 
 one may have a preference for one sort of fighting over 
 another, and I myself would rather fight a matter out man 
 against man than fall suddenly on a hold where none are 
 ready to encounter us." 
 
 Roger, during a pause in the conversation at the other table, 
 got up from his seat and stretched himself. 
 
 " Well, friend," he said to Oswald, " I will go up and see if 
 they will make me welcome at the hold. If they do, I may 
 see you no more ; if not, I shall return here to sleep. There- 
 fore I bid you good -day, and hope that you may find such 
 service as will suit you. Benedicite ! " And, paying for his 
 refreshment, Roger took his staff from the corner and went out. 
 
 " A hearty fellow and a stalwart one," the man who had 
 spoken to him said. " I should not care to have a crack over 
 the crown with that staff of his. You met him coming down 
 from the north, comrade?" 
 
 " Yes, some twenty miles away. It was near Moffat that I 
 overtook him. I would rather drink with him than fight with 
 him. Seldom have I seen a stronger-looking man." 
 
 " I am of your opinion, comrade ; and some of these monks 
 are not bad fighters either. There have been bishops who 
 have led the monks to battle before now, and they proved 
 themselves stout men-at-arms." 
 
 After the others had gone out Oswald strolled through the 
 village, and then mounted an eminence whence he could take 
 a view across the valley and of some of the hill-tops to the 
 north-east. On one of these, two miles away, he could make 
 out a man standing by a horse. He watched him for some 
 little time, but beyond taking a few steps backwards and for- 
 wards the man did not move. 
 
206 DOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " He is a look-out," he said to himself, " and is no doubt 
 watching some road from Kelso and Jedburgh. Baird will 
 hardly think that the Armstrongs can have so soon gathered 
 a force sufficient to attack him, but he may have thought it as 
 well to place one of his men on the watch. I wonder how 
 Roger is getting on ! I think they must have taken him in, or 
 he would have been back before this." 
 
 Roger had walked quietly up the hill on which the Bairds' 
 hold was perched. A man stepped forward from the gate as 
 he neared it. 
 
 " None enter here," he said, " without permission from the 
 master." 
 
 " Will you tell him that a poor monk of the order of St. 
 Benedict, on his way from his convent at Dunbar to one near 
 Carlisle, of which his brother is prior, prays hospitality for a 
 day or two, seeing that he is worn out by long travel." 
 
 The sentry spoke to a man behind him, and the latter took 
 the message to William Baird. The latter was in a good 
 humour. He himself had not taken part in the raid on the 
 Armstrongs, which had been led by Thomas Baird, a cousin, 
 but the fact that the latter had been entirely successful, and 
 had burned down Armstrong's house and brought back his 
 daughters, had given him the greatest satisfaction. There 
 was a long-standing feud between the two families, and the 
 fact that the Armstrongs were on good terms with their English 
 neighbours, and still more that one of them had married the 
 sister-in-law of a Forster of Yardhope, had greatly embittered 
 the feeling on his side. He had long meditated striking a 
 blow at them, and the present time had been exceptionally 
 favourable. 
 
 Douglas had his hands full. He was on ill terms with 
 Rothesay, whose conduct to his daughter had deeply offended 
 him. The newly-acquired land of the Earl of March gave 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 207 
 
 much trouble. He was jealous of the great influence of 
 Albany at court, and was moreover making preparations for 
 a serious raid into England. It was not likely, then, that he 
 would pay any attention to the complaints the Armstrongs 
 might make of any attack upon them, especially as their aid 
 was of small use to him, while the Bairds could at any moment 
 join him in an invasion across the border with three hundred 
 good fighting men. 
 
 William Baird had not as yet even considered what he 
 should do with his captives. He might give them in mar- 
 riage to some of the younger men of his family, or he might 
 hold them as hostages. As to injuring them personally, he 
 did not think of it. Slaughter in a raid was lightly regarded, 
 but to ill-treat female prisoners would arouse a general feeling 
 of dissatisfaction along the border. Reprisals might be made 
 by the Armstrongs and their friends, and in any case there 
 would be such wide-spread reprobation excited, as William Baird, 
 reckless as he was, could hardly afford to despise. Therefore 
 when Roger's request was brought to him he said at once : 
 
 " Take him up to Father Kenelm ; tell him to look after the 
 monk's comfort. This evening he can bring him down to the 
 hall, and I will question him as to his journey." 
 
 Roger followed the man through the court-yard. He paid 
 apparently no attention to what was going on there, but a 
 quick glance enabled him to perceive that the hold was full of 
 men. He followed his guide up a winding stair to a turret on 
 the wall, the lower story of which was inhabited by the priest. 
 The soldier knocked at the door, and on its being opened by 
 the priest, he gave Baird's message to him. He was a tall 
 man, spare and bony. He himself was a Baird, and report 
 said that in his youth he had ridden on many a foray in Eng- 
 land. But fighting men were common in the family, and it 
 had been thought well that one should enter the church, as it 
 
208 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 was always good to have a friend who could represent them 
 there, and, should any complaint be made, explain matters, 
 and show that the family were in no wise to blame. And, 
 moreover, as it was necessary to have a priest at the chief 
 fortalice of the family, it was best that it should be one who 
 would not be too strict in his penances, and could be con- 
 veniently silent as to the doings within its walls. 
 
 The priest had accepted the role not unwillingly. He was 
 an ambitious man, and saw that as one of the fighting Bairds 
 there was but small opportunity of rising to aught beyond the 
 command of one of the holds. Douglas regarded them with 
 no friendly eye, for their breaches of the truces brought upon 
 him constant complaints from the English wardens, who might 
 some day or other lead a force to punish the family, which 
 had been one of the few exempted from the general pardon at 
 the last truce. As a priest he would have better opportuni- 
 ties, for the Bairds had much influence along the border, and 
 might some day or other exert it in his favour. So far no such 
 opportunity had occurred. It had been a disappointment to 
 him that Henry in his last invasion had kept along the eastern 
 coast, and he hoped that the war, which assuredly would ere 
 long break out violently, would give him the chance he longed 
 for, and he might be sent by his uncle to Douglas with offers 
 of service, or might even go north and have an interview with 
 Albany. Once fairly away from Liddesdale, he was resolved 
 that it would be a long time indeed before he returned. He 
 was now some thirty years of age, with a hard, keen face. 
 
 " Well, brother," he said, " it is not often that any of your 
 order sojourn here. I am glad to have one with whom I can 
 converse of other matters than arms and armour, forays and 
 wars." 
 
 " These matters are indeed too much in men's mouths," 
 Roger said, "though I own that I myself in some degree am 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 209 
 
 interested in them, for had I had the choice of a vocation I 
 would rather have been a man-at-arms than a monk." 
 
 " I wonder not at that," the other said, " seeing that nature 
 has been bountiful to you in the matter of height and strength, 
 and I doubt not that you could in case of need use that staff 
 you carry with good effect." 
 
 " Methinks that I might do so, but happily none have 
 molested me on my way, seeing perhaps that my wallet was 
 not likely to be a full one, and that mayhap it was hardly 
 worth while to meddle with me with so small a prospect of 
 plunder." 
 
 " But come in and sit down," the priest said ; " my uncle 
 has consigned you to my care. We shall sup in half an 
 hour." 
 
 " I shall not be sorry," Roger replied, " for though I broke 
 my fast on black bread and small beer down in the village, 't is 
 but poor nourishment for a man who has travelled far, and who 
 has a large frame to support." 
 
 " But how come you to be here ? " 
 
 Roger again repeated his story. 
 
 " It would have been shorter for you to have travelled down 
 through Berwick, brother." 
 
 " The difference was not great," Roger replied ; " and I had 
 to carry a message to Edinburgh, and from there it was shorter 
 to keep west of the Pentlands, and come down to Lanark, and 
 thence through Moffat." 
 
 " Yes, I suppose it is as short. And you had no trouble on 
 your way? " 
 
 Roger shook his head. "No; I generally join some traveller 
 or other, and that makes the journey pass all the quicker. I 
 came down here to-day with a stout young fellow, who over- 
 took me this side of Moffat. He was somewhat out at elbow, 
 and I looked askance at him at first, but he turned out a blithe 
 
 H 
 
210 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 companion, and we got on well together. He could troll a 
 good song, and my own voice is not wanting in power. It was 
 curious that he also was from Dunbar, though not immediately, 
 having, it would seem, wandered for some time on the look-out 
 for service." 
 
 "What was he, a cattle drover? " 
 
 " No, he had been a man-at-arms of George of Dunbar — at 
 least, so I understood — and when the earl fled and Douglas 
 took possession of Dunbar, he lost his living. He told me 
 that he had made his way down here in hopes of finding em- 
 ployment on the border, where blows were common and a 
 good blade was of more use than it was farther north. I said 
 that he might have found employment under Albany, or under 
 some other great lord, but he said that he had seen the Earl 
 of March a fugitive, and that he cared not to enter the service 
 of another noble, who might in turn be ousted from his place 
 and lose his life ; but as for Albany, he thought from what he 
 heard that he would rather serve him than any other master. 
 I said, ' Why not Rothesay, who would be King of Scotland ? ' 
 He laughed lightly, and said as Rothesay had managed to get 
 upon ill friendship, not only with the Earl of March but 
 with Douglas, and, as he heard, with Albany, he thought that 
 his chances of becoming King of Scotland were not worth 
 considering." 
 
 " He must be a bold varlet thus to speak irreverently of 
 great ones." 
 
 " I think not that he was bold," Roger said, "but only a 
 merry thoughtless young fellow, who in such company as mine 
 let his tongue loose, and said what first came into his head. 
 As to the matter, methought he spoke not without warrant." 
 
 " And he came from the north now? " 
 
 " T know not whence he came last, but I think that he was at 
 Edinburgh, and had taken service there when the English king 
 
A DANGEROUS MISSION 211 
 
 sat down before it; but, as you know, nought came of the 
 siege." 
 
 At this moment a horn blew. " There is supper," the priest 
 said. " We will go down." 
 
 The meal was laid in the hall, which, however, was not large 
 enough to contain more than the ordinary retainers of the 
 hold. These and the men who had come in at the summons 
 of Baird were provided for in the court-yard, the table being 
 occupied entirely by members of the Baird family and others 
 who always acted with them. These had not yet taken their 
 seats when the priest entered with his companion, whom he at 
 once took up to Sir William Baird. 
 
 " By St. Andrew ! monk, I have seen no finer figure for 
 many a day. A pity that a monk's gown should clothe such 
 limbs as yours." 
 
 "That has always been mine own opinion," Roger said with 
 a heartiness that raised a smile on the hard faces of the men 
 standing round. 
 
 " You look as if you had carried arms." 
 
 "I did so in my wild youth," Roger said, "and had no 
 thought of ever donning monk's hood, but I was grievously 
 wounded in a foray in Northumberland, and when I reached 
 my home at Lauder I well-nigh died of the fever of the wound, 
 and I swore that if my life was saved I would become a monk. 
 I got well, and I kept my vow ; but methinks had I but known 
 how dull the life was, I would rather have died of the fever." 
 
 As this story was perfectly true, save the name of his birth- 
 place, Roger spoke so heartily that no one doubted his story. 
 
 "And your monastery is at Dunbar? You have been at 
 Dunbar, Rotherglen, ask him where the convent stood." 
 
 As Roger had stayed there when with Oswald he was at 
 Dunbar he was able to answer this and other questions satis- 
 factorily. The party then took their places at table, the priest 
 
212 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 and Roger sitting at the bottom of it. The conversation at 
 the upper end naturally turned on the foray, and a general 
 disbelief was expressed as to the chance of the Armstrongs 
 retaliating. 
 
 "'Tis out of the question," one of the Bairds said, "they 
 could not raise fifty men. Doubtless they will send a com- 
 plaint to Douglas, but he has his hands well full, and is not 
 likely to quarrel with us about such a trifle, when he may want 
 our aid at any moment either against Albany or against the 
 English." 
 
 "What do you intend to do with the girls?" 
 
 " I have not settled yet," William Baird said shortly. " At 
 any rate for the present I shall hold them as hostages. I don't 
 think that anything is likely to come of the affair; but if we 
 should hear of any force approaching likely to give us trouble 
 we could send word to them that if an arrow is loosened at our 
 walls we will hang the girls out as marks for their archers. I 
 fancy that will send them trooping off again at once." 
 
 As soon as the meal was over and the carousal began the 
 priest rose, and accompanied by Roger retired to his chamber. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 ESCAPE 
 
 OSWALD, who was thoroughly fatigued with the events of 
 the last thirty-six hours, slept soundly on an armful of 
 rushes that his host threw down in a corner of the room for 
 him. At eight o'clock the man who had spoken to him on the 
 previous evening came in. 
 
ESCAPE 213 
 
 " I have spoken to William Baird," he said. "I told him 
 that you seemed a likely fellow. He called down the monk 
 and asked him several questions about you, and he told me at 
 last that I could bring you up to see him. So come along at 
 once." 
 
 " Thanks, comrade," Oswald said, as he slung his long two- 
 handed sword from his shoulder. 
 
 " A likely-looking young fellow indeed," Baird said to 
 Rotherglen, whom he had sent for to be present ; " over six 
 feet, and I should fancy has not attained his full width. So 
 you would fain take service with me ? " he said. 
 
 " I want a master," Oswald replied, " and from what I hear 
 I am more likely to see fighting under you than under any 
 other on the border." 
 
 " And you were with George Dunbar? " 
 
 " I was," Oswald replied. " But indeed the service was not 
 altogether to my taste, for we were always pent up in Dunbar, 
 and save in a street broil there was no need to draw a sword. 
 I was glad enough to leave his service, though in truth I have 
 fared but badly since." 
 
 "Now do you question him, Rotherglen." 
 
 A number of questions were put to Oswald, concerning the 
 names of the streets, the direction, the names of the principal 
 inns, and the approaches to the castle. All these were satis- 
 factorily replied to. 
 
 " He knows Dunbar, there is no question about that. And 
 you can use your arms? " 
 
 "I think so." 
 
 " We will have a trial," Baird said. " A man is no use to 
 me who cannot use his weapon. Send Robert here." 
 
 In a minute one of the young Bairds entered. He was a 
 man of about twenty-five, tall and sinewy, and was accounted 
 the best swordsman of his family. 
 
214 BOTH SIDES THE P.ORDER 
 
 " Cousin Robert," William Baird said, " this young fellow 
 would enter our service ; but before I take him I must see that 
 he knows his business. Do you take a turn with the sword 
 with him. No, no, not a two-handed sword ; I don't want 
 him to be slain. Take a couple of swords from the wall. Give 
 him another steel-cap and full body-armour, that of his own 
 would not keep out a good downright stroke." 
 
 By the time that Oswald was armed a number of the Bairds 
 and their friends had assembled in the hall, hearing of what 
 was going to take place. 
 
 " A fine young fellow, truly," Rotherglen said. " In height 
 and width he matches Robert well, though of course your 
 cousin must be the more powerful, seeing that he is some four 
 or five years older than this young fellow, who, when he 
 reaches his age, bids fair to be well-nigh as strong a man as 
 that monk." 
 
 Roger had just entered with the priest. "Well, monk," 
 Baird said, " we are going to try the mettle of your com- 
 panion of yesterday." 
 
 " I answer not for his mettle," Roger said ; "but if he fights 
 as well as he talks, he will not do discredit to himself." 
 
 As they took their places facing each other, the lookers-on, 
 men well qualified to judge of strength and sinew, murmured 
 to each other that it would be difficult to find a better- matched 
 pair. They were about the same height, both stood lightly on 
 their feet, and their figures seemed full of life and activity. 
 Both were smiling, Robert Baird with a smile of confidence 
 and of assurance in his skill, while Oswald's face expressed 
 only good temper, and, as the others took it, a belief that he 
 would at any rate be able to make such a defence as would 
 assure his being taken into the Bairds' service. 
 
 The first rally indeed proved more than this. Robert Baird 
 had at once taken the offensive, and showered his blows 
 
ESCAPE 215 
 
 heavily down, while springing backwards and forwards with 
 wonderful quickness and activity ; but Oswald's blade ever met 
 his, and he did not give way an inch, even when Baird most 
 fiercely attacked him. Then suddenly he adopted the same 
 tactics as his opponent, and pressed him so hotly that he was 
 several times obliged to give ground. Oswald could twice 
 have got in a heavy blow, but he abstained from doing so. 
 He could see that his antagonist was a favourite among his 
 kinsmen, and felt that, were he to discomfit him, he would 
 excite a feeling of hostility against himself. Both, panting 
 from their exertions, drew a step backwards and lowered 
 their swords. 
 
 " Enough ! " William Baird said, " the matter need be 
 pushed no further. 'Tis long since I have seen so good a 
 bout of sw 7 ord-play. This young fellow has learned his busi- 
 ness, and if in other respects he does as well, he will make a 
 good recruit indeed. What say you, lad? Will you join us 
 for a month, till you see whether you like our service, and we 
 can judge how your service will suit us ? For that time you 
 will have your living here and drink-money. After that, if 
 we agree, you can either be a retainer here, or we will give 
 you a holding on the moor, build you a shelter, give you a 
 horse, and, after our next foray, a clump of cattle." 
 
 "That will suit me well," Oswald said; "and I like well 
 the month of trial you propose." 
 
 " I will take him, if you will let me, uncle, as my own man," 
 Robert Baird said, " if at the end of the month he chooses 
 service with us, and likes better to follow a master with half a 
 dozen men than to live alone on the moors. Methinks he 
 would make a cheery companion, and one I could take to 
 heartily ; and indeed, during the long winters, 't is no slight 
 thing to have one merry fellow who can keep one alive, and 
 of whose mettle and skill you are well assured." 
 
216 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " So let it be, then, Robert ; you have tried him, and yours 
 should be the advantage. But for the month he shall remain 
 here under Malcolm's eye." 
 
 Oswald went down with the man, who was Baird's right 
 hand in the hold. 
 
 "What will be my duties?" he asked. 
 
 " To keep your arms and armour ready for service." 
 
 " That will be an easy task, methinks, for I see that instead of 
 being polished and bright, as were ours at Dunbar, the others 
 keep their steel caps and back-pieces painted a sombre colour." 
 
 The other nodded. "Yes, our arms are for use and not 
 for show, and when we ride by moonlight we care not to have 
 our presence shown miles away by the glint of the moon on 
 our armour. You will do your turn of keeping watch and 
 ward. Just at present there will be a good deal of that, for 
 we have been stirring up a wasps' nest, and mayhap they may 
 come and try to sting. When you are off duty you will be 
 your own master, save that you had best be within sound of 
 the warder's horn. I will hand over a horse to you. For 
 the present it is at that croft on the opposite hill. Each of 
 the tenants keeps two or three at our service. We have only 
 the Bairds' own horses kept in the hold. It would be too 
 much trouble to gather forage for those of the twenty men 
 who always live here, and indeed we have no room for such 
 number. Mind that you drink not too much over in the 
 village there, for though the Bairds care not on feast-days if 
 the whole garrison gets drunk, so that there are enough sober 
 to keep watch and ward, they set their faces against it at 
 other times, seeing that it leads to broils and quarrels." 
 
 " I will take care. I like my cup occasionally, and can 
 drink with others without my head getting addled, but as a rule 
 I care not overmuch for it." 
 
 After being roughly introduced to several of the retainers as 
 
ESCAPE 217 
 
 a new comrade, Oswald was left to follow his own devices. 
 Presently Roger came out into the court-yard. 
 
 " So you have got service, comrade," he said in a voice that 
 could be heard by any of those standing near. "You had 
 better fortune than I had expected." 
 
 " That have I," he replied. " Still I thought that it would 
 be hard if one who could use his sword indifferently well, and 
 puts no great value on his life, could not find sendee on the 
 border. How long do you stay here?" This was a question 
 that had been arranged, for had they been seen speaking pri- 
 vately together it might have aroused suspicion. 
 
 " Methinks I shall stay here two days, to get rid of my leg- 
 weariness. I am not so accustomed to long marching as you 
 are." The real meaning of the question, as arranged, was, 
 " Have you found out where the prisoners are kept?" The 
 answer meant " Yes, and it will not be difficult to get at them." 
 The evening before, indeed, when he returned with the priest 
 to his chamber, they had broached a bottle together. The 
 priest on his part had asked many questions as to the state of 
 things in Edinburgh and Dunbar, what were the opinions of 
 people with regard to the Duke of Albany and the Prince, and 
 what would probably come of the coldness that was said to 
 exist between them. 
 
 Roger was able to conceal his ignorance of these matters by 
 saying that he knew little of what was passing, for that he had 
 been the cellarer in the convent and went out but little. 
 Nevertheless he had kept his ears open ; as they rode north to 
 Jedburgh he had heard a good deal of talk and speculation, 
 and was able to give various pieces of news that had not before 
 reached the ears of the priest. He was not long in discover- 
 ing that the latter was ill satisfied with his present position, 
 and was ambitious to take part in more important affairs, and 
 he presently said : 
 
218 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I wonder, father, that a man of your ability should be con- 
 tent to remain as chaplain in a border hold when there are so 
 many opportunities beyond for one like you to make his way 
 in the Church." 
 
 " In truth," the priest said, " I have had such thoughts 
 myself, and hope some day to see a little more of the world. 
 By the way, can you read and write, brother?" he asked 
 suddenly. 
 
 " Assuredly," Roger replied. He guessed at once that the 
 question had been put at the instigation of William Baird, who 
 perhaps still had some doubts whether he was really a monk, 
 and an affirmative answer would be an almost conclusive proof 
 that he was so, for very few outside the walls of the convents, 
 even among the nobles and knights, possessed any knowledge 
 of letters. 
 
 " I have a missal here," the priest said carelessly, " that has 
 somewhat troubled me, being written in a cramped hand ; per- 
 haps you could read it for me," and, getting up, he took a roll 
 from a closet. 
 
 Roger smiled quietly as he turned it over. By a private 
 mark upon it he knew that it had been written at Alnwick, 
 and was doubtless the proceed of some foray upon a monastery 
 across the border. He ran his eye over it, and then in a 
 sonorous voice proceeded to read it aloud. 
 
 " I thank you," the priest said when he had finished. 
 " Truly you are an admirable reader, and well skilled in 
 deciphering. I wonder that you held not some more impor- 
 tant post than that of cellarer." 
 
 Roger laughed. " I might have done so," he said, " but, in 
 truth, I am not strict enough in matters of discipline to suit 
 our prior, and am somewhat over-fond of the wine-cup. More 
 than once, when it seemed that I might have been chosen as 
 reader to the monastery, I fell into disgrace, and lost my 
 
ESCAPE 219 
 
 chance ; and, indeed, I was far better pleased with my post 
 there than if they had appointed me sub-prior." 
 
 Any vestige of doubt there might have been in the priest's 
 mind had vanished as Roger read, for he was conscious that 
 he himself could not have picked up a manuscript and have 
 deciphered it so easily and fluently. 
 
 " It must be trying to you, good father," Roger went on, 
 " to be among men who, if reports speak truly, are somewhat 
 lawless, and hold even the Church in but slight respect. 
 Surely among them there can be but little scope for your 
 abilities? " 
 
 " 'T is true, brother ; but they are, you know, kinsmen of 
 mine. They have many foes across the border, and some on 
 this side, and are forced to hold their own as they may. It 
 was but two days ago that they were obliged to punish a family 
 that have long been at feud with them, and who might well 
 have fallen upon their holds if they marched into England 
 with Douglas. However, they have brought off two hostages 
 for the good behaviour of these people." 
 
 " Yes, I heard a chance word in the village that a party had 
 just returned from a foray and had brought back a number of 
 prisoners." 
 
 " Not a number, brother, but two girls." 
 
 " I have seen no women in the castle," Roger said. 
 
 " No. William Baird lost his wife years ago, and cares not 
 to have women in the hold. There is not a married man among 
 the garrison. If a man takes him a wife he must go and settle 
 on the lands. The women are in a safe place of keeping ; they 
 are overhead. There are wild young fellows among the Bairds, 
 and the girls are good-looking, therefore he thought it best to 
 place them in my charge, and that is why you see two sentries 
 marching on the battlements, one on each side of this turret. 
 He himself keeps the key of their chamber, handing it over to 
 
220 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 me every morning, and receiving it again at night — a precau- 
 tion wholly unnecessary, methinks." 
 
 " Surely, surely," Roger said. " I wonder that you are not 
 offended." 
 
 " I told him that it was strange he could not trust me, a 
 priest, with the charge of them, but he laughed and said, ' As 
 a priest you are well enough, father Kenelm, but remember 
 also that you are a Baird. Though a priest, I would trust you 
 to ride with me on a foray across the border, but as a Baird 
 I would not entrust you with the custody of women. You may 
 take it as a compliment that I have trusted you as far as I do.' " 
 
 Roger's answer to Oswald had been eminently satisfactory to 
 the latter. Still more pleased was he when, later on in the 
 day, Roger repeated as he passed him, " They are lodged in 
 the turret over my chamber." Oswald was scarcely surprised, 
 for he had noticed that two sentries were on the wall on that 
 side, although it was the one farthest removed from the direc- 
 tion in which any foes were likely to appear. He had, more- 
 over, just before dinner, observed one of the kitchen men go 
 up with two dishes in his hand by the steps leading to the top 
 of the wall on that side. There was no hindrance to the men 
 going freely in and out of the hold, and as no duty had been 
 assigned to him that evening he strolled out of the gate when 
 it became dusk, soon after six o'clock, for it was now the be- 
 ginning of April, 1 40 1, and walked down through the village, 
 and then, taking off his armour and steel cap, and laying them 
 down under a bush by the roadside, set off at the top of his 
 speed in the direction of Parton. He did the ten miles under 
 an hour, and nearly ran against a man who was standing in the 
 middle of the road, a short distance from the little town. 
 
 " Is that you, Fergus?" 
 
 " No, I am John, master. Fergus will take the watch to- 
 morrow evening." 
 
ESCAPE 221 
 
 " Good. Keep the horses saddled at this time every even- 
 ing, and hold them in readiness ail night ; things are going on 
 well, and I may be here any night. Which is the house?" 
 
 " That is it, master, where you see the light, a quarter of a 
 mile farther up the hill." 
 
 "Where are you sleeping?" 
 
 " In the stables with the horses. It is some ten yards off 
 the right of the house." 
 
 " Then you must keep watch through the night by turns, and 
 get your sleep in the daytime. I hope we shall get them away 
 without waiting for a force to come. The hold is a very strong 
 one, and a strict watch is kept at night, and before we could 
 carry it we should have all the Bairds on the country-side 
 down upon us. Can you get me a rope ? I want a long and 
 a strong one." 
 
 " There are some ropes in the stable, master, but they are 
 in use and would be missed." 
 
 " Then run at the top of your speed down to the town 
 and buy a rope strong enough to hold the weight of half a 
 dozen men. I shall want a hundred feet of it. Here is 
 money." 
 
 The man shot away into the darkness, and in a little over a 
 quarter of an hour was back again with the rope. Oswald 
 took off his doublet. 
 
 " Wind it round and round me," he said. " Begin under 
 the arms. Wind it neatly and closely so that it will make no 
 more show than necessary." 
 
 This was soon done, and then Oswald started on his way, 
 and an hour later entered the tavern and took his seat with 
 three or four of the men from the hold and called for wine for 
 the party. He sat there for some time, and then one said : 
 " It is half-past eight ; we had best be going. At seven o'clock 
 the gates are shut, but they are opened fur those who belong 
 
222 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 to the hold till nine, after which none are admitted till morning, 
 and any who come in then are reported to Baird, and they are 
 lucky if they get off with half a dozen extra goes of sentry 
 duty. Baird is a good master in many things, but he is a bad 
 man to deal with when he is angry, and if anyone was to be 
 out a second time, and he did it too soon after the first offence, 
 he would have his skin nearly flayed off his back with a stirrup 
 leather. There is no fooling with the Bairds." 
 
 Oswald arranged with Roger that if the latter remained in 
 the castle he should always come down half an hour before 
 the garrison were moving, as they might then exchange a word 
 or two unseen, and accordingly he took his place at an angle 
 of a building where he could keep his eye on the steps leading 
 up to the battlements on the north side. Presently he saw 
 Roger descending; he waved his hand and caught his fol- 
 lower's eye, and the latter on reaching the court-yard at once 
 joined him. 
 
 " I have a rope, Roger," Oswald began, " that will reach 
 from the turret to the foot of the craig. I took it off during 
 the night, and have just hidden it away behind a pile of rub- 
 bish in the stable. Are the girls locked up?" 
 
 « Yes." 
 
 "Is there any getting the key?" 
 
 " No, William Baird himself keeps it." 
 
 " Then we must have something to force the door open or 
 to saw round the lock." 
 
 " The door is studded with iron." 
 
 " Are the windows barred? " 
 
 " No ; but they are mere loopholes, and there is no getting 
 through them." 
 
 " I suppose there are steps from their room on to the plat- 
 form above? " 
 
 " No doubt ; in fact there are sure to be." 
 
ESCAPE 223 
 
 " I suppose that you will have no difficulty in silencing the 
 priest?" 
 
 Roger smiled. " No ; I think I can answer for him." 
 
 " Could you speak to the girls through the keyhole, Roger? " 
 
 "There would be no difficulty about that, master. I have 
 but to choose a time when the priest is out." 
 
 " Then tell them that we are here, Roger, and they are to 
 be ready to escape whenever we give the signal. Ask them 
 if the trap-door leading on to the platform is fastened, and 
 whether they can unfasten it. If not, we must break it in 
 from above. We can get on to the top of the turret easily 
 enough by throwing the rope up with a hook attached. Of 
 course the two sentries must be first silenced. I would wait 
 till I myself should be on sentry there, but that might not 
 occur for a week, and you cannot prolong your stay here more 
 than another day ; therefore we will try it to-night. I have 
 given the men with the horses notice. Do you get the priest 
 bound and gagged by ten o'clock ; everything will be quiet by 
 that time. I will come noiselessly up the steps. At that hour 
 do you be at the door and on the look-out for me. The sen- 
 tries will have to be silenced — that is the most difficult part 
 of the business." 
 
 " We can manage that," Roger said confidently ; " one blow 
 with my quarter-staff on the back of the head under the steel 
 rap will do that noiselessly enough." 
 
 " That would not do, Roger ; the man would go down with 
 such a crash that the fall of his armour on the flags would be 
 heard all over the castle. He must be gripped by the throat 
 so that he cannot holloa, and then bound tightly, and gagged 
 before he has time to get breath." 
 
 " I suppose that would be the best way," Roger said regret- 
 fully ; « but I should like to have struck two good blows, one 
 for the sake of Dame Armstrong and one for Allan. How- 
 
224 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 ever, your plan is the best ; the only difficulty will be the trap- 
 door." 
 
 " Well, we must look about to-day and get a couple of bits 
 of iron that we can use as a prise. Still, I hope that it will 
 not be needed. I saw a bit of iron in the stables that I think 
 I can bend into a hook for the rope, and if I can't I have no 
 doubt that you can. That is all. You had better move away 
 now, people will be stirring directly." 
 
 That night at ten o'clock, when all in the hold had been 
 asleep half an hour, Oswald rose quietly from the rushes on 
 which he and a dozen of his comrades were sleeping and made 
 his way noiselessly out of the room, went into the stables and 
 fetched the piece of iron, which he had during the day placed 
 so that he could feel it in the dark, took the coil of rope in 
 his hands, and ascended the steps. The top was but some 
 ten feet from the turret. He stood quiet until he heard the 
 sentry moving away from him, then he mounted the last steps, 
 and in a moment reached the foot of the turret stairs. Roger 
 was standing there. 
 
 "All right, master ! " he whispered. " I took the priest by 
 surprise, and he was gagged before he knew what was happen- 
 ing. I tore the blanket up into strips and tied him down on 
 to his pallet with them. He is safe enough. Now for the 
 sentries. I will take the one to the right first. I will go out 
 and stand in the angle ; it is a dark night, and there is no 
 chance of his seeing me. When you hear his walk cease you 
 will know that I have got him. I have managed to bring up 
 a rope that I have cut into handy lengths. Here are two of 
 them. There, he has just turned, so I will go at once." 
 
 " How about the trap-door? " 
 
 " It is all right, master ; it is bolted on the inside. They 
 have tried the bolts, and find they can move them ; " and with 
 these words he at once stepped noiselessly out. Oswald stood 
 
ESCAPE 225 
 
 listening. Presently he heard the returning steps of the sentry. 
 They came close up to the turret and then suddenly ceased. 
 He at once hurried round. The sentry hung limp in Roger's 
 grasp. Oswald bound his hands tightly, and twisted the rope 
 three or four times round his body, and securely knotted it. 
 Then he tied the ankles tightly together. 
 
 " I will lay him down," Roger whispered when he had done 
 so. Oswald bent the man's legs, and, trussing him up, fastened 
 the rope from the ankles to that which bound the wrists. 
 Roger now relaxed his grip of the man's throat, thrust a piece 
 of wood between his teeth, and fastened it by a string going 
 round the back of the head ; he then took off his steel cap and 
 laid it some distance away. 
 
 '•' That will do for him, master. I reckon that he will be an 
 hour or two before he will get breath enough to holloa, even 
 without that gag." 
 
 The other man was captured as silently as the former had 
 been. When he was bound, Roger said, " Now for the hook, 
 master." 
 
 " Here is the iron. It was too strong for me to bend." 
 
 Roger took it, and exerting his great strength bent it across 
 his knee. Then he took the coil of rope and tied a knot at 
 the end, and with some smaller cord lashed it securely along 
 the whole length of the hook. 
 
 " Now, master, do you get on to my shoulders, and I think 
 you will be able to hook it to the battlements. It is not above 
 twelve feet. If you find that you cannot, step on my head." 
 
 "I am sure I can reach it without that, Roger." And, 
 indeed, he found that he could do so easily ; and having fixed 
 it firmly he got hold of the rope and hoisted himself to the top 
 of the turret. In a minute Roger was beside him. Feeling 
 about, they soon discovered the trap-door, on which Roger 
 knocked three times. Then they heard a grating sound below, 
 
226 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 and shortly one end of the heavy trap-door was slightly raised. 
 The two men got their fingers under it and pulled it up, and 
 Janet and Jessie ran out, both crying with joy and excitement. 
 
 " Hush ! " Oswald whispered. " Do not utter a sound ; 
 there are sentries on other parts of the walls, and the slightest 
 noise might be heard. Now we will knot this rope." 
 
 He and Roger set to work, and before long knots were tied 
 a foot apart along the whole length of the rope. 
 
 " I will take you down first, Jessie, for you are the lightest," 
 Oswald said. " Now, Roger, tie us together." 
 
 One of the pieces of rope Roger had brought was passed 
 round and round them, tying them firmly face to face. 
 
 " Now, Jessie, you had best take hold of the rope too, and 
 take as much of your weight off me as you can. It is a long 
 way down, and though I think that I could carry your weight 
 that distance, it is best that you should help me as much as 
 you are able." 
 
 The rope was shifted to the outside of the turret. Roger, 
 after fixing it firmly, helped them over the battlements, hold- 
 ing Oswald by the collar until he had a firm grasp of the rope 
 in his hands, and obtained a hold with his feet. 
 
 "That is right, Jessie," he whispered as the girl also took a 
 firm hold of the rope. " You are no weight like that. Now, 
 let the rope pass gradually through your hands, and, when I 
 tell you, hold tight by one of the knots." 
 
 After lowering himself forty feet, Oswald found that he was 
 standing on a ledge of rock three inches wide at the foot of 
 the wall. 
 
 " Now, dear, it will be more difficult," he said. " You must 
 use one of your hands to push yourself off from any rugged 
 points. There are not many of them. I had a look at the 
 rock to-day, and its face is almost smooth. I will do the best 
 I can to keep you from it." 
 
Ml MM ROPE PASS GRADUALLY THROUGH YOUR HANDS." 
 
ESCAPE 227 
 
 In another three minutes they stood at the foot of the craig. 
 Oswald shook the rope violently to let those above know that 
 they were down. Then he untied the cord that bound him to 
 his cousin, who at once sat down, sobbing hysterically. Oswald 
 put his hand upon her shoulder. 
 
 " Steady, Jessie, steady. You have been brave and quiet 
 coming down. The danger is over now, but we have a long 
 walk and a longer ride before us, and you will need all your 
 strength." 
 
 In a very short time Roger and Janet joined them. As 
 soon as she was untied, Janet threw her arms round Oswald's 
 neck and spoke for the first time. 
 
 " Oh, Oswald, from what you have saved us ! How brave 
 and good of you to risk so much ! " 
 
 " Tut, tut, Janet, as if we should leave you here in the hands 
 of the Bairds without making an effort to free you ! Now, come 
 along, dear. Be very careful how you walk till we get down 
 to the bottom. It is pretty steep, and if you were to set a 
 stone rolling we might have them after us in no time. As it 
 is, we shall only have an hour and a half start, for the sentries 
 will be relieved at midnight. However, by that time we shall 
 be on horseback, and of course they won't know which road 
 we have taken." 
 
 As soon as they came to level ground they set off at a run. 
 They were but a mile from the village when they heard, on 
 the still night air, distant shouts, followed half a minute later 
 by the winding of a horn, then almost immediately a glimmer- 
 ing light appeared on the highest turret of the hold, and this 
 rapidly broadened out into a sheet of flame. 
 
 "They have discovered our escape by some misfortune or 
 other," Oswald exclaimed, " and they will be after us before 
 many minutes have passed. You must run in earnest now, 
 girls." 
 
228 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 "Do you run on, Oswald," Janet said, "you and Roger. 
 We will turn and walk back ; they will do us no harm." 
 
 Oswald thought of the murder of the girls' mother, and 
 knew that, in their fury at having been tricked, the Bairds 
 were capable of anything. 
 
 " It is not to be thought of," he said. " Such a watch would 
 henceforth be kept that there would be no possibility whatever 
 of effecting your rescue. We must take our chance together. 
 What think you had best be done, Roger?" 
 
 " In sooth I know not. I am ready to do whatever you 
 think best." 
 
 " We cannot hope to reach Parton before they overtake us," 
 Oswald said. " Besides, the Bairds are sure to have many 
 friends there, and the lighted beacon will warn all the country- 
 side that something unusual has happened. No, we cannot 
 think of going there." 
 
 " But you said that there were horses," Janet said. 
 
 " They are but a short distance on this side of the town. 
 We could not hope to get there before the Bairds, and even 
 if we did, it would be a quarter of an hour before we could 
 mount and be off." 
 
 "Could we not hide and get the horses after they have 
 passed, master?" Roger suggested. 
 
 " It would be useless, Roger. The road leads up and down 
 this valley, and there would be no possibility of riding the 
 horses across the hills at night, so that we should have either 
 to ride down through Parton or up past the Bairds' hold. No, 
 the horses must be given up for the present. The only thing 
 that I can see is to cross the Esk and to take refuge in the 
 hills. I know not if there are any fords, or where they are, but 
 were we to turn to the right we should be getting farther and 
 farther away. The Esk is no great width, and we can carry 
 them across it easily enough." 
 
ESCAPE 229 
 
 "The water will be dreadfully cold," Jessie said with a 
 shiver, for it was now the beginning of April. 
 
 " Hush, Jessie ! " her sister said ; " what matters a little 
 cold when our lives are at stake?" 
 
 " No, that is our only hope," Oswald said. " Quick, girls, 
 there is no time to lose." 
 
 The river was but some fifty yards from the road, and they 
 ran down to it. 
 
 "Now, girls," Oswald said when they reached it, "you 
 must take off your cloaks and all upper garments. Were you 
 to get these wet you would before morning die of cold. Don't 
 lose a moment; undress under the shelter of these bushes. 
 Now, Roger, let us move a few yards away and then take off 
 our doublets and shirts and swim across, holding them above 
 the water. By the time that we are back the girls will be 
 ready." 
 
 " I will carry them across, master. It is of no use two of 
 us going with so light a burden. I shall make nothing of it." 
 
 Oswald made no opposition, and a minute later the shirts 
 and doublets were made into a bundle and bound on Roger's 
 head. He waded into the water until it reached his chin and 
 then swam out. The distance to be traversed was but some 
 fifteen yards, and a few strokes of his brawny arms brought 
 him to the opposite bank. Having laid down his bundle 
 there he swam quickly back again. 
 
 " Are you ready, girls? " Oswald asked. 
 
 " Yes," Janet replied, and two white figures came out from 
 the bushes, each carrying a bundle. 
 
 " Do you go into the bushes again for a minute. We can- 
 not take you and the bundles over together, and it is better 
 that you should stand here in dry things than wait in wet 
 ones over there." 
 
 A minute sufficed to tie the bundles on the heads of the 
 
230 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 two men. They soon swam across to the other side, left 
 them there, and returned. 
 
 "The water is bitterly cold for the girls," Oswald said, as 
 they swam across together. 
 
 " It is, master, but they will only be in it for a minute, 
 and they will soon be warm again." 
 
 " Now, girls." 
 
 " We have just heard the sound of horses in the distance, 
 Oswald," Janet said. 
 
 He listened. "Sound travels far this still night," he said; 
 " they can only just have started. We shall be across long 
 before they come along. Now, Jessie, we will take you first. 
 The stream runs strongly, and it were best that you went 
 over separately. All you have to do is to put a hand on a 
 shoulder of each of us. Come along." 
 
 " I will carry her till we get into deep water," Roger 
 said, catching the girl up in his arms and running into the 
 stream. 
 
 Jessie gasped as the water reached her. 
 
 "It will be over in a minute," Oswald said encouragingly. 
 " Now, we are going to swim ; put your hands upon our 
 shoulders. That is right." 
 
 Striking out strongly they easily carried her until she was 
 in her depth. 
 
 " Now, dear, get ashore and stand behind those bushes, and 
 take off your wet things and put on your dry ones ; we will 
 have Janet across in no time." 
 
 The girl was carried across as easily as her sister had been. 
 
 " Here is your bundle, dear ; Jessie has taken hers. Dress 
 as quickly as you can. Stoop down as soon as you reach the 
 bushes; they will be here directly." 
 
 Janet ran to the thicket, and Oswald and Roger threw them- 
 selves down behind a great stone. Two minutes later they 
 
IN HIDING 231 
 
 could hear the thunder of hoofs go along the road opposite, 
 but could not make out the figures. 
 
 " How many are there of them, do you think, Roger? " 
 
 "A dozen or so, master." 
 
 " Yes, I should think you are right. However, it makes no 
 difference ; were there ten times as many, they would not 
 catch us to-night." 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 IN HIDING 
 
 THE moment the horsemen had gone by, Oswald and 
 Roger hastily dressed again. It was three or four 
 minutes before the girls joined them. 
 
 " We have been a long time, Oswald, but our fingers are so 
 cold that we could not tie the strings." 
 
 " You will soon be warm ; climbing the hill will set your 
 blood in motion." 
 
 There was no hurry now, they were safe until the morning. 
 
 " We will make up the hill until you are thoroughly warm, 
 and then we will discuss matters." 
 
 Before they were very far up the ascent both girls declared 
 that they were comfortably warm again. 
 
 "Well, Roger, what do you think our best course will be? 
 The Bairds have of course sent horsemen along the other road ; 
 they will have heard from the priest that we have but a few 
 minutes' start, and will know that we cannot have gone far. 
 The party who passed us will doubtless stop at Parton, the 
 other at the next village higher up, and they will be sure that 
 either we concealed ourselves as they passed, or have taken to 
 
232 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the hills on one side or other of the valley. They will natu- 
 rally suppose that it is this side, as it would be madness for us 
 to plunge farther into the country to the west, and you may be 
 sure there will be scores of men out on these hills to-morrow 
 searching for us, and some of them may ride nearly to Hiniltie 
 to cut us off there in case we escape the searchers on the hills. 
 I think that the only plan will be to hide up for a couple of 
 days or so, then to make our way down again to where the 
 horses are, and then make a dash through Parton." 
 
 "That would certainly be far the best way," Roger said; 
 "but how are we to manage for food for the ladies?" 
 
 " We will go on until we get to the top of the hill, Roger, 
 and then find a sheltered spot where they can stop. It is of 
 no use trying to go on much farther, for the night is cloudy 
 and there are no stars to be seen, and we should lose our way 
 directly, for there is no wind that would serve as a guide as 
 to which way we were travelling. When we find a good 
 shelter we must stop with them, and I will make my way 
 down to the place where the horses are and warn the men as 
 to what has happened, and tell them to lie quiet till I come 
 again. I will bring back whatever food they may have with 
 them, a big jug of water, and the four horse-cloths." 
 
 "I will go, master." 
 
 " I would rather go myself, Roger. I am accustomed to 
 traverse the moors at night, and am sure that I can find this 
 place again without difficulty." 
 
 On nearing the top of the hill they came upon a number 
 of rough stones. 
 
 " We cannot do better than stop here," Oswald said ; " it 
 will be bare on the top of the hill. Now, Roger, help me to 
 pile a few of these stones together so as to make a sort of 
 shelter." 
 
 They set to work at once, Roger's strength enabling him 
 
IN HIDING 233 
 
 to lift stones that ordinary men could scarcely have moved. 
 In a quarter of an hour a little inclosure, six feet long by four 
 wide and three high, had been constructed. An armful of dry 
 heather was then pulled up and laid on the ground. 
 
 " There, girls, I think you will be able to manage to keep 
 yourselves warm by lying close together." 
 
 " What are you going to do, Oswald ? " 
 
 " We shall be all right, and we can if we like make another 
 shelter, and if we feel cold can walk about to warm ourselves. 
 Now, Roger, get a half dozen sticks and lay across the top." 
 
 While Roger was away getting the sticks Oswald helped the 
 girls over the wall, for no entrance had been left. 
 
 " Now, Janet, give me those two wet smocks ; I see that 
 you have brought them with you." 
 
 "What do you want them for, Oswald?" 
 
 " I want them for the roof, Janet ; it is beginning to freeze 
 hard, and it is of no use having walls if you have not a roof." 
 
 "Won't you take my cloak instead?" 
 
 " Certainly not, Janet, you will want your cloak for a cover- 
 ing ; don't be silly, but hand them over." 
 
 By this time Roger had returned with the sticks. They 
 were laid across the top, and the girls' smocks spread over 
 them. 
 
 " Now, go to sleep," Oswald said ; " we must be on foot an 
 hour before dawn." 
 
 Oswald then started down the hill for Parton. When he 
 got within a mile of the town he could see lights moving about 
 on the road, and guessed that the Bairds had got torches and 
 were making sure that the fugitives had not hidden themselves 
 anywhere close to the road, for they must have felt certain that 
 they could not have reached the town before being overtaken. 
 When the lights had gone along the road he descended to 
 the river, took off his doublet and shirt as before, and swam 
 
234 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 over, crossed the road, and was not long in finding the trees 
 that marked the spot where he was to turn off to the farm- 
 house. He made his way to the stable, raised the latch, and 
 entered. A lamp was burning, and the two men sitting and 
 talking together. They leapt up with an exclamation of 
 pleasure as Oswald entered. 
 
 "We were afraid that something might have gone wrong, 
 for as I was waiting for you in the road I heard a body of 
 horsemen coming along, and hid behind the trees. As they 
 went by one of them said, ' We must have passed them long 
 ago if they came by this road. They had not more than a 
 quarter of an hour's start.' I heard no more, but it suggested 
 that maybe you had managed to escape with the ladies, and 
 that the Bairds were in pursuit of you." 
 
 " That was exactly the case. We have got them out of the 
 hold, and methought that we should have got two hours' start 
 at least, in which case they would not have overtaken us be- 
 fore we had crossed the Liddel at the ford, six miles above 
 the junction of the Esk with it, and were well on our road 
 towards Longtown ; but by some accident, I know not what, 
 the matter was discovered before we had been gone ten min- 
 utes. As it was certain that they would overtake us long be- 
 fore we got to Parton, we swam the Esk, and I have left the 
 ladies on the hill over there in charge of Roger while I came 
 here. We know that by morning the countryside will be up 
 and searching the hills, and that with the two lasses it would 
 be hopeless for us to try and make our way on to Hiniltie, 
 therefore we decided to hide up for two or three days, then to 
 make our way down here at night, mount, and ride through. 
 By that time the search down in the valley here will have 
 slackened, and we shall get through Parton all right, and our 
 only danger will be at the ford across the Liddel, where, pos- 
 sibly, the Bairds may set a guard lest we find our way down 
 
IN HIDING 235 
 
 there. I had intended that we should take the four horses, 
 and that you should make your way to Hiniltie across the 
 hills, but as there will now be no great occasion for speed, 
 one of you had best ride with us, while the other bears the 
 news to Hiniltie that we have carried off the girls. You had 
 better settle between yourselves which shall go with us. You 
 aay take it that there is about equal danger both ways, for 
 the one that goes to Hiniltie must travel cautiously, as it will be 
 a week before the Bairds give up the search among the hills." 
 
 " We had best decide by lot." 
 
 Oswald picked up a piece of straw and broke off two frag- 
 ments, one an inch longer than the other, and, closing his hand 
 on them, he held the two ends out. " Do you draw," he said, 
 holding it out to Fergus ; " the longest straw goes to Hiniltie, 
 and shortest with us." 
 
 The man drew. " I have the longest," he said, " and per- 
 haps it were best that it should be so, for I know the way 
 thoroughly, having often been over the hills in search of miss- 
 ing cattle." 
 
 " You will both remain here till we come. Now, what food 
 have you?" 
 
 " We bought a supply in Parton yesterday evening, and 
 have enough for a week, for we thought that some might be 
 needed by the whole party on our way, and, moreover, we 
 care not to go down often to the town, as we might attract 
 attention." 
 
 " That is good ; keep enough for to-morrow for yourselves ; 
 I will take the rest." 
 
 " There is no need for that. We can get what we want from 
 the house, and to-morrow evening one of us will go down into 
 Parton again." 
 
 " Or, better still," Oswald said, " give the money to the hind 
 here. I suppose there is one?" 
 
236 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " Yes ; he sleeps in the house." 
 
 " Give him money, then, and a present for himself, and get 
 him to fetch it for you. Some of the Bairds may remain there, 
 and you may be sure that every stranger will be strictly ques- 
 tioned. I want also the four horse-cloths, which please make 
 into a bundle. Is your water-skin full? " 
 
 "We filled it this afternoon, thinking it possible that we 
 might make a hasty start to-night." 
 
 " How much does it hold ? " 
 
 " About two gallons." 
 
 " It would have been better had it been four. However, we 
 must manage with it. Now, do you know of any ford across 
 the river? for I certainly could not swim across with this load." 
 
 " There is one half a mile farther up. We were asking the 
 hind about it the other day, thinking that it might be useful 
 should we have to fly suddenly. I will go down with you ; 
 and indeed I shall be glad to go the whole way with you, for 
 the provisions and those blankets and the skin will be no light 
 weight, and as I am going to Hiniltie, it will cheer Armstrong 
 if I could tell him that I saw his daughters." 
 
 " It would be a good plan, Fergus, though in truth the 
 weight would be no great burden ; but certainly Armstrong 
 would be pleased to know that you had seen his daughters." 
 
 A few minutes later they set out, forded the river breast- 
 high, carrying the loads on their heads, and then, climbing the 
 hill, made their way to the shelter, whose exact position Oswald 
 had marked on starting by a huge boulder that stood on the 
 crest of the hill some fifty feet above it. Roger was on the 
 look-out. Seeing two figures approaching when he expected 
 but one, he grasped his staff firmly. 
 
 " Who comes there? " he asked. 
 
 " It is I, Roger. I have brought one of the men with me 
 to help carry the things. He is going to Hiniltie, and thought 
 
IN HIDING 237 
 
 that Armstrong would be pleased to know he had seen his 
 daughters. I have got plenty of food, and a skin of water." 
 
 " That is capital," Roger said cheerfully. " I was fearing that 
 having so many things to think of you might forget water." 
 
 Oswald went to the shelter. 
 
 " Are you awake, Janet ? " 
 
 " Yes," she replied ; " I have been anxious while you were 
 away." 
 
 " Are you cold ? " 
 
 " I am not very warm," she answered ; " but do not trouble 
 about it, we shall do very well." 
 
 " I have two blankets here," he said as he removed the cover- 
 ing. " One of these I will put over you both, and tuck it well 
 in each side to keep out the wind that comes in between the 
 stones. Then I will lay your smocks over that. I wrung them 
 well before putting them on the sticks, and although I cannot 
 say they are dry, yet they are not damp enough to matter, and 
 will help keep you warm. The other blanket I will put over 
 the sticks." 
 
 " Thank you indeed, Oswald," the girl said gratefully. " That 
 feels very much more comfortable." 
 
 " Now, Roger, there is a blanket for you, and one for me, to 
 wrap round us plaid fashion." 
 
 " I do not need one, master ; in faith I have more respect 
 for this gown than I ever had before — it is wondrously warm, 
 and with the hood over my head I want nothing more." 
 
 "That is all very well, Roger; if you don't need it for 
 your shoulders, you need it for your legs, for being without 
 hose and with nought but those sandals you must be freezing. 
 We will walk up and down here for a bit, and do you wrap it 
 round your legs like a Highlander's petticoat. When we have 
 tired ourselves we will lie down and try to get a sleep for an 
 hour or two." 
 
238 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 As they walked they talked over their plans, and Oswald 
 decided that before daybreak he would set out on the search 
 for a place of concealment. 
 
 " I will leave my helmet and breast- and back-piece behind 
 me," he said, " and will take your staff. Then if I am caught 
 sight of by any party in the distance, I shall look like a shep- 
 herd, while, had I on my iron harness, they would at once sus- 
 pect me of being of the party, even though I were alone. As 
 for you, your monk's robe would be detected miles off." 
 
 " I could leave it behind me," Roger said. 
 
 " You have not much on underneath, Roger, and your bare- 
 ness in such weather as this would be as noticeable as your 
 gown. Mind, before it gets light get the ladies up, and carry 
 our bag of victuals and the water-skin over the crest. You 
 may be sure that as soon as it is light there will be many sharp 
 eyes watching the hillside all along here." 
 
 The man who had come up with them had already wrapped 
 himself in the blanket he had brought with him, had crawled 
 in among the bushes, and was, as they could hear by his 
 heavy breathing, already sound asleep. After a time Oswald 
 said that, as they had nothing more to settle, he would try 
 and get a few hours' rest. There was not the slightest fear 
 of surprise, and Roger and he were not long before they were 
 both sound asleep. Oswald woke two or three times, and at 
 first sign of dawn shook Roger. 
 
 " You had better wake the ladies in a few minutes, Roger, 
 and get them over the crest. Let their man, as soon as he has 
 seen them, start at once, keeping along behind the ridge, and 
 varn him not to go down into the valley until he is fully a mile 
 beyond Parton. Tell him to look carefully along the road 
 before he begins to descend, and to see that it is clear. Even 
 then let him hide as much as may be behind brushwood and 
 rock until he gets down. When he has swum the river let him 
 
IN HIDING 239 
 
 make a wide detour round Parton, so as to come down to the 
 stables without being noticed. I shall not be very long away. 
 'T is scarce likely among these hills that I shall find any place 
 that we can crawl into, and I think we shall have to content 
 ourselves with lying down among the heather. I must find a 
 spot where no one on any hill above can look down on us. We 
 shall be quite safe from any party moving along on the same 
 'evel as ourselves." 
 
 Oswald had gone but a little distance when he determined 
 that no better place could be found than the plateau itself. 
 This extended for two or three hundred yards from the edge 
 looking down into the valley. Beyond, the ground sloped 
 sharply down again into a deep hollow, and beyond it was 
 broken into rounded swells rising one above another. A party 
 lying among the heather where he was standing could not be 
 seen by watchers from any other point. Moreover, it was 
 most important that all should be in shelter before it was 
 fairly daylight. He therefore, as soon as it was light enough 
 to take in the principal features of the scene, hurried back to 
 his companions. 
 
 "We can do no better, girls, than to lie down together two 
 hundred yards away. Pick your way through the bushes 
 where they are thinnest, so as not to disturb them ; please be 
 off at once, and choose a spot close to where the ground falls 
 away on the other side. Roger and I must tumble this shelter 
 down and scatter the sticks, for if anyone searching the hillside 
 came along he would guess that we had slept here, and there 
 would be a hue and cry at once." 
 
 The man had left some time before for the valley, having 
 gone off as soon as he had spoken to the girls. Oswald and 
 Roger ran down to the shelter, speedily threw the stones into 
 a heap, and scattered the sticks ; then, after glancing round 
 to see that nothing had been left, they collected the blankets. 
 
240 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 provisions, and water-skin, and taking up these and Oswald's 
 armour ran in the direction that Oswald had pointed out to 
 the girls. The ground was thickly covered with heather, and 
 they had to step carefully to avoid pressing it down. They 
 reached the edge of the plateau without seeing the girls, and 
 after looking round for a minute or two Oswald called aloud. 
 He was answered by a merry laugh, and Jessie's head rose 
 above the heather. They had indeed passed within five or 
 six yards of the girls. 
 
 "That is good indeed," Oswald said, as he lay down beside 
 them. " If I could not see you when I was sure that you were 
 quite near, there is no fear of any searchers lighting upon you. 
 The sun has just risen and a mist still hangs on the top of the 
 hills," he went on, " and I am convinced that we cannot have 
 been seen, for men placed on the watch are sure to be high 
 up on the hills, and it will be some time yet before the sun 
 rises high enough to drive away the mist." 
 
 Although it was freezing sharply they felt by no means cold 
 as they lay wrapped in their blankets, with the heather rising 
 well above them and sheltering them from a light breeze that 
 had sprung up at sunrise. 
 
 After chatting with the girls for a time, Roger and Oswald 
 left them, and crawling along on their stomachs got to the 
 edge of the descent. By this time the sun was well above the 
 hills, the mist had cleared off, and they had an extensive view. 
 From time to time they caught sight of groups of three or four 
 mounted men moving about, searching the vallays, while single 
 men on foot rambled over the hills. 
 
 " They are keeping up an active search, Roger. 'T is well 
 that we went no farther. They will scarce suspect us of lying 
 close to the valley we left. I expect the main body has gone 
 much farther. I have no doubt the Bairds have a couple of 
 hundred men and boys out. They would call out every man 
 
IN HIDING 241 
 
 and boy from their holdings, and most likely get a couple of 
 score of men from their village, and perhaps twice as many 
 from Parton. No doubt they will think that if we came in this 
 direction we should last night have found our way to one of 
 the tracks across the hills, and it is near these that their search 
 will be the keenest. Fortunately they cannot know that I am 
 here, nor guess that it is to Yardhope that we intend to take 
 them, and not to Hiniltie. Still, they may expect that we 
 shall try to cross the border, and I fancy we shall scarcely 
 get through without a fight." 
 
 " All the better," Roger grumbled. " My fingers tingle to 
 bring down this staff on the head of some of the Bairds after 
 all the trouble they have given us." 
 
 They remained watching until it became dusk, except that 
 twice during the day they crawled back and partook of a meal 
 with the girls. The last time they joined them Oswald 
 said : 
 
 " Now, in half an hour it will be quite dark, and then we 
 can safely get up and walk about for a bit. I am sure you 
 must feel stiff lying still so long." 
 
 " I have never kept quiet for so long a time since I can 
 remember," Jessie said laughing. 
 
 " That shows that you have had no illnesses, Jessie. How- 
 ever, I shall be glad to get up and stretch my limbs myself. 
 Half an hour will be enough, and then we will have a good 
 lung night. Another day of it and I think it will be safe to 
 start." 
 
 The next afternoon they saw a number of parties searching 
 the hills in all directions. 
 
 " I expect they have become convinced that we have not 
 tried to get straight through, Roger, and are hunting back for 
 us. It is as well that it will be dark in another half-hour, and 
 they will then have to give up their search for the night. If 
 
242 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 there were a couple of hours more light I should feel very 
 uneasy." 
 
 " So should I, master. You and I would have little chance 
 of mercy if we fell into their hands. It might well be that in 
 their anger they might slay the ladies also." 
 
 "That would be like enough, Roger. However, there can 
 be no chance of their coming here before it is dark." 
 
 At nine o'clock they started and made their way down, with 
 some difficulty and many slips and falls, into the valley. Then 
 they kept along near the river, till Oswald was sure they were 
 close to the ford. He bade them halt here, and went forward 
 alone. Before he had gone fifty yards he nearly stumbled 
 against a man. 
 
 " Is it you, John ? " 
 
 " Yes, it is I." 
 
 "Is all well?" 
 
 " It is all well, but I had a fright yesterday morning. The 
 Bairds searched every cottage and hut over the hills on this 
 side, and they say their men rode almost as far as Galloway ; 
 but they gave up the search before they got here, feeling 
 assured that they must have passed you very soon after you left 
 the hold, and you could never have got as far down as this." 
 
 " 'T is well they did not search, indeed," Oswald said. 
 " Your story about the horses might do well enough for those 
 who have no interest in the matter, but it would never have 
 done for the Bairds. All has been quiet to-day?" 
 
 "They seem to have given up searching on this side. I 
 hear that they feel sure now the ladies have made for Hiniltie, 
 and they have had great forces out among the hills, and feel 
 confident that they must catch them soon." 
 
 " Have you got the horses saddled ? " 
 
 " They are saddled and brought down close to the road ; 
 Fergus is with them." 
 
IN HIDING 243 
 
 "Then bring them across at once. The sooner we are off 
 now the better. Are there any of the Bairds' men in the 
 town?" 
 
 " There are a few of them, but as no one has any idea that 
 you are like to pass through there, they will not be on the 
 look-out. Besides, all will have been among the hills from 
 daybreak this morning, and I expect by this time there is 
 scarce a soul awake in Parton." 
 
 Oswald returned to the girls, and they went out together 
 to the ford. In a couple of minutes the men were seen 
 making their way across, riding two horses and leading the 
 others. 
 
 " We thank you heartily," Janet said, " for having so risked 
 your lives for us, for had you been caught with the four horses, 
 they would at once have connected you with us, and it would 
 have gone hard with you." 
 
 " We have been keeping away from the horses yesterday and 
 to-day, just going to a distance and lying down where, without 
 being seen ourselves, we could watch anyone who went up to 
 the farm. We could have done no good, and thought that it 
 was better that we should be able to warn you if they had 
 come and taken the horses away." 
 
 After crossing the river, Fergus at once started on foot for 
 Hiniltie. 
 
 They had already discussed how they should ride, and it 
 had been settled that at starting Janet should ride the fourth 
 horse, and that Jessie should ride behind the others by turns. 
 If an attack was threatened, Jessie was to mount behind her 
 sister, and they were to take their place between Oswald and 
 Roger, while their own man rode close behind them. It was 
 just ten o'clock as they rode through Parton ; not a light was 
 to be seen ; the whole place appeared wrapt in sleep. They 
 went through at a walk, so that if any heard them they would 
 
244 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 suppose that it was a belated party of the searchers, and 
 would give the matter no further thought. After riding for a 
 short distance, they put the horses into a trot. Four hours 
 later they halted at the point where the road down the Esk 
 valley divided, one going to the ferry a few hundred yards 
 farther on, while the other turned to the left and followed the 
 bank of the Liddel. 
 
 John had inquired about the ferry, and learned that the 
 ferry-boat no longer plied, as, since the troubles began, there 
 was so little traffic that it did not pay the ferryman to remain 
 there. As they had already decided to cross by the ford four 
 miles higher up, this did not matter. As none of them was 
 aware of its exact position, they decided to wait where they 
 were until daylight. Searching about they found a deserted 
 hut, with a shed adjoining it. The horses were led into this, 
 and the party then gathered in the hut, and John struck a light, 
 while Oswald and Roger broke up a fallen gate and the fire 
 was soon blazing. Although there was not the slightest chance 
 of anyone travelling the road at this hour, they hung one of 
 the thick blankets across the window, thus keeping out the 
 cold air, as well as preventing the light from being seen. 
 Then the party lay down, the men taking it by turns to stand 
 guard outside, being relieved every two hours. 
 
 As soon as day dawned they again mounted. It was about 
 four miles' ride to the point where the road divided, one branch 
 going towards the river, some seventy or eighty yards away. 
 Here stood a square building of some size, used as a refuge by 
 travellers who arrived when the Liddel was swollen and the 
 ford impracticable. When the riders had come within a few 
 yards of this building two men, hearing the sound of horses' 
 hoofs, came out. As their eye fell upon the party they gave a 
 shout, ran out into the road, and drew their swords. Roger 
 and Oswald rode at them. Parrying a thrust of one of the 
 
IN HIDING 2-iO 
 
 men, Oswald cut him down, while Roger with a tremendous 
 blow from his staff stretched the other man on the road. 
 
 " Ride on, girls ! we will follow you," Oswald shouted. 
 
 Jessie was sitting behind John, and they and Janet dashed 
 forward and rode into the water. Oswald and Roger followed, 
 as six men armed with spear and sword ran out from the house. 
 Seeing that they were too late, the leader shouted to the others : 
 
 " Fetch out the horses and chase them ! " and before the 
 party had gained the opposite bank their pursuers dashed into 
 the water. 
 
 " Don't press your horses too hardly," Oswald said, as they 
 galloped along. "They are too close behind us for us to get 
 help from any of the small villages, but they dare not follow 
 us into Longtown, and we have barely a ten miles' ride." 
 
 They had some two hundred yards' start, and for the first 
 four miles held their own ; then their pursuers began to gain 
 upon them. One of the horses was carrying double, and 
 Roger and Oswald were both heavier than any of the moss- 
 troopers. 
 
 " We shall have a fight for it, Roger." 
 
 " That is just what I was thinking, master. Well, there 
 are three of us, and as there are only six of them we ought 
 not to have much trouble. John will be a match for one. 
 Methinks you and I can each make short work of a man when 
 they first come up, and with but three of them against two it 
 will be mere child's play." 
 
 The road was a narrow one and little used, and when they 
 came to the foot of a sharp rise Oswald called to those ahead 
 to stop. 
 
 " Jump down, Jessie, and mount behind Janet, and ride on 
 ahead ; we will soon get rid of these fellows. Be quick I " 
 The moss-troopers were now but seventy or eighty yards 
 behind. 
 
24^6 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I shall fight on foot," Roger said, as he leapt off his horse. 
 " I want both hands for this staff." Turning his horse, and 
 bidding John to do the same, Oswald reined back his animal 
 three or four lengths, and when the Bairds' party were within 
 twenty yards, touched it with his spur and dashed at them, 
 meeting them just abreast of Roger. The first man he met 
 thrust at him with his spear, but Oswald parried with his 
 sword, and with a back-handed blow smote the man just under 
 the chin, and he fell with a crash from his horse. At the same 
 moment he heard a blow like that of a smith's hammer, as 
 Roger's staff fell upon the steel cap of the first who attacked 
 him. John was less fortunate, for his opponent's spear struck 
 him in the throat, and he fell heavily from his saddle. 
 
 " Well stricken, Jock ! " one of them shouted. " Ride on 
 after the women ; we will settle with these fellows." 
 
 But before the moss-trooper could obey the order, Oswald, 
 with a touch of the spur and the bridle, caused his horse to 
 curvet round, and smote the man so mighty a blow on the 
 shoulder as well-nigh to sever his arm from his body. As he 
 wheeled his horse again he was nigh unseated by a spear- 
 thrust that struck him on the breast-piece ; but, upon recover- 
 ing, he struck his opponent as he passed so heavy a blow in 
 the face with the pommel of his sword that he sent him sense- 
 less to the ground. The other two men had furiously attacked 
 Roger, but, whirling his staff round his head, he had kept them 
 both at bay ; then the staff descended between the ears of one 
 of the horses, which fell headlong, and before the rider could 
 get his foot from the stirrup the staff struck him below the 
 steel cap, just in front of the ear, and without a cry he fef 
 dead beside his horse. At that the last of the moss-troopers 
 turned his horse and galloped off at full speed. 
 
 "We have not taken long over that, master," Roger said 
 with a grim smile. " Five men in a minute is not so bad." 
 
IN HIDING 247 
 
 " I am afraid John is killed, Roger ; see to him." 
 
 " Ay, he is sped," Roger replied, as he turned the body 
 over. "The spear struck him full in the throat. That is 
 what comes of not learning to use your weapons. What shall 
 we do with him? " 
 
 " He was a faithful fellow, Roger, and as there is no need 
 for haste now, we will give him some sort of burial, and not 
 let him lie here in the road." 
 
 " We have nought to dig a grave with," Roger remarked. 
 
 " No, but there are plenty of stones about." 
 
 He dismounted, and with Roger's help carried the dead 
 man a short distance away, laid him down by the side of a 
 great boulder, and then piled stones around and over him. 
 
 " That will do, Roger ; 't is not like that anyone will dis- 
 turb those stones for years to come. He will rest as well there 
 as if he lay in a grave. Now let us look to the others." 
 
 The man he had struck across the throat, and the last 
 Roger had hit, were both dead. Two of the others were 
 but stunned, while the one upon whose shoulder Roger's blow 
 had fallen was lying insensible, and evidently was fast bleeding 
 to death. 
 
 " We can do nought for him," Oswald said. " Even had 
 we the king's leech here we could not save him. Now let us 
 be off." 
 
 "Shall we take the horses, master?" 
 
 " No, they will be but an incumbrance, and now that poor 
 fellow has gone, we have one apiece. Bring his horse along 
 with you." 
 
 Mounting they rode quickly on, and at the top of the hill 
 came up with the girls, who, having seen the result of the 
 < ombat, had waited for them. 
 
 " Now we are safe and free, thanks to you both," Janet said. 
 "Jessie looked back and saw the fight as we rode. How 
 
248 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 quickly it was over ! But I am grieved indeed that John 
 has fallen. We saw you carrying off his body and covering it. 
 Jessie had noticed him fall, and we feared 't was all over with 
 him. He was an old retainer of our father's and a faithful 
 one." 
 
 " I am sorry indeed that he has been slain, Janet ; but we 
 could hardly expect to come out altogether scathless." 
 
 " Are all the others killed ? " Jessie asked. 
 
 " No. Two of them are but stunned, and will ere long be 
 able to mount and ride off again." 
 
 " Master Oswald has gained the most honours in the fight. 
 I killed one and stunned another. He has stunned one also, 
 but has slain two." 
 
 " I had a better arm, Roger." 
 
 " I know not that," Roger replied. " A quarter-staff of 
 that weight is a fine weapon. I say not that it is to be com- 
 pared to a mace, but when on foot I would as lief have it as a 
 sword." 
 
 " Now, Jessie, do you mount John's horse. We can ride 
 quietly, for Longtown is but some three miles ahead." 
 
 They rested there for a couple of hours, then mounted 
 again and crossed the Pentlands by a horse-track between 
 Cristindury and Gele Craigs. Coming down into Tynedale 
 they put up for the night at the first place they came to. At 
 daybreak they set off northwards, crossed Reddesdale, and 
 came down in the afternoon into the valley of the Coquet, 
 within two miles of Yardhope. Great indeed was the surprise 
 and joy of John Forster and his wife when they made out the 
 two girls riding with Oswald towards the hold. 
 
 "What miracle is this, lad?" the former said, while his wife 
 was embracing her nieces. " We heard but two days since of 
 the raid on the Armstrongs, and how the girls were carried off 
 by the Bairds," 
 
IN HIDING 249 
 
 Here Oswald put his finger to his lips to stop him from say- 
 ing aught of Jane Armstrong's death. He had, after dis- 
 mounting, whispered in his mother's ear before she had time 
 to speak to the girls, that as yet they knew nought of their 
 mother's death, and that he had left it to her to break it to 
 them. 
 
 " I have been since scouring the country," his father went 
 on, " to try to get my friends to take the matter up, but in 
 truth they were not over-willing to do so. All know that it is 
 no slight enterprise to attack the Bairds in their stronghold. 
 We fared but badly last time we went there, though that was 
 but a blow and a retreat ; but all know that the Bairds' hold is 
 not to be taken like a country tower. 'T is greatly bigger 
 and stronger than ours, and scarce to be attempted save by 
 a royal army, especially as the whole countryside would be 
 swarming round us in a few hours after we crossed the 
 border. This time, too, it is no quarrel of my people ; and, 
 as they say, the risk would be indeed great, and the loss very 
 heavy. 
 
 " I sent off a messenger this morning to Armstrong, to tell 
 him that I feared I could not raise more than sixty spears, but 
 with these I would ride to Hiniltie and join any force he 
 could collect, and try with him to surprise the Bairds' hold and 
 rescue the girls, though it seemed to be a mighty dangerous 
 enterprise." 
 
 " He will have learnt yesterday morning, father, that we 
 have carried them off. We could have brought you the news 
 last night, but to do so we must have ridden fast, and the 
 girls being with us, we thought it were better to take two 
 days over the journey, so we slept in Tynedale last night." 
 
 " And how did you manage it? For unless you and Roger 
 flew into the Bairds' hold, and carried them off on your backs, 
 I sec not how it could be managed. Why, the place is so 
 
2oO BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 strong that even the Douglases have not cared to carry out the 
 terms of the treaty for the arrest of William Baird as a noto- 
 rious breaker of the truce between the two countries." 
 
 " It was because I knew Armstrong deemed that it was 
 scarce likely a force could be gathered by you and his friends 
 strong enough to undertake such an enterprise, that we de- 
 cided to rescue them by strategy. The affair turned out to 
 be easy enough." 
 
 And he then related in detail the manner in which he and 
 Roger had obtained entry into the hold and had succeeded in 
 rescuing his cousins. 
 
 " By the bones of St. Oswald, from whom you got your 
 name, lad," John Forster exclaimed when he had finished 
 his story, " you have carried out the matter marvellously well ! 
 Hotspur himself could not have contrived it better ; and I own 
 that I was wrong, and that that fancy of yours to be able to 
 read and write has not done you the damage that I feared it 
 would. Henceforth I will maintain with all my might that 
 these things in no way tend to soften a man, but on the con- 
 trary, in some way sharpen his wits, and enable him to carry 
 out matters with plans and contrivances such as would scarce 
 be conceived by men who had not such advantage. But why 
 do we not go inside? " 
 
 "I have been keeping you here, father, because I doubt not 
 that my mother has been breaking the news to the girls of their 
 mother's slaughter. I said nought to them about it. They 
 knew the hold was burnt, and I told them that Allan was 
 wounded ; but I thought that if I gave them the worst part of 
 the news, it would throw them into such deep grief as to unfit 
 them for the journey. It might not have been discovered till 
 two hours after we had started that they had escaped, and in 
 that case we should have been mounted before the Bairds over- 
 took us, and it would have been a ride for life, and the girls 
 
ANOTHER MISSION" TO LUDLOW ^51 
 
 would have needed all their strength and courage to keep 
 them up." 
 
 " It was as well so, Oswald, and doubtless your mother will 
 break it more easily to them than you could have done. 
 Women are better at such things than men, who are given to 
 speak bluntly and straight what has to be told." 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 
 
 WHILE Oswald was talking with his father, Roger had 
 taken the four horses round to the long shed that ran 
 along one side of the wall, and had there been telling the 
 moss-troopers the same story Oswald had been relating to his 
 father, whom he now joined. 
 
 " Well, friend Roger," John Forster said, as he came up, 
 shaking him heartily by the hand, " by my faith my son is 
 fortunate in having so stout a fellow as his henchman." 
 
 '• 'T is rather that I am fortunate in having him as a master," 
 Roger replied. " I have but to strike as he bids me, and there 
 is no need for me to think, for my brain bears no proportion 
 to my bulk ; and indeed even in the matter of strength he 
 bids fair to equal me, for he seems to me to grow taller and 
 stronger every month, which is not surprising seeing that you 
 are yourself much beyond the common. In all this matter 
 there is no credit due to me, save that I have, as faithfully as 
 I could, carried out his orders." 
 
 " All men can try to carry out orders, Roger, but it is not 
 all who can do it with intelligence. Doubtless it has some- 
 thing to do with the book learning that you have, and in 
 which vmi were his instructor. *' 
 
252 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I think not that it is so in any way, Master Forster," 
 Roger replied quickly, for he liked not the thought that he 
 had gained any advantage whatever from his stay in the con- 
 vent. " It might likely be useful to a man of small stature, 
 whose thoughts would naturally turn to being a scribe, and to 
 making his living by such finicking ways instead of by bearing 
 himself as a man should ; but for one like myself 't is but time 
 thrown away. Yet I say not that it may not be useful to 
 Master Oswald, who will some day be a knight and go to court, 
 and have occasion to write letters when he has no scribe at 
 hand to do it for him ; but a good downright blow is more 
 advantage to the man that strikes it than all the book-learning 
 that he can get." 
 
 " I have done well enough without it, Roger ; but I think 
 that it must be of some use, else why is it that Oswald is so 
 good at devising plans? Had I been in his place when he 
 heard the news of the harrying of Hiniltie, and the carrying 
 off of Armstrong's daughters, I should never have thought of 
 starting on such an adventure as he did." 
 
 " It may be that it may improve the mind, Master Forster, 
 just as wielding a mace strengthens the muscles of the arm. 
 I only speak from my own experience, and so far as I can see 
 all the hours I spent on these matters have been as good as 
 wasted." 
 
 " Nay, Roger," Oswald, who had been an amused listener 
 to the conversation, broke in, " you have had evidence but 
 lately that it is not so. Had you not been able to read the 
 priest's missal he would have seen at once that you were not 
 a monk ; but the fact that you did so, and that much better 
 and more fluently than he could himself have read a strange 
 manuscript, was to him a confirmation of your story, which 
 not only enabled us to rescue my cousins, but probably saved 
 your own skin, to say nothing of mine, for had Baird learned 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 253 
 
 that you were deceiving him, he would as likely as not have 
 hung us both over the gateway of his hold as spies." 
 
 Roger scratched his head in some embarrassment. 
 
 " I cannot gainsay it, Master Oswald, though I did not think 
 of it before, and it is certainly a proof that the time I spent in 
 learning was not thrown away ; for, as you say, had I not been 
 able to read that missal, doubtless it would have gone hard 
 with both of us. I am not ashamed to own when I am wrong ; 
 it would not be English or honest not to do so ; reading cer- 
 tainly came in mightily useful there." 
 
 " And you must also remember, Roger," Oswald said with 
 a smile, " that if it had not been that you read and wrote 
 better than most of the other monks, the abbot would not 
 have picked you out as my instructor, I should not have 
 asked for you to come with me to Scotland, and Sir Henry 
 Percy would never have begged the abbot to allow you to go 
 forth into the world." 
 
 " Say no more, Master Oswald ; never again will I say a 
 word against reading and writing — I see that they are excel- 
 lent things, and it never entered my thick head how greatly 
 I have benefited by acquiring them — but will maintain, against 
 all who say the contrary, that they are of great value, and that 
 they in no way tend to soften a man, as I can prove in my 
 own person and also in yours." 
 
 At this moment Mary Forster appeared at the top of the 
 steps. " Supper is ready," she said. " I have broken the 
 news to the girls ; they are quite broken-hearted, poor things, 
 and I have sent them to bed. I suppose you are not leaving 
 us to-morrow morning, Oswald?" 
 
 " No, I shall be off at daybreak the next day. I must not 
 stay longer, for I ought to have been back three days ago, and 
 Sir Henry will be wondering what has befallen me." 
 
 Talking the matter over that evening as to what had best 
 
254: BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 be done with the girls, Mary Forster said that they had 
 expressed great anxiety to get back as soon as they could, 
 in order that they might try and comfort their father and 
 nurse Allan ; and John Forster said that he would ride with 
 them with four of his men to Hiniltie in a day or two. The 
 next evening, however, there was a knock at the outside gate, 
 and on its being opened Adam Armstrong himself entered. 
 
 " I could not rest for thinking of the girls," he said, as he 
 entered the house. " The man arrived safely yesterday morn- 
 ing, after having, with great difficulty, made his way unobserved 
 through the Bairds, who had some fifty or sixty men scattered 
 all over the hills." 
 
 " Do you go to them, wife, and tell them that their father 
 has arrived. They have been terribly upset," John went on as 
 his wife left the room ; " they were only told of the loss of their 
 mother after they arrived yesterday. Oswald thought that 
 they would need all their strength for the journey, and that 
 it were better that Mary should break the news to them when 
 they got here. We have all felt for you sorely, Adam, since 
 your messenger brought the news." 
 
 Armstrong pressed his hand silently. " She was a good wife 
 to me, John, a right good wife. We buried what seemed to 
 be her remains yesterday morning. It was that that kept me 
 from starting the moment the man came in with the news that 
 Oswald had got the girls out of the hands of the Bairds." 
 
 "And how is Allan?" 
 
 " I trust he will get right now ; he has come partly to his 
 senses, though he is still dazed. We had him carried in a 
 litter to the monastery where I obtained the monk's robe for 
 your man, for I feared to leave him in the village lest the 
 Bairds, furious at the escape of the girls, might return to finish 
 their work." 
 
 He was about to speak to Oswald when the door opened 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 255 
 
 and the girls ran in, and it was some time before Adam Arm- 
 strong again turned to him. 
 
 " Now, lad," he said, " do not think because I am a long 
 time coming to the point that I think lightly of the service 
 you have rendered me. Ah, lad ! I could scarce believe my 
 ears when Fergus told me that you and your henchman had 
 got the lasses out of the Bairds' hands, and had gone off on 
 horseback with them. I had to put the question again and 
 again as to whether he was sure that it was really the girls you 
 had with you. It seemed to me to be altogether impossible ; 
 but I had to believe him at last, though how it came about he 
 could not tell me." 
 
 " We had no time for talking," Oswald said ; " every moment 
 was of importance. But the matter was simple enough and 
 worth but a few words' telling." And he then related the 
 manner in which he and Roger had obtained entrance to the 
 hold, and had succeeded in getting the girls away. 
 
 " It sounds simple enough in the telling," Armstrong said ; 
 " but it needed stout hearts and good nerves to enter the 
 Bairds' den on such an errand. You carried your lives in your 
 hands, and well must you have borne out your story to have 
 passed without suspicion. It was well thought of indeed, and 
 well carried out, and would have done credit to the boldest 
 and craftiest leader on the border. What say you, John?" 
 
 " I am proud of him, Adam. As for myself, I should never 
 have thought of such a plan. If I had had the matter in hand 
 I might have taken twenty stout fellows and tried to scale the 
 walls unseen, and to fall upon them with spear and sword, and 
 in the confusion carry the girls off; but it would have been a 
 desperate plan with but small hope of success." 
 
 " Small indeed, John, small indeed," Armstrong said, shak- 
 ing his head. "With prisoners in the hold the Bairds were not 
 likely to be caught sleeping, and had they been, accustomed to 
 
25G BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 surprises as they are, the whole garrison would have been afoot 
 in a minute, and not a man of ye would have lived to tell the 
 story. Some such mad thought passed through my brain when 
 I first heard the news, but it was not for long. Even with 
 your spears and others you might gather, and all my friends in 
 Tweeddale, we should have had but a small chance of captur- 
 ing the Bairds' hold. We should have had all Annandale and 
 Nithsdale down on us before we could have done it. At any 
 rate we should have had to bide our time, and wait until 
 the Bairds were away to England with all their dalesmen ; 
 and by that time none could say what would have become of 
 the girls. In fact there was but one way of doing it, and that 
 is the way Oswald hit upon. Well, lad, I fear I shall never 
 have an opportunity of repaying the debt I owe you ; but after 
 this there is not an Armstrong on the border, on our side or 
 yours — for we are half English and half Scotch — but will hold 
 you as among our closest of kin, and will give you welcome 
 and aid whensoever you may need it. And where is your 
 man Roger?" 
 
 " I will call him," Oswald said, and, stepping to the door, he 
 shouted to his follower, who came out at once from one of the 
 outhouses occupied by the retainers of the hold. 
 
 " Come up, Roger ! " Oswald said ; " Master Armstrong 
 wishes to see you." 
 
 Roger came up, and as he entered Adam grasped him by the 
 hand. " Whenever your time for fighting is over, my brave 
 fellow, remember that there is a home for you at Hiniltie so 
 long as an Armstrong dwells there. I thought when I fetched 
 that monk's gown for you that you and my nephew Oswald 
 might be able to gather some news, and let me know possibly 
 how the girls were faring, but little did I think that alone 
 and unaided you would rescue them from the hands of the 
 Bairds." 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 257 
 
 " It was a merry business, Master Armstrong, and pleased 
 me hugely, save that it went against my heart to have this 
 bald patch on my head again just when the hair had so well 
 grown and covered it ; but it was well-nigh as good as fighting 
 to trick the Bairds in their own hold, when they, as they 
 thought, were so mightily sure that I was but a harmless 
 brother of a monastery. For the rest it was an easy business, 
 and scarce worth talking of." 
 
 " It was done easily because it was done well, Roger ; it was 
 well planned and well carried out." 
 
 " I had nought to do with the planning, and the carrying 
 out was simple enough. There were those there who tested 
 me as to my knowledge of Dunbar, and of the monastery I 
 came from, and who further tested my knowledge of reading. 
 Once assured that my story was true they paid no further 
 attention to me, believing that I should stay but a day or two 
 to rest myself on my way south." 
 
 " You had occasion, however, to use that heavy staff you 
 carried." 
 
 " Some slight occasion, but I would that I had had the 
 chance to have used it on the heads of some of the Bairds. 
 For what little I did, Master Armstrong, your daughters thanked 
 me very prettily and more than enough, and therefore, I pray 
 thee, say no more of it. And how is your son? " 
 
 " He is going on well, and both Meg Margetson and the 
 monks, in whose hands I have put him, say that they hope 
 he is out of danger." 
 
 The next morning Oswald and Roger mounted soon after 
 daybreak and rode to Alnwick. It had the night before been 
 arranged that the girls should, for the present, remain at Yard- 
 hope until the hold at Hiniltie was repaired and put in a state 
 of stronger defence. It was agreed, too, that it was as well 
 that no word should be said by Armstrong on his return as 
 
 »7 
 
258 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 to the whereabouts of his daughters, as the Baircls might then, 
 in their anger, make an attack on Yardhope ; whereas at 
 present they could have no reason whatever for suspecting 
 that they were there, and, if they obtained news that they were 
 not with their father at Hiniltie, would suppose that they had 
 been lodged with some of the family elsewhere, or perhaps 
 placed for safety in Jedburgh. 
 
 " I had wondered what had become of you," Hotspur said 
 when Oswald entered his apartments to report his return. " I 
 expected you two or three days since, and I indeed wanted 
 you for other business." 
 
 " I am sorry, my lord ; but after having fulfilled the orders 
 you gave me to the governors of Roxburgh and Jedburgh I 
 became engaged in an affair of my uncle, Adam Armstrong, 
 of so pressing a character that I deemed you would excuse 
 me when you heard its nature." And he then briefly related 
 how he had been occupied since leaving Jedburgh. 
 
 " 'T is a good excuse indeed," Hotspur, said, " and you must 
 tell me more of it this evening, when the earl and my wife can 
 also hear it. As to the business I spoke of, it is of no conse- 
 quence at all ; it was but to carry a message to the Earl of 
 Westmoreland. This I have now sent by another hand." 
 
 The winter passed quietly. Oswald's work was light. He 
 more than once rode home for a few days, and once paid a 
 visit to Hiniltie. Here a number of men were at work. The 
 exterior walls had in no way suffered, and the shell of the 
 central building had so far resisted the fire that it was not 
 necessary to rebuild it. The roof and floors had been replaced 
 and the defences considerably strengthened. A portcullis had 
 been placed above the door, so that in case of the outer wall 
 being carried or the gate forced it could at once be lowered. 
 A projecting battlement had been thrown out over this, with 
 openings below through which boiling lead and pitch could be 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 259 
 
 poured on an enemy trying to break in. Flanking turrets for 
 archers had been built at each corner of the house, and the 
 exterior walls had been strengthened by towers in the centre 
 of each face and on either side of the gateway. 
 
 " We shall be safe now, I think, Oswald," said Allan, who 
 had almost recovered. " The place can hardly be taken by a 
 sudden attack, even by all the forces the Bairds could bring 
 against it, and we could get help from Jedburgh long before 
 they could gain even the outside wall. My father and I are 
 going in a fortnight to fetch the girls. I rode over there a 
 week or two since, and found them looking very well and 
 happy with your people ; but of course they are anxious to get 
 back again, especially as you are so seldom at home." 
 
 " If you will fix the day before I go, I will try to be there to 
 meet you. I suppose, as soon as spring sets in fairly, we shall 
 be having troubles again, and it is certainly as well that Janet 
 and Jessie should be at home again before they begin ; for al- 
 though Yardhope is strong enough to resist any attack by the 
 Bairds, or any other border rangers, it can scarcely hold out 
 against a regular invasion." 
 
 Four days after his return to Alnwick, Oswald was sent for 
 by Percy. 
 
 " The Scots do not seem to be moving yet," the latter said, 
 " but Glendower is ever increasing in strength and boldness. 
 I have received startling news this morning. A party of 
 Welshmen were seen near Ruthyn, and Earl Grey with a body 
 of mounted men rode out against them. They retired at once, 
 and he, briskly pursuing, fell into an ambush and was captured. 
 T would have been thought that Glendower would have put 
 his chief enemy to death at once, but it was not so, and it is 
 said he holds the earl to ransom. Glendower has plenty of 
 men, but no doubt needs money sorely. He can draw no 
 revenue from his estates in Denbigh, and those in South Wales 
 
260 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 cannot suffice for the expenses of feeding the body of men 
 always under arms. Doubtless he will ask for a great sum and 
 't is like that he will get it. Grey is a favourite of the king, 
 and the latter will doubtless aid him, for he needs his services 
 to hold Flint and Denbighshire against the Welsh. Moreover, 
 methinks that the king would, for another reason, make every 
 effort to buy Lord Grey's freedom, for it is no secret that he 
 has no great love for Mortimer ; for although he holds the 
 young Earl of March a prisoner at Windsor, he cannot forget 
 that the lad is the rightful heir to the throne, and that the 
 friends of Richard would place him there had they the oppor- 
 tunity. Mortimer is the boy's uncle, and, not only from his 
 own estates, but as guardian of the young earl's wide posses- 
 sions in Hereford and in Shropshire, is a very powerful 
 noble. 
 
 " The king has no real reason for doubting him, for I know 
 that Mortimer has no thought of supporting the Earl of March's 
 claim to the throne, having held with the rest of the kingdom 
 that Henry, who is wise and politic, is a far fitter ruler than the 
 lad could be. Doubtless Henry is well aware of this, but he sees 
 that when the young earl grows to manhood he might become 
 dangerous and might supplant him, as he supplanted Richard. 
 Thus, then, I have no doubt the king will use every effort to 
 obtain the release of Lord Grey, in order that he may act as a 
 counterpoise in the Welsh marches to the influence of Mortimer. 
 However, that is not now the question. It is evident by this 
 daring deed of Glendower that he will be busy this year, and 
 the success of his first attempt will assuredly add to his follow- 
 ing. Therefore, as the Scots are at present quiet, I would that 
 you ride again to Ludlow, and sojourn there a while. 
 
 " Sir Edmund sends me but scant news, and I would fain 
 know more closely how matters are going there, and how great 
 this insurrection is like to grow. It may well be that the 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 261 
 
 Scots, seeing how powerful Glendower is becoming will enter 
 into agreement with him, that while he invades the west coun- 
 try, they shall pour across the border with all their forces, in 
 which case we should be hard pressed, for the king's power in 
 the south might be fully engaged against the Welsh, and we 
 should have to battle with the whole strength of Scotland alone. 
 Therefore write at length, giving me full reports of the talk of 
 the country as to the bearing of the Welsh, not only beyond 
 the border, but those settled in the west counties. You will, of 
 course, take the fighting monk with you, and he can aid you in 
 this matter, being a good scholar though a bad monk ; so when 
 you are weary of holding the pen, you can dictate the matter 
 to him. I will send two well-mounted couriers with you, and 
 will have relays of horses placed on the road, so that you can 
 despatch me a letter once a week, and they will also of course 
 carry any letters Sir Edmund Mortimer may wish to send." 
 
 " Very well, Sir Henry. Shall I start to-day? " 
 
 " Nay, the matter is not so urgent as all that." 
 
 " Then I will ride to-morrow morning." 
 
 " Good. I am well pleased with you, Oswald. That affair 
 in which you rescued your cousins showed that you have 
 discretion and ability as well as skill and courage, and you see 
 the knowledge that you gained at the monastery is coming in 
 useful to you now. As a mark of my approbation, I will order 
 that one of my war-horses shall be saddled and be in readiness 
 for you in the morning. The steed that Mortimer gave you is 
 a good one, but you have need of another, for one may fall 
 lame or be killed or wounded, and 't is well to have a second 
 string to the bow. Moreover, riding as you do in my service, 
 't is but meet that I should provide you with horseflesh. I 
 marked you on your horse to-day, the one you rode when you 
 came here, and in truth you have outgrown it altogether, and 
 though I doubt not that the sturdy little benst wpuld even yet 
 
262 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 carry you for a long day's journey, 't is scarce in accordance 
 with your position as our representative." 
 
 Oswald thanked Hotspur heartily for the gift, for he himself 
 had felt that he needed a second charger, but had been re- 
 luctant to ask his father for the money required to buy one, 
 for the expenses of repairing the hold after the last Scotch 
 invasion had been heavy, and gold was a scarce commodity at 
 Yardhope. He started at daybreak the next morning, riding 
 the fine horse Hotspur had given him. Roger rode behind 
 him, and was followed by the two lightly-armed men who were 
 to act as messengers. One of these led Oswald's second horse. 
 As soon as they had left the castle, Oswald called Roger up to 
 his side. 
 
 " Well, Roger, I dare say you are as pleased as I am that 
 we are on the move again. 'T is nigh five months since we 
 returned from Ludlow, and save for our adventure with the 
 Bairds we have had a quiet time since." 
 
 " Think you there will be work with the Welsh again, 
 master ? " 
 
 " I think so indeed, Roger. They say that Glendower's 
 forces are greatly increasing, and he has captured Lord Grey 
 and holds him to ransom. The king must regret now that Par- 
 liament refused to listen to Glendower's complaints because he 
 had been one of Richard's men, and had perhaps spoken more 
 hotly than was prudent touching the king's murder." 
 
 " But they say that Richard is still alive, and that he is with 
 the Scots." 
 
 "They may say so, Roger, but think you that it is likely? 
 The king's figure was well known to hundreds of men. Why 
 does he not show himself? Even in Scotland there are many 
 nobles who, during the truces between the kingdoms, have 
 been to London, and have known King Richard, and had this 
 man been he, they would have recognised him at once. Be- 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 263 
 
 sides, think you that when the king had Richard caged in Pom- 
 fret there was any chance of his getting free again? It may 
 suit Albany at present to set up some puppet or other in order 
 to cause uneasiness to Henry, and to render Richard's friends 
 here unwilling to obey the orders of the king, and to take the 
 field against the Scots ; but had he been Richard, 't is not in 
 Scotland that he would have shown himself, but in France, 
 where he would gladly have been received as Anne of Bo- 
 hemia's husband, and would have had aid and support to urge 
 his claims." 
 
 " Well, master, I care not what takes us to Wales. At any 
 rate, I am glad to journey thither, for it seems at present as if 
 there only is there a chance of giving and taking hard knocks. 
 How is it that you do not take a party of men-at-arms, as you 
 did last time?" 
 
 " Mortimer has plenty of men without them, and the hand- 
 ful that Percy can spare would be of little use. I am going 
 principally because Hotspur is anxious to be kept well in- 
 formed of what happens in the west, for he feels sure that if 
 Glendower's power increases it will be needful to send a strong 
 English army there. The Scots will make a great invasion, 
 and it will behove all the northern counties and lords to hold 
 themselves in readiness." 
 
 They travelled fast, and in five days after leaving Alnwick 
 Arrived at Ludlow. 
 
 " Welcome back again, Master Oswald ! " Sir Edmund said 
 Then he arrived. " I thought that maybe Sir Henry Percy 
 Vould send you hither. Matters here are becoming serious, 
 and 't is said that there have been Scotch emissaries with Glen- 
 dower, though for the truth of this I cannot answer ; but Percy 
 wffl certainly wish to know well what passes in the west, and 
 I am but a poor hand with the pen, and, moreover, too 
 much busied to write often. He knows that right well, and 
 
264 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 I doubt not you are instructed to inform him of all that 
 passes." 
 
 " You are right, Sir Edmund ! it is for that purpose that he 
 has sent me hither, charging me to write to him frequently 
 as to the situation and the power of Glendower, which must 
 needs be on the increase, since nought has been done to bring 
 him to reason. And I have also his commands to place myself 
 at your service, and to obey you in all respects as if I had 
 been your squire." 
 
 " I shall be glad for you to ride with my knights," Sir 
 Edmund replied courteously. " I have not forgotten that you 
 did good service last year, and trust that you may find oppor- 
 tunity for winning your spurs." 
 
 " I shall be glad indeed to do so, Sir Edmund. May I ask 
 where Glendower is supposed to be at present?" 
 
 " He has his head-quarters on the summit of Plinlimmon, 
 a great hill on the borders of Montgomery, and thence ravages 
 and plunders all the country round him, slaying all who are 
 supposed to be attached to the English cause. Unfortunately 
 he meets with but little resistance, for the castles have for the 
 most part been suffered to get into a bad state, since for a hun- 
 dred years it has seemed that they would no longer be required 
 against the Welsh, who appeared to have become as peaceful 
 as the people in our own counties. Many of the knights 
 have built themselves more convenient houses, and have let 
 the castles become almost ruins. Then, too, the garrisons, 
 where garrisons are kept, are for the most part composed 
 of Welshmen. These can be no longer trusted, and it is no 
 easy matter to obtain Englishmen in their places, for so great 
 is the terror caused by the slaughter by Glendower of those 
 who fall into his hands, that few even of adventurous spirit 
 would at present care to leave their homes beyond the Severn 
 to take up such desperate service. Glendower's movements 
 
I AM WELL PLEASED WITH VOL', OSWALD.' 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 265 
 
 are so rapid that there is no notice of his coming, and it is not 
 until he and his band suddenly appear, burning and slaughter- 
 ing, that any know of his approach." 
 
 " Surely it must be difficult to victual so large a force on the 
 summit of a mountain?" 
 
 " It would assuredly be so, only he keeps but a hundred and 
 fifty chosen men with him. But, were his beacon fires to be 
 lighted, there would in a few hours be ten thousand men on 
 the mountain. Then again, as the whole population are with 
 him, were I to start with five hundred men from here, the 
 news would reach him by means of smokes on the hills before 
 I had marched five miles away. T is a warfare in which there 
 is no credit to be gained and much loss to be sustained, and I 
 see not that with anything less than an army large enough to 
 march through Wales from end to end, burning the towns and 
 villages, and putting to the sword all who resist, the affair can 
 be brought to an end. 
 
 " It was only thus that Harold brought Wales to reason, 
 and that so strongly that it was two generations ere they 
 ventured again to cross the border. It was so that Edward 
 finally stamped out their rebellions, and methinks that the 
 work will have to be done again in the same manner. So far 
 from doing good, the king's invasion last autumn has but 
 encouraged them, for, though so numerous, his army effected 
 nothing, and showed the Welsh how powerless the troops were 
 to enter the mountains or to take the offensive anywhere save 
 on level ground." 
 
 Oswald's life at Ludlow differed in no way from that at 
 Alnwick. He took his meals at the high table, sitting below 
 the knights with Sir Edmund's squires. He practised, arms 
 with them, tilted in the court-yard of the castle, occasionally 
 rode out hunting and hawking with a party of knights and 
 ladies, helped to drill the bodies of tenants who, a hundred at 
 
266 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 a time, came in to swell the garrison. Sometimes he carried 
 Mortimer's orders to the governors of the castles, or rode with 
 a strong party into Hereford or Radnor. A short time after 
 his arrival Montgomery was taken by storm by Glendower, 
 and all Englishmen and Welshmen suspected of friendship for 
 the English slain. Shortly afterwards the suburbs of Welsh- 
 pool were burnt by him, to the great loss of the Earl of Powys, 
 whose annoyance was all the greater since most of his own 
 tenants were under arms with Glendower. Following hard 
 upon these pieces of bad news came word that he had fallen 
 upon the Abbey of Cwmhir, six miles from Rhayader, in Rad- 
 norshire, which he entirely destroyed. The news caused great 
 indignation, and the reason for this sacrilegious act was warmly 
 discussed at the castle. 
 
 "The reason, methinks," Sir Edmund said after he had 
 listened to the knights for some time, " is twofold. In the 
 first place the ecclesiastics for the most part, and the monks 
 of all the orders save the Franciscans, favoured King Henry 
 against Richard ; but the chief reason is the long animosity 
 between the Church and the Bards, of whom Glendower is a 
 great patron, and who have done him great service by stirring 
 up the people with their songs. The bards have ever been 
 foremost in instigating insurrections in Wales. Edward I. 
 attempted to suppress them altogether, and his edict for exe- 
 cuting them by martial law is still unrepealed, and they dare 
 not venture to show themselves in any castle or town held by 
 us. But they have to a man rallied round Glendower. His 
 house was always open to them, and he was even distinguished 
 by some Welsh name meaning the protector of the bards. 
 Now, after being hunted fugitives for so many years, they 
 have no doubt used their influence with him to stir him up 
 against the religious houses." 
 
 But a heavier blow still was struck by Glendower, and the 
 
ANOTHER MISSION TO LUDLOW 267 
 
 feeling at Ludlow was nothing short of consternation when 
 a fugitive arrived from the town of New Radnor, saying that 
 the strong castle there had been carried by assault, the garri- 
 son of threescore men all beheaded, and the town laid in ashes. 
 This was the heaviest blow yet struck by Glendower. The 
 castle was of great strength, and the town had been walled by 
 the Lords of the Marches. That such a place should have 
 been carried by Welsh kerns seemed well-nigh incredible, and 
 the execution of the whole of the garrison aroused the most 
 lively indignation. 
 
 " This is war to the knife indeed," Sir Edmund Mortimer 
 said ; " and yet, abhorrent as is this wholesale murder of the 
 garrison, I cannot but own that it is a politic step on the part 
 of Glendower. The news will spread throughout Wales, and 
 if so strong a place as New Radnor could not defend itself, 
 how can lesser castles hope to do so ? — nor, indeed, will gar- 
 risons care to man the walls, since resistance means death. 
 Doubtless there were many Welsh among those men who were 
 murdered, and you may be sure that their compatriots in other 
 castles will hasten to desert and join Glendower." 
 
 This indeed proved to be the case, the garrisons of the 
 castles dwindled away, and hold after hold fell without resist- 
 ance. Even in Ludlow every precaution was taken ; all 
 Welshmen were expelled from the town, and the garrison was 
 also purged of them, although some of the men-at-arms had 
 served for many years. These men were told that after the 
 troubles were over they should again be taken into the service 
 if they chose, but that in the present state of things one traitor 
 might endanger the safety of the castle and town ; and that as 
 it was impossible to tell who were true men and who had 
 been corrupted by Glendower's agents, it was necessary that 
 all should suffer, even if innocent. Among the tenants of 
 Mortimer's estate and those of the young earl were many 
 
208 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 Welsh. Against them no measures were taken. They and 
 their fathers, sometimes indeed three generations of them, had 
 lived peaceably, and had rendered military service when re- 
 quired in the troubles of England, and Mortimer was reluctant 
 to treat them harshly, especially as all declared their readiness 
 to serve and prove their devotion to their English lord. 
 
 "They are not sufficiently numerous," he said, "to be a 
 source of any danger. Were Glendower to invade England in 
 great force doubtless they would join him to save their lives 
 and those of their families, but being but one to four or five 
 of the English tenants I see not that they can be a source of 
 danger to us." 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 A LETTER FOR THE KING 
 
 A LARGE number of Flemings had settled in Wales, having 
 left their own country in consequence of the constant 
 troubles there, and many of these had set up cloth-mills at 
 Welshpool and other places. Having suffered great destruction 
 of property at the hands of Glendower, and seeing no hope of 
 the insurrection being put down by the English, they resolved 
 to take the matter into their own hands. Fifteen hundred of 
 them gathered secretly and surrounded Glendower in one of his 
 mountain intrenchments. He repulsed their attacks, but the 
 situation was desperate ; provisions ran short ; he was unable 
 to summon help, and at last determined with his little body 
 of followers to endeavour to cut his way out through the 
 besiegers. 
 
 The attack was sudden and fierce. The Flemings, who, 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 269 
 
 knowing the smallness of his force, had made no preparations 
 to repel an attack, were seized with a panic at the fierce ap- 
 pearance and the wild cries of the Welsh, who fell upon them 
 with such fury that two hundred of the Flemings were slain, 
 and the Welsh cut their way through the beleaguering line. 
 The news of this feat was received with immense enthusiasm 
 throughout the principality, great numbers flocked to Glen- 
 dower's standard, the bards sung songs of his victory at every 
 village in Wales, and so formidable did his position become 
 that the Lords of the Marches wrote to the king, saying that the 
 matter had gone altogether beyond them, and that his presence 
 with an army was urgently needed. Even in Ludlow extra 
 sentries were placed upon the walls, the garrison was kept in 
 a constant state of vigilance, and mounted men were stationed 
 miles out to bring in the news of the approach of any hostile 
 force. 
 
 " 'T is a thousand pities," Sir Edmund said, when the news 
 of the defeat of the Flemings reached him, " that these fellows 
 did not send news to me a day or two before they undertook 
 this business, for in that case I would have myself headed a 
 force of a couple of hundred of my best men-at-arms, and 
 joined them at some spot in the mountains, and had we been 
 there you may be sure that Glendower would never have 
 fought his way out. The Flemings are doubtless stout fighters, 
 as they have proved over and over again in their own country, 
 but they are all unused to mountain warfare, or to fight with 
 wild men, and were doubtless scared by the shrill cries with 
 which the Welsh always advance to battle. Doubtless, too, 
 these men Glendower keeps with him are his best fighters, and 
 they knew that if they did not succeed in making their way 
 out no mercy would be shown to them, seeing that they have 
 shown none themselves. Had the battle been on a plain I 
 doubt nut that the Flemings would have stood against many 
 
270 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 times the number of Welshmen that Owen had with him ; but 
 this hill warfare was altogether strange to them, and of course 
 they had not the habit of quickly rallying and meeting the 
 attack that is second nature with our men-at-arms. The 
 affair is serious, and unless the king comes hither with an army, 
 Glendower is likely to have it all his own way on his side of 
 the border, and ere long there won't be an Englishman left 
 west of the Severn." 
 
 However, Henry, when informed of the danger, lost no time 
 in assembling another great army, and in the beginning of June 
 advanced into Wales and ravaged a wide extent of country, 
 carrying his arms into Cardiganshire and destroying the Abbey 
 of Strata Florida, one of the most venerable and famous abbeys 
 in Wales. Founded in 1164, it was burnt down in 1294 dur- 
 ing the wars of King Edward I. with the Welsh, but was soon 
 rebuilt. Here Llewellyn in 1237 convened all the chieftains 
 of Wales to take the oath of allegiance. There were two 
 copies of the national records, one of which was kept at this 
 abbey, and the other at that of Conway. The abbey having 
 fallen, Henry's army met with scarcely any resistance, Glen- 
 dower knowing that his wild followers were no match for the 
 royal troops ; he therefore contented himself with harassing 
 them continually, and the army suffered greatly by this contin- 
 ued annoyance, as well as from fatigue and famine. Thus the 
 king returned across the border without having achieved any 
 success whatever. 
 
 The Lords of the Marches were not now ordered to contri- 
 bute any troops, but were to hold their castles strongly, lest, 
 when the army was fairly entangled among the mountains, 
 Glendower should make a great incursion into England. The 
 only advantage gained by the English invasion was that the 
 king, by promises of pardon and rewards, drew away a number 
 of the leading men who had hitherto acted with Glendower. 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 271 
 
 Their defection, however, was more than made up by the en- 
 thusiasm excited by the spectacle of the second retirement of 
 a great English army without having effected anything of im- 
 portance. 
 
 So evident was this that in October Henry again advanced 
 with the contingents of no fewer than twenty-two counties. 
 The season, however, was already unfavourable for operations, 
 and after enduring great hardships and suffering, the army 
 again fell back, having effected even less than the two which 
 had preceded it. Things, however, turned out fortunately for 
 Oswald. The army had advanced a week across the border 
 when a messenger arrived at Ludlow with a letter from London 
 for the king. 
 
 " It will be no easy matter to forward it," Sir Edmund said, 
 as the despatch was handed to him. " Indeed, I see not how 
 it is to be done. Beyond the fact that the king intended to 
 march west, I know nothing whatever of his intentions or of 
 the exact road he was likely to take. His orders were strict 
 that we were to keep our forces well in hand, and to send the 
 letter forward would need two hundred men at least as an 
 escort. It places me in an awkward position indeed." 
 
 " If it so please you, Sir Edmund," said Oswald, who was 
 one of the group standing round when the messenger handed 
 the letter to Mortimer, " I will endeavour to carry the despatch 
 for you. Methinks that while fifty men would not succeed in 
 getting through to the army, two might perchance manage to 
 do so. I shall of course ride first to Shrewsbury, through 
 which the king passed, and so follow up the course he took. 
 There should be no great difficulty in doing that, for the 
 march of so great a body of men must have left many traces 
 behind. They will doubtless have harried the country for 
 some distance each side of the line they followed, and it is not 
 likely that I should meet any of the Welsh until I was near the 
 
272 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 army. Then, of course, great caution would have to be used, 
 for it is like enough that there are parties of Glendower's men 
 hanging on its skirts to cut off stragglers, and plunder any 
 waggons whose horses may have fallen by the way." 
 
 "Tis a terribly dangerous service," Sir Edmund said 
 gravely, " but in truth I see no other way of forwarding this 
 letter, which, for aught I know, may be of high importance. 
 But if this is a desperate enterprise, it is also one that will 
 bring you great credit if safely carried through. I will myself, 
 if you go, give you a letter to the king, saying that you have 
 volunteered for this desperate undertaking from your loyalty 
 to his person, and because it is possible that the letter may 
 contain matter of the highest importance to him and the realm 
 in general. I shall add that you have already greatly distin- 
 guished yourself in service against the Welsh, and are the trusty 
 esquire of my brother-in-law, Sir Henry Percy." 
 
 " I quite feel, Sir Edmund, that the enterprise is a danger- 
 ous one, but I am, nevertheless, determined, with your permis- 
 sion, to undertake it. My henchman and myself have together 
 gone through dangers as great, and may pass through this as 
 well." 
 
 " I will give you my answer in half an hour, Master Oswald, 
 when I have talked it over with my knights, and heard their 
 opinions as to whether any better plan can be devised." 
 
 Oswald bowed and retired, and seeking out Roger, told him 
 of the offer that he had made. 
 
 " Well, master, if you are bent upon this enterprise you will 
 not find me backward ; and indeed I am so sick of this six 
 months of idleness, and of seeing others marching to Wales to 
 fight while we do nothing here, that, by St. Bride, were you 
 to ask me to go into Glendower's stronghold and pluck him 
 by the beard, I would willingly go with you." 
 
 Oswald laughed. 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 2<3 
 
 " 'T is not so bad as that, Roger, and yet 't is a service of 
 great danger. How think you that we had best set about it, 
 on horse or on foot?" 
 
 Roger looked surprised at the question. 
 
 " It would surely be better to go on horseback, master, for 
 if we met too many Welshmen to fight, we might at least ride 
 away from them." 
 
 " There is truth in that, Roger ; but, on the other hand, our 
 feet will carry us up and down mountains and fells where our 
 horses could not go. If mounted we must travel by beaten 
 tracks, and might be seized by parties of Welsh lurking in 
 the woods before we knew of their presence. Without horses we 
 could ourselves keep within shelter of the trees, and could so 
 evade the observation of any who might be stationed on 
 lofty hills to watch if any body of troops were following the 
 track of the army. Moreover, we should have no trouble 
 about forage and water for our steeds." 
 
 " Enough, master, I see which way your inclinations lie ; and 
 as my legs have had a long holiday, it is but right that they 
 should carry me for a bit. and assuredly 'tis easier for footmen 
 to hide than it is for horsemen." 
 
 " I should say, Roger, that it would be best to leave armour 
 as well as horses behind. If we are attacked by numbers our 
 armour will serve us but little, while if without it, we may be 
 able, even if chased, to avoid the hands of these Welshmen. 
 They say that they are swift of foot ; but, as we can hold our 
 own with the Northumbrian border men, we ought to be able 
 to do so against these Welsh, especially as our legs are nigh a 
 foot longer than those of the greater part of them." 
 
 " Very well, master. I myself have no great love for travel- 
 ling in armour, and would almost as soon march in a monk's 
 gown again as in breastplate and back-piece." 
 
 " Very well, so we will arrange it. We shall have to carry 
 
274 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 our provisions, for you may be sure that we shall get no- 
 thing whatever while we are following the army. They will 
 strip the country clean. You know how terribly they have 
 suffered by famine on the two previous expeditions, and it will 
 assuredly be no better now. Food, however, we can procure 
 at Shrewsbury, from which point we shall take our start." 
 
 A retainer at this moment came out from the hall and 
 informed Oswald that Sir Edmund would speak with him. 
 When he entered Mortimer said : 
 
 " My knights and I agree that this letter ought to be sent 
 forward to the king, for if it contains matters of importance 
 great harm might result from delay, and the king's anger be 
 excited against us for not having sent it to him. His orders 
 to me were strict, that neither I nor any of my force should 
 join him ; therefore I accept your offer with thanks. Have 
 you formed any plan for your proceeding?" 
 
 Oswald repeated the substance of what he had said to Roger. 
 
 "I think, perhaps, you are right," Mortimer said, "and that 
 you may have more chance of getting safely through on foot 
 than if you rode with but a small force to escort you. When 
 you are ready to start I will speak to you in private, touching 
 some things connected with your journey." 
 
 When Oswald returned, Mortimer said to him, "You see, 
 Master Oswald, the position is by no means simple. There 
 can be no doubt that the king regards me with no favourable eye. 
 He holds my nephews in his keeping, and doubtless imagines 
 that I bear him ill-will. As their uncle, he supposes that, 
 should at any time a party be formed to place the Earl of 
 March on the throne, I should be the leader in the matter, 
 though assuredly I have never given him any reason to doubt 
 my loyalty. I say not that I approved of the deposition of King 
 Richard, and indeed I have not, like Lord Grey and many other 
 nobles, among them the Percys, been a warm supporter of 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 275 
 
 King Henry's cause. I hold myself altogether neutral in that 
 matter. I saw that nothing would be more ruinous for the 
 country than that a boy like my nephew should mount the 
 throne ; and had a party been formed to make him king instead 
 of Henry I would have taken no share in it. Nevertheless, 
 there is no getting over the fact that by right the Earl of 
 March is King of England, and there is no saying what may 
 come about in the future j but assuredly at the present time 
 I am as ready to do my duty towards King Henry as are 
 those who are louder in their expressions of attachment to 
 him. 
 
 " Nevertheless, I am well aware that the king distrusts me. 
 As you see, he has not, these three times that he has invaded 
 Wales, come near Ludlow; he has not summoned me to join 
 his banner ; nay, more, has strictly ordered me not to send a 
 man-at-arms to join him. I own that this letter troubles me 
 somewhat. Why should it not have been carried to Shrews- 
 bury instead of being brought hither ? It has, indeed, come 
 from London, and those who sent it may not know that the 
 king would move by Shrewsbury and not by this line, which 
 would indeed be more direct for him in advancing into Mont- 
 gomery and Cardiganshire ; on the other hand, it may be a 
 snare. If I send it not forward, he might blame me greatly 
 tor holding it back ; if I send it forward, and perchance it falls 
 on the way into the hands of the Welsh, he might harbour 
 the thought, even if he did not accuse me openly, of con- 
 niving with Glendower. One pretext is as good as another, 
 however unlikely it may be, when a king desires to make a 
 quarrel with one of his vassals. Your offer to carry it is 
 then a very seasonable one, and goes far to get me out of the 
 difficulty. 
 
 " In the first place, by sending it by you I afford no ground 
 for him to say that I have disobeyed his orders to send no one 
 
276 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 of my following to his army ; and in the next place, whatever 
 suspicion he may have of me, assuredly he can have none of 
 the Percys, to whom he so largely owes his crown ; and that a 
 trusted squire of Hotspur should be the bearer of the letter is 
 sufficient proof that all that could be done was done for its safe 
 carriage. Should you fail to deliver it, he can at least not put 
 it down to any fault of mine. Sir James Burgon and Sir Philip 
 Haverstone both offered to carry it, urging that the danger 
 should fall on them and not upon you, who are still an esquire, 
 and have no duty towards me in the affair, and that it were a 
 shame that they should remain here idle while you rode per- 
 haps to your death. 
 
 "Assuredly my feelings were with them, and were it not 
 for the circumstances in which I am placed, I should certainly 
 intrust the enterprise to them ; but on my laying the whole 
 matter before them, and pointing out that the coming of two 
 of my knights to him would be a breach of the king's orders, 
 they saw that since you were willing to undertake it, it were 
 best that it should be so. I doubt not that Henry would not 
 unwillingly fasten some quarrel on me ; he has his army at 
 hand, and did he march hither, he could seize my lands and 
 those of my nephew and partition them out among his friends, 
 for I am in no condition to strike a single blow in my defence. 
 We know well enough that when a king wishes to get rid of 
 one of his nobles, there is never any great difficulty in finding 
 a pretext for his arrest and execution." 
 
 " I quite understand, Sir Edmund, and for my part I will 
 assuredly do my best to place this letter in the hands of the 
 king. I shall say that, being of Sir Henry Percy's household, 
 and knowing that my lord would be glad that I should have 
 the opportunity of striking a blow under the king's leading, 
 I volunteered at once, when the letter arrived, to bear it to 
 him, and that, seeing his majesty had laid his orders on you to 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING I i I 
 
 keep all your force in readiness to repel Glendower, should he 
 issue out in this quarter, you granted my request that I should 
 be its bearer." 
 
 " That will do well, Oswald. I know that the danger is by 
 no means small, but I trust that you may surmount it. I shall 
 send off a letter to-day to Hotspur. Doubtless you will your- 
 self be writing to him, and explain to him why I have suffered 
 you to undertake so dangerous an enterprise." 
 
 Two hours later, Oswald, having despatched the messenger 
 to Hotspur with his own letter and that of Mortimer, mounted, 
 and with Roger rode to Shrewsbury. Here he was able to 
 gather but little news as to the present position of the army. 
 For four days no messengers had arrived from the king. The 
 last news was to the effect that the army was marching forward 
 through Montgomeryshire. On first starting they had made a 
 long march to Welshpool, and thence had proceeded to New- 
 town. On the way the Welsh had rushed down from the hills 
 and had fallen on the baggage, slain many of the drivers, and 
 killed so many horses that it had been necessary to leave some 
 of the waggons behind. 
 
 At Newtown they halted, and parties had been sent out in 
 all directions to harry the country, while a part of the force 
 left at Welshpool marched upon Llanfair. This was the last 
 news that had come through from the king. But from Welsh- 
 pool they heard next day that there had been several skir- 
 mishes with the Welsh, and that heavy rains had made the 
 roads all but impassable. No more messages had come 
 This was not surprising, as it was certain that the Welsh would 
 close in behind the army as it advanced ; and as there would 
 be no great occasion to send news back, the king would not 
 care to weaken himself by detaching escorts of sufficient 
 strength to make their way down. 
 
 " If we could have been sure which way the king had been 
 
278 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 going, Roger, it would have been much shorter for us to have 
 made direct for Llanidloes." 
 
 " Certainly it would, Master Oswald ; but you see he might 
 have turned more to the north, in which case we should have 
 perhaps been unable to gather news of his whereabouts, 
 while we should have run no small risk of getting our throats 
 cut." 
 
 " It is evident, Roger, that the king is marching at present 
 in the direction of Plinlimmon. No doubt he hopes that 
 Glendower will come down and give him battle, but methinks 
 he will not be foolish enough to do so. The weather and the 
 hills will fight far better for him than the Welsh themselves 
 can do, and he has but to leave the army to wander about 
 through the mountains and forests, as he did last time, to 
 ensure that they must ere long fall back." 
 
 At daybreak the next morning they set out and rode to 
 Welshpool. This being a walled town, and the population 
 almost entirely English, they could leave their horses here in 
 safety. They first went to the governor's, and upon Oswald's 
 explaining that they were the bearers of a letter for the king, 
 and asking whether he could give them any information as to 
 the direction they had best take, he shook his head. 
 
 " No news has come hither for the last five days," he said. 
 " A herd of bullocks arrived here three days since, and were 
 to have been forwarded on to the army, but the Welsh are out 
 in force and every road beset. Parties have come down from 
 the hills overlooking us, and have fired several houses that 
 escaped when they last attacked us. My force is sufficient to 
 hold the town against any attacks, but I cannot spare so many 
 men as would be required to convoy the cattle. I told the 
 king so before he went on, but he said that no Welshman 
 would dare show himself when the army had once passed on, 
 and that every Welsh house and village would be destroyed 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 279 
 
 and all within them put to the sword, so that I should have no 
 difficulty in sending forward cattle and other supplies. 
 
 "That the villages have been destroyed I have no doubt, 
 for the messengers who came in from Llanfair told me that as 
 they passed over the hills they could see smoke rising from 
 the forests in all directions; but whether the inhabitants 
 remained quietly awaiting the arrival of the troops is more 
 than doubtful. There were beacon fires on all the hills the 
 night before the army left Shrewsbury and again on the next 
 night. Since then we have seen no more from here, but those 
 who came from Llanfair told us that they were burning on 
 every hill the night they got there, so I have no doubt that 
 the old men, women, and children were at once sent off, prob- 
 ably to shelter in the Plinlimmon district, or mayhap in the 
 forests of Cader Idris ; at any rate, we may be sure that very 
 few will be found at their villages. It was so the last time the 
 king's army marched along, and the same when he made his 
 way through Denbigh to Anglesey. 
 
 " The Welsh care little for the burning of their houses ; 
 it takes but two or three days' work to rebuild them. The 
 harrying of the villages will not bring the matter a day nearer 
 to a conclusion. It is by destroying the castles and houses of 
 the better class that an effect will be produced. The peasants 
 have little to lose, the Welsh gentry have houses and estates, 
 and the fear of losing these may drive them to abandon 
 Glendower and to come over to us. Many did so after the 
 king's last invasion. Methinks the best policy would be to 
 spare the villagers and give the peasants no cause for com- 
 plaint, and to war only against their leaders. But as to yourself, 
 sir, there is not the most remote chance of your getting through, 
 and you had best wait here until the army returns or some 
 levies who may have arrived late at Shrewsbury come up on 
 their way to join the king." 
 
280 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I inquired at Shrewsbury last night, sir, but I heard that 
 no more parties were expected, the contingents from all the 
 counties having joined the king at Worcester on the day 
 ordered. My intention is that I and my man-at-arms will 
 leave our horses here and go forward on foot. In that way we 
 can travel for the most part through the forests, and may escape 
 being seen. We have already left our armour behind us at 
 Ludlow, so as to be able to move more rapidly. We are both 
 Northumbrians, and are accustomed to traverse moors and 
 fells, and even should we be seen by any straggling party of 
 the enemy, we shall have a fair chance of outrunning them 
 and throwing them off our track. At any rate it is my duty to 
 endeavour to carry the letter to the king." 
 
 " Is it a matter of life and death? " 
 
 " That I know not, sir. A royal messenger brought it from 
 London to Ludlow. He had ridden with relays of horses, but 
 had no means of getting farther, and begged Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer to forward it. I myself, an esquire of Sir Henry 
 Percy, was staying as a guest with Sir Edmund, who is, as 
 you know, my lord's brother-in-law, and I volunteered to carry 
 it, being anxious to have an opportunity of doing service to 
 the king." 
 
 " It was a bold offer, young man, and doubtless when you 
 made it you were scarce aware how dangerous was the business 
 that you undertook. Did I think that it would be of any use 
 I would furnish you with twenty men-at-arms to ride with 
 you, but I know that such a force would in no way add to 
 your safety. You might get as far as Llanidloes or Llanfair, 
 whichever route you might choose, though I think not that 
 you would do so, but beyond that it would be hopeless for any 
 force of less than five hundred good fighting men to attempt to 
 make their way through. From what I hear there are at least 
 fifteen thousand Welshmen in arms. Many, doubtless, are 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 281 
 
 with Glendower himself, the rest will be scattered among the 
 hills ready to pounce upon any party who may be moving up 
 the valleys to join the king ; and there are plenty of places 
 where a couple of hundred men could check the advance of 
 an army." 
 
 " Then it is all the more necessary, sir, that we should trust 
 to good fortune and to making our way unseen. May I pray 
 you to take care of our horses till we return to claim them ? 
 Should we never do so there are doubtless many upon whom 
 you could bestow them ; and they are both rarety good 
 animals, for one was presented to me by Sir Henry Percy and 
 the other by Sir Edmund Mortimer." 
 
 " I will take care of them willingly. If you do not return 
 before the king marches back, and I find when he comes that 
 you did not reach him, I will use the horses myself, holding 
 them always as your property should you at any time return 
 to claim them. Is there aught else that I can do to help 
 you?" 
 
 " No, sir ; what would of all other things be most valuable to 
 us would be a guide, but from what I have seen and heard 
 of the Welsh I fear that no reliance whatever can be placed 
 on one of them." 
 
 " Certainly not at present ; did you take one he would but 
 slip away at the first opportunity ; and there is no Englishman, 
 so far as I know, who could guide you through the mountains." 
 
 " In that case, sir, we must perforce travel close to the 
 roads so as to be sure that we do not wander from the track, 
 but keeping in the shelter of the forest." 
 
 " That is the only possible course," the governor agreed ; 
 " to be lost among those hills would be certain death. If you 
 failed to fall in with anyone you would die of hunger ; if you 
 did meet anyone you would be killed ; Glendower spares no 
 Englishman who falls into his hands." 
 
282 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I don't know that he can be greatly blamed for that, sir," 
 Oswald said with a smile, " seeing that the Welsh meet with 
 such scant mercy from us." 
 
 " 'T is a savage war," the governor said, shrugging his 
 shoulders, " and it seems to me that it will continue until the 
 last Welshman is exterminated." 
 
 " That will be a difficult thing indeed to effect," Oswald 
 laughed, " as difficult as was the extermination of wolves in 
 England ; but I hope that matters will arrange themselves 
 long before that. Surely in time the Welsh leaders will see 
 that the struggle is a hopeless one, and that they will lose 
 their homes and their possessions and their lives if they con- 
 tinue it. Brave as the Welsh may be, they cannot withstand 
 the whole strength of England. They may exist in the forests 
 for a time, but, with all the valleys and fertile lands in English 
 hands, they will at last be forced to submit." 
 
 " It would seem so ; but Edward said the same thing of 
 Scotland. He carried fire and sword through it time after 
 time, and yet Scotland has still its king and holds its own on 
 the border." 
 
 " That is so, sir \ but Scotland is a large country, whereas 
 Wales is a small one, and the towns and castles are English, 
 as are all the ports, and the people themselves, although 
 brave, are wholly without discipline, and are able to fight only 
 in the mountains, while the Scots are strong enough to give 
 battle to us on level ground, and have defeated us more than 
 once." 
 
 " My advice to you is to leave the town at night," the 
 governor said as Oswald rose to leave. " There may be 
 many of the Welsh lying round us now, and doubtless they 
 learn from their countrymen here all that is doing. I will give 
 you a scroll ordering that you are allowed to pass out at any 
 time by night or day." 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 283 
 
 " Thank you, sir. I had intended to start to-morrow morn- 
 ing two hours before daybreak, so as to get well into the 
 forest before sunrise. I shall, of course, go first to Llanidloes, 
 where doubtless a strong guard will have been left. As far as 
 that I cannot well miss my way, as I shall have but to keep 
 along the side of the valley." 
 
 " That is so. Beyond that the river is a mere streamlet, 
 and you will have to make across the hills." 
 
 " Do you know, sir, whether the force that went to Llanfair 
 was to effect a junction with the king? " 
 
 " No, I believe not ; at any rate not for the present. The 
 party was to march west, the king's force was to move south 
 of Plinlimmon, Lord Talbot's to cross the range of hills and 
 come down upon the river Dovey, and if possible prevent 
 Glendower, if he is still on Plinlimmon, from making his way 
 to Dinas Mowddwy or Cader Idris, or up to Snowdon again. 
 The plan is doubtless as good as another, but I doubt whether 
 Talbot's force, if ten times as numerous as it is, could prevent 
 Glendower from slipping away." 
 
 That evening Oswald bought a supply of bread and meat 
 sufficient to last Roger and himself for three days. This was 
 divided in halves and placed in bags which would be slung over 
 their shoulders. The horses had already been sent up to the 
 castle, and after sleeping for a few hours the two left the 
 town, and, turning to the right, ascended the hill. Oswald 
 carried his sword and dagger. Roger, in addition to these, 
 had a heavy oaken quarter-staff. "This," he said, "may be 
 of service in mountain work, and may suffice to crack the 
 skulls of any half-dozen Welshmen we may fall in with." 
 
 Loth had put on plain leather jerkins and cloth caps, and 
 wore, underneath their own, suits with the Percy cognisance 
 embroidered on them, in order that they might present them- 
 selves in proper attire should they arrive at the king's camp. 
 
284 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 The weather was already becoming cold, and the double suit 
 was therefore not uncomfortable. As the dress of the Welsh 
 in the towns and valleys was very similar to that worn by 
 English villagers, they would attract but little attention should 
 they have cause to take to the road for any short distance. 
 Keeping within the edge of the belt of trees, they followed the 
 valley down past the ruins of Montgomery, and passed New- 
 town without entering it. Many times during the morning 
 they heard loud shouts from the woods in which they were, 
 answered by similar cries from the other side of the valley, 
 and were obliged to move with great caution, for it was evi- 
 dent that a considerable number of Welsh were in ambush in 
 the woods in readiness to attack any party who might be pro- 
 ceeding up or down the valley. 
 
 Towards noon they were obliged to leave the edge of the 
 forest and to ascend to the brow of the hills, as it was certain 
 that any parties of the enemy who might be in the forest 
 would be assembled near its edge in readiness to pour suddenly 
 down. More than once they heard voices but a short distance 
 away, and paused for a time to allow parties of men to cross 
 ahead of them. Their greatest danger lay in crossing the side 
 valleys, but as the Welsh would be expecting no one to come 
 down these, they succeeded in crossing without being observed. 
 They were well content when, just as night was falling, they 
 came down upon Llanidloes. Crossing the wooden bridge 
 over the stream they entered the town boldly, for, looking 
 down upon it, they had seen many men in armour in the 
 streets, and knew that the place was occupied by the English. 
 
 At the gate at the end of the bridge they were asked their 
 business, but they replied that they could only answer that to 
 the officer commanding, and were taken before him. 
 
 " Whence come you, friends? " the latter said. " Surely you 
 must be English by your height, but what you are doing here 
 
A LETTER FOR THE KING 285 
 
 in times like the present I know not. Come you from the 
 king's army or from the north?" 
 
 '•We left Welshpool before daybreak," Oswald said, "and 
 have travelled through the forest." 
 
 "Then you must be as bold as you are tall, sirs, for the 
 woods are full of these wild Welsh." 
 
 " Of that we are aware, sir, and we had some difficulty in 
 making our way through them unobserved. I would not 
 answer the guard when we entered, for we are going farther, 
 and had it been mentioned in the hearing of a Welshman, 
 news might have been sent on ahead." 
 
 " I think not that you can reach the king. When we last 
 heard, his foremost divisions were marching forward, and 
 devastating the country on both sides of their line of march. 
 We have heard reports that some of the parties have been 
 attacked and well-nigh destroyed, and certain it is that Glen- 
 dower's men are scattered all over the country. We were 
 three days without news, but this morning a strong party 
 came in escorting sick and wounded. They had to fight 
 hard, but beat off their opponents, and got in with the loss 
 of a third of their number. They had started at night, and 
 fortunately arrived within five miles of here before they were 
 attacked." 
 
 "And where is the king now, sir?" 
 
 " The king himself is at Capel Bangor, and the army lies 
 between that place and Yspetty Cynfyn." 
 
 "Then 't is but a day's march from here? " 
 
 " It would be but a short day's march could you follow the 
 road, but it would be impossible to do so, for 't is beset every- 
 where, and 'tis so rough and hilly that in places the men-at- 
 arms had to dismount. You will have to wait here till a large 
 force sets out with provisions, for those who came in declare 
 that they will not attempt to return, so great is the number 
 
286 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 of Welshmen along there and so fierce and reckless are they. 
 But you have not yet told me who you are, and why you 
 would push on to the army thus rashly." 
 
 Oswald opened his jerkin and showed the handsome attire 
 beneath it, embroidered with the Percy cognisance. " I am 
 an esquire of Sir Henry Percy," he said, "and have been stay- 
 ing for a while with Sir Edmund Mortimer, whose sister is my 
 lord's wife. A royal messenger arrived at Ludlow with a 
 letter for the king, and as there was no other way of bringing 
 it forward, I volunteered to carry it with my man-at-arms 
 here." 
 
 " It was a brave offer, young sir, but I fear that you will 
 scarce be able to carry it into effect. The men who came 
 here report that it is unsafe to stir a yard from the camp, for 
 those who wander away, for however short a distance, are sure 
 to be slain by the lurking Welshmen. No resistance is offered 
 when strong parties go out, but less than two hundred men-at- 
 arms cannot hope to move unattacked." 
 
 "'Tis for that reason that I have come on foot," Oswald 
 said. " I saw that it would be hopeless for two horsemen to 
 get through, but on foot we may travel through the woods 
 without being discovered ; while if we are seen, methinks it 
 would need speedy feet to catch us." 
 
 " Well, since you bear a royal letter I cannot stop you, but 
 it seems to me that your chance of getting through is small 
 indeed." 
 
KNIGHTED 2S7 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 KNIGHTED 
 
 THE rain was coming down in torrents when Oswald and 
 Roger started the next morning. On leaving the town 
 they turned to the left with the intention of making a consid- 
 erable detour, keeping well away from the road, as it was near 
 this that the Welsh would be most likely watching. They 
 chose this side because to the right of the road the country was 
 more broken, rising swell after swell towards Plinlimmon, and 
 it was likely that the largest portion of the Welsh would be on 
 that side, so that they could at any time retire to their fast- 
 nesses. They were soon in the woods ; the streams they met 
 with were turbid and full to the brim. 
 
 " We shall have trouble with this water, Roger," Oswald 
 said, as they waded across one waist-deep. " This is but a 
 little stream, but if there are larger ones, as is like enough, we 
 shall have to swim before we are done. There is one advantage 
 in such weather as this, even the Welsh will scarce be active." 
 
 " They have not got much clothing to wet," Roger said. 
 <; Their dress is better suited than ours for such weather." 
 
 The way was a rough one. Hills, although of no great 
 height, had to be crossed, and many streams to be waded. 
 Fortunately they met with few larger than that they had first 
 crossed, for the water from that side of the hills made its way 
 for the most part direct into the Severn, while that which came 
 down from the slopes of Plinlimmon towards the road fell 
 into a stream, dry in fine weather, but now a raging torrent, 
 which ran past Llandulas and into the Severn at Llanidloes. 
 
 "Do you think that we are going right, Roger?" Oswald 
 said, after they had been walking for six or seven hours, " for 
 
288 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 what with these ups and downs and turnings and windings, 
 there is no saying which is east and which is west. If the 
 sun were shining we should be sure of our direction, but with 
 these dull leaden clouds there is no saying." 
 
 " I have no idea, master. If we were out on a moor we 
 should be able to judge and to make a fairly straight course, 
 keeping the wind and rain on one side of us, but in this thick 
 forest, though most of the leaves have fallen, those that remain 
 on the branches break up the rain, and it seems to come 
 straight down upon us." 
 
 Presently they came to another water-course. 
 
 " Why, Roger, the water is going in the other direction ! " 
 
 " So it is, master. How can that be? " 
 
 " It is just possible that we have crossed some dividing point, 
 and the water is making its way towards the south and will 
 fall into some other river ; but I am very much afraid that the 
 real explanation is that we have entirely lost our way, and are 
 going in the opposite direction to that in which we started. 
 The question is, shall we cross it or shall we follow it down? " 
 
 " Just as you like," Roger said. " For myself, I think that 
 the best way would be to find some place where we could 
 shelter. To-morrow the sun may be out again, and that will 
 tell us which way to go. If we start at daybreak and keep it 
 to our back we can't go far wrong." 
 
 " Except that we may pass the army altogether, Roger. 
 They told us that the rearmost division was not more than ten 
 miles ahead." 
 
 " We must have walked double that already, I should say, 
 master." 
 
 " Not so much as that. We have been a long time over it, 
 but it is slow travelling over this broken ground and thick 
 wood. I am sure I hope that we have not gone twenty miles, 
 or anything like it, for in that case, if we have been keeping 
 
KNIGHTED 289 
 
 fairly in the right direction, we must have passed the army. 
 If we have been going in the wrong direction there is no 
 saying where we may be. Still, I think that your suggestion 
 is a good one. It is of no use our going on when we may 
 be getting farther away at every step. It is lucky that we 
 bought these thick cloaks at Welshpool, for without them we 
 should have been soaked to the skin hours ago." 
 
 " Well, as we have been wetted to the waist a score of times 
 in the streams, I don't see that it would have mattered much 
 if the rest of us had been wet through." 
 
 " Well, now let us look for a shelter." 
 
 After searching for half an hour they found a spot where a 
 wall of shaly rock barred their way. At one spot some of 
 this had fallen in, forming a sort of shallow cave some three 
 feet deep. 
 
 " This is not a bad beginning, Roger, but we must try and 
 make it a great deal more snug." 
 
 They first cut down some young fir poles and placed them 
 so as to form a sort of pent-house against the wall. On these 
 they piled a number of branches of the same trees until it 
 was over a foot in thickness. 
 
 "So far so good," Oswald said. " Now, Roger, look about 
 for a fallen tree. We have passed scores on our way. You 
 must get a thoroughly rotten one, and cut away a portion of 
 the under side ; it will be dry enough there." 
 
 " You might get a little of that to start with," Roger said ; 
 " but the ground is covered everywhere with fir cones, and 
 there is no better stuff for fires." 
 
 Taking off his cloak he laid it down, and they both piled 
 the fir cones on this until a great heap was collected. This 
 they carried into their shelter through an opening they had 
 left in the pent-house. 
 
 " We must have something dry to start it with ; these 
 
 19 
 
290 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 cones are a great deal too wet to burn without a good heat 
 to start them. There is nothing better than the fir needles, 
 master, if we can find some dry ones." 
 
 After some searching a considerable number of these needles 
 were collected, some lying under fallen trees, and others 
 swept by the wind into rocky corners, where the rain had not 
 reached them. 
 
 " Now I think that we shall do, Roger." 
 
 As soon as they were inside, Roger produced a large lump 
 of dry fungus he had found on the other side of the Severn, 
 and, by the aid of his flint and steel, soon succeeded in 
 striking sparks upon it. As soon as these began to spread, 
 he put a little pile of fir needles on it, and, blowing gently, 
 bright flames soon darted up. A few more handfuls of fuel 
 were added, and fir cones placed at the top, and in a quarter 
 of an hour a clear, bright fire was burning. The dripping 
 cloaks were hung up to the fir poles to dry, and the jerkins, 
 which were also damp, although the water had not penetrated 
 through them, were spread near the fire. 
 
 " It was well that I bought this little skin of wine last 
 night," Roger said. " You thought it was better to be without 
 such a burden, but the weight of a gallon of wine doesn't 
 count for much, and it makes all the difference in our com- 
 fort here." 
 
 The rain had soaked through their provision bags, but the 
 bread and meat in the centre were dry, and of these they 
 made a hearty meal, and, laying the wetted food round the fire 
 to dry, they wound up the repast with a long draught of wine. 
 
 " Now, as soon as our breeches are dry, Master Oswald, 
 we shall be thoroughly comfortable." 
 
 " Yes, one can wish for nothing better. But we must not 
 forget that some Welshmen may come along, and if so, will 
 be sure to want to know what is inside." 
 
"sow, I THINK WE SHALL DO, ROGER.' 
 
KNIGHTED 291 
 
 "Then, unless there happen to be more than a dozen of 
 them, their curiosity may cost them dear," Roger said grimly. 
 " I don't think there is much fear of it. We have neither seen 
 nor heard of any since we started, and it would be evil fortune 
 indeed if a party happened to come along just at this spot." 
 
 " The fact that we have heard no one is a bad sign, Roger, 
 for it would seem to show that we must have gone a long way 
 out of our course." 
 
 The rain continued to fall heavily all that afternoon and 
 throughout the night, and no change of the weather was 
 discernible the next morning. 
 
 " We had best stop here for another day, Roger, unless the 
 sky clears ; we are not likely to find so good a place for shelter, 
 and it is of no use to wander about when every step may be 
 taking us farther away. However, we can climb up to the top 
 of this hill, at whose foot we are, and endeavour to get a view 
 over the country." 
 
 Roger shook his head. " In this heavy mist we should not 
 see a quarter of a mile away. We have got all our clothes dry 
 now, and it would be a pity to get them wet again without 
 need or profit. Anyhow, we will find some more of those fir 
 cones, our supply is nearly gone." 
 
 In half an hour they had got sufficient to last them all day. 
 There was nothing for them then to do but sleep, one or other 
 keeping watch, so as to prevent the chance of their being 
 surprised. 
 
 Before lying down for the night, Roger looked out. " Me- 
 thinks that the rain has stopped, though it would be difficult 
 to say, for the drops keep pattering down from the trees. 
 Well, I mightily hope that it will be a fine morning." 
 
 Oswald was first upon his feet, and, on going out uttered an 
 exclamation of satisfaction. The morning was breaking, and 
 though light clouds were moving across the sky glimpses of the 
 
292 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 blue were visible here and there. Already the light showed 
 where the sun would presently rise. Food was hastily eaten, 
 and they then started on their way again. There could be no 
 mistake now as to the general direction ; and, keeping the sun 
 on their right hand, they made their way north. From the 
 top of a hill somewhat higher than the others, they caught a 
 view of Plinlimmon. 
 
 "If we make straight for it," Oswald said, "we ought to 
 come down on the road near the camp. We can go on fear- 
 lessly for some time, for the Welsh were hardly likely to be 
 moving about yesterday or the day before, and I have no 
 doubt they sheltered themselves as best they could in arbours 
 like ours." 
 
 After walking for another two hours they heard the distant 
 sound of a trumpet. 
 
 " That cannot be more than two or three miles away, Roger. 
 Now we shall have to be careful." 
 
 They had walked a mile when, as they descended into a 
 glen, they came suddenly on a party of twenty Welshmen sit- 
 ting round a fire. These had been concealed from them by 
 the thick undergrowth, and were not twenty yards away when 
 they first saw them. The Welsh had evidently heard them 
 coming by the rustle of leaves and the breaking of twigs, and 
 two or three were standing up looking in their direction 
 when they caught sight of them. These gave a loud yell, which 
 brought the rest to their feet. 
 
 " Run, Roger, run ; it is a question of legs now ; " and turn- 
 ing, they darted up the hill they had just descended. Looking 
 back for a moment as, after running for about a mile, they 
 reached the crest of a swell, Oswald saw that five of their 
 pursuers had distanced their comrades, but were no nearer 
 than when they started. 
 
 " I think we can hold them, Roger. Take it a little more 
 
KNIGHTED 293 
 
 easily now. We are all right as far as speed goes, it is simply 
 a question of bottom." 
 
 Their pursuers, however, still stuck to them, and after run- 
 ning for another half-mile the five men were still but some 
 thirty yards behind, while their comrades' shouts could be 
 heard through the forest, and from time to time the men close 
 behind them joined in a loud quavering cry. 
 
 " We must stand and rid ourselves of these fellows, Roger, 
 or we shall have half the Welsh nation down on us." 
 
 "So I have been thinking for some time." 
 
 " Don't stop suddenly. We will slacken our pace, and they 
 will think that our strength is failing, and will redouble their 
 efforts. Then when they are close to us we will turn sud- 
 denly." 
 
 They heard a yell of exultation as their pursuers found that 
 they were gaining upon them. " Choose a clear space, Roger, 
 with room to swing our weapons." 
 
 The Welsh were running in a close body but ten yards 
 behind them when they arrived at a spot clear of trees. 
 
 " Now, Roger ! " As he spoke, Oswald drew his sword and 
 swung round facing his pursuers, while Roger did the same. 
 The Welsh, taken by surprise, endeavoured to check themselves, 
 but before they could do so Roger's staff fell upon the head 
 of one of them, while Oswald cleft another to the chin. With 
 the quickness of an adroit player with the quarter-staff, Roger 
 followed up his blow by almost instantaneously driving the 
 other end of the staff with all his force against the chest of 
 another who was at the point of leaping upon him, and the 
 man fell as if struck with a thunderbolt. So swift had been 
 the movements that the remaining two men were paralysed by 
 the sudden fall of their companions, but before they could 
 turn to fly the weapons descended again with as fatal result 
 as before. 
 
294 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " To the right ! " Oswald exclaimed, and he dashed off into 
 the forest again at a right angle to the line that they had before 
 taken. A minute later they heard an outburst of yells of 
 fury from the spot they had quitted. 
 
 " I don't think they will be quite so ready to follow now," 
 Roger said. " They are like to be some time before they take 
 up our track again." 
 
 " We will break into a walk in a few minutes, Roger, and 
 then go along quietly and keep our ears open. Their yells will 
 be bringing others down from all directions, and we might run 
 right into the middle of another party if we kept on at this 
 rate." 
 
 In another five minutes they dashed down a steep descent, 
 at whose foot a streamlet, swelled now into a rushing stream 
 five or six feet wide, was running. 
 
 " We will follow this down," Oswald said as he stepped into 
 it. It was a little over two feet deep, and they waded along 
 it for a couple of hundred yards and then stepped out where 
 some rock cropped out by the side of the stream. It had not 
 yet dried after the rain, and their feet therefore left no marks 
 on it. 
 
 "That was a sharp run, Roger," Oswald said, as with rapid 
 but stealthy steps they strode along. 
 
 "Ay, it was. My breath was coming short when you gave 
 the word to stop. Another half-mile would have finished me. 
 Those Welshmen run well." 
 
 " I have no doubt we should have beaten them easily 
 enough on the open ground, Roger, but they are more accus- 
 tomed to this forest work than we are. Mind where you 
 tread, and don't put your foot on fallen sticks. There must 
 be scores of them in the forest behind yet, though I don't 
 think that they have struck our track. The nearest must 
 be a quarter of a mile away. I am not afraid of their over- 
 
KNIGHTED 295 
 
 taking us, it is the risk of falling in with other parties that 
 1 am afraid of." 
 
 They now bore away to the right again. More than once 
 they heard parties moving near them, and stood quiet until 
 their voices died away, which they quickly did, as all were 
 hurrying towards the spot whence the shouting still continued. 
 
 For an hour they kept straight onward, and then the trees 
 thinned ; and as they stepped out from the edge of the forest 
 they saw, to their delight, a few tents in front of them, and 
 a large number of soldiers scattered about. As they were 
 seen, some of the soldiers caught up their arms, but when 
 they saw that but two men were approaching they laid them 
 down again, and proceeded with the work on which most of 
 them were engaged, in polishing up their arms and armour, 
 whose brightness had been grievously dimmed by the rain. 
 A sub-officer with four men came up to them as they reached 
 the line. 
 
 " Who are you, sirs? " he asked. 
 
 " I am an esquire of Sir Henry Percy, and have brought 
 hither a letter for the king." The man looked doubtfully at 
 him, and Oswald continued, " I know not whether the Earl of 
 Talbot is in the camp, but if so he will, I think, recognise 
 me." 
 
 " The earl arrived with five hundred of his men yesterday," 
 the officer said with a tone of more respect than he had before 
 used ; " I will take you to his tent ; " and he led the way to a 
 tent pitched a short distance away from that before which the 
 royal standard waved. Oswald took off his cloak, which was 
 rolled up over his shoulder, and handed it to Roger, and then 
 opened his jerkin. As they came up to the tent the front 
 opened and the earl himself came out. 
 
 "Whom have we here? " he asked the officer. 
 
 "They have just come out of the forest, my lord, and this 
 
296 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 gentleman asked to be taken to you, saying that you would 
 recognise him." 
 
 The earl looked scrutinisingly at Oswald. " I seem to know 
 your face, sir," he said, " but I cannot recall where I have 
 seen it." 
 
 "My name is Oswald Forster, an esquire of Sir Henry 
 Percy. I joined you at Chester, my Lord Talbot, with a band 
 of his men, and some of Sir Edmund Mortimer's, led by one 
 of his knights." 
 
 " I remember now," the earl said. " Yes, I see you wear 
 the Percy badge ; but how have you got here, and why have 
 you come?" 
 
 " I come as a simple messenger, my lord. A royal courier 
 arrived at Ludlow, with a letter from London for the king. 
 His majesty had laid his commands on Sir Edmund Mortimer 
 that he was not to weaken his force by a single lance, and as, 
 for aught Sir Edmund knew, the letter might be of great im- 
 portance, I volunteered to endeavour to carry it through, 
 taking with me only this man-at-arms, on whom I could wholly 
 rely, whatever might happen, he having accompanied me on 
 more than one dangerous expedition. Sir Edmund consented. 
 We rode first to Shrewsbury to obtain information as to the 
 course the king had taken. At Welshpool we left our horses 
 behind us, thinking it easier to make our way through the 
 woods on foot, seeing that the roads were said to be beset by 
 the Welsh. So we reached Llanidloes, and then hearing where 
 the king was then posted from a convoy of wounded that had 
 been brought in that day, and who had been attacked and 
 very hardly treated as they came along, we thought to make a 
 detour through the woods so as to get behind any Welshmen 
 who might be watching the road. 
 
 " Unfortunately in the storm of rain, having no guide, we 
 lost our way, and were so detained near two days in the forest. 
 
KNIGHTED 297 
 
 This morning the weather having changed and the sun come 
 out, we learned the direction that we must take. On the way 
 we fell in with a party of some twenty Welshmen who pursued 
 us hotly; we outran all but five. As their shouts would have 
 brought large numbers upon us, we stopped and slew them, 
 and though search was hot for us we succeeded in making our 
 way through without adventure, until we came out from the 
 forest close by." 
 
 " Truly it was an adventure of great peril," the earl said, 
 " for the Welsh are swarming round us, though we see nought 
 of them when we are once in the saddle. Assuredly you 
 would never have got through, even as far as Llanidloes, if 
 you had followed the road on horseback, for the last party that 
 came along brought word that the Welsh had felled trees across 
 it in many places, and had broken down the bridges. It 
 was a gallant exploit, sir. I will myself take you in to the 
 king." 
 
 Oswald took off his jerkin. 
 
 " I am but in poor plight to show myself before his majesty," 
 he said as he handed it to Roger. 
 
 "Ah! I remember this good fellow," the earl said. " He 
 is not one easily forgotten, for 't is seldom one sees so stout a 
 man-at-arms. As to your dress, 't is nought, and indeed it 
 is in better order than most in camp, for the soldiers have no 
 tents, and have for the last forty-eight hours been over their 
 ankles in mud and water. Have you been with Mortimer ever 
 since we harried Glendower's valley? " 
 
 " No, my lord, I returned after that to the north, and was 
 at Alnwick for nine months. Then Sir Henry sent me back 
 again to Ludlow, in order that I might keep him well informed 
 of the extent of this rebellion, concerning which but few tidings 
 came to him." 
 
 They had by this time arrived at the entrance of the king 3 
 
298 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 tent. The two sentries on duty there stood back and saluted 
 as the earl entered, followed by Oswald. 
 
 " This, sire, is a messenger, one Master Oswald Forster, an 
 esquire of Sir Henry Percy's. He had been sent by his lord 
 to Ludlow to keep him acquainted with the extent of this re- 
 bellion. Some few days since a royal messenger reached the 
 town with a letter for you, as doubtless in London they cannot 
 have known which way you were marching, and directed it 
 there, so that it might be forwarded to you thence. Sir 
 Edmund, having your royal order not to send any force away, 
 would have been at a loss how to forward it, deeming that it 
 would need a strong body of men-at-arms to penetrate to you, 
 as he knew from what had happened on the two last expedi- 
 tions that the Welsh, being unable to oppose your advance, 
 would swarm behind you so as to prevent reinforcements or 
 convoys of provisions from reaching you. He was, therefore, 
 doubtful as to what course to adopt, when this gentleman 
 volunteered to carry it to you ; and this he has accomplished, 
 attended by but a single follower. Knowing that he could 
 only hope to reach you on foot, he and his man-at-arms left 
 their horses at Welshpool, and have made their way through 
 "the woods on foot, not without adventure, having lost their 
 way in the storm, and having slept in the wood for two days 
 and killed five Welshmen, scarcely escaping a crowd of others 
 as they came in." 
 
 " A very gallant deed, sir," the king said to Oswald as the 
 latter bent upon one knee and handed the letter to him. " By 
 Our Lady, it was no slight thing to venture through the woods, 
 swarming with these wild Welshmen. How long have you 
 been an esquire to Percy ? " 
 
 " Over three years, sire." 
 
 " I met Master Forster at Chester," the earl said. " He 
 commanded a score of Percy's men, and rode with us when we 
 
KNIGHTED 299 
 
 captured Glendower's house. The knights with him told me 
 that he and his little band had done excellent service in the 
 fight when the Welsh made their first irruption, and that Sir 
 Henry Percy had written in the warmest terms to Mortimer, 
 saying that the gentleman stood high in his regard, and that 
 he had the most perfect confidence in him, and had selected 
 him for the service since he was able to write well, and could, 
 therefore, communicate freely with him as to the troubles on 
 the Welsh border." 
 
 "And have you been at Mortimer's ever since that time?" 
 the king asked. 
 
 Oswald noticed that each time Mortimer's name was men- 
 tioned the king's brow was somewhat clouded. 
 
 " Not so, your Majesty. I returned to the north with 
 Percy's men a few days after the capture of Glendower's house. 
 I came back to Ludlow in the spring." 
 
 " Why did Sir Henry Percy despatch you there again? " the 
 king asked sharply. 
 
 " From what he said, sire, it was because he was anxious to 
 know whether the rebellion was growing, fearing that there 
 might be some correspondence between Glendower and the 
 Scots ; and that if it should come to a point when you might 
 have to lead the whole force of the south to put the Welsh 
 down, the Scots might make a great irruption into the north- 
 ern counties, and it would be needful for him to keep a larger 
 body of men than usual under arms, as the earl, his father, and 
 the Earl of Westmoreland would have to stand the whole brunt 
 of the matter for a time without aid from the south." 
 
 The king's brow cleared. 
 
 " It was a thoughtful act of Sir Henry," he said ; " and 't is 
 like enough that the Scots will, as you say, take advantage of 
 our troubles here, and it is well therefore that the Lords of the 
 Northern Marches should hold themselves in readiness. What 
 
300 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 think you, Talbot? It seems to me that the bold service this 
 esquire has performed merits reward." 
 
 " I think so indeed," the earl said. " It was a singular act 
 of courage." 
 
 The king drew his sword from his scabbard. " Kneel, sir," 
 he said. And as Oswald knelt the king laid the sword across 
 his shoulder and said, " Rise, Sir Oswald Forster." 
 
 Oswald rose. 
 
 " I thank you, my Lord King," he said, " and trust that I 
 may live for many years to do worthy knightly service to my 
 liege, who has so highly honoured me." 
 
 " My lord," the king said to Talbot, " I leave it to you to 
 see that this young knight is provided with horse and armour. 
 Unfortunately there is more than one suit without an owner 
 at present. You will do well to wait with me while I open 
 this letter, which maybe contains matter of moment." 
 
 Feeling that his audience was over, Oswald bowed deeply 
 and left the tent to rejoin Roger. 
 
 "What said the king, master?" 
 
 " He spoke much more highly of what we had done, Roger, 
 than it deserved, and as a reward for the service he has just 
 knighted me." 
 
 " I think that he has done well, master ! " Roger exclaimed 
 joyously. " I had hoped that Hotspur would have done it 
 after that adventure with the Bairds, of which, as Alwyn told 
 me, he spoke to him in tones of wondrous praise." 
 
 " That was a private business, Roger, and he would know 
 that I would much rather that, when knighthood came, I should 
 receive it for service in the field. The king regards our com- 
 ing here as a service to himself, and therefore rewarded me ; 
 but I would rather that it should have been for service in 
 the field against the enemy than for tramping through the 
 forest." 
 
KNIGHTED 301 
 
 " Yes, but a forest full of Welshmen," Roger said, " who are 
 more to be feared in that way than when met in open fight." 
 
 " Earl Talbot spoke very kindly of me, and said that he had 
 heard that with Percy's men I had done good service in that 
 fight with the Welsh near Knighton." 
 
 " That was certainly pretty hot work, master — I shall get 
 to say Sir Oswald in time, but at present my tongue is not 
 used to it. What are we to do now?" 
 
 " The king asked Lord Talbot to provide me with armour 
 and a horse, so we must wait until he comes this way." 
 
 It was half an hour before the earl came out. 
 
 "The letter was of importance," he said, "and it is well 
 that it was brought on. Now, Sir Oswald, let us see to your 
 matter. Two days ago Sir William Baxter was killed by a 
 sudden attack of the Welsh while he was burning a village. 
 His men rallied, beat off the Welsh, and brought his body in, 
 and methinks his armour will fit you, though he was shorter 
 by two or three inches than yourself." 
 
 He accompanied Oswald to one of a small group of tents 
 standing a quarter of a mile farther down the road. 
 
 "Is Sir William Baxter's squire here?" 
 
 A young man at once came up. " I was his esquire, my 
 lord." 
 
 " I have the king's orders," the earl said, " that his arms, 
 armour, and horses are to be handed over forthwith to Sir 
 Oswald Forster here, who will take command of his troop. 
 He will take over all the other belongings of the knight." 
 
 The young squire bowed. " I will hand them over to you, 
 sir." 
 
 " You will, of course, take possession of the tent also, Sir 
 Oswald. Sir William was one of my knights. He was un- 
 wedded, and has no male kin ; therefore you need have no 
 hesitation in taking his belongings, which indeed we should in 
 
302 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 any case have little chance of taking back with us, for our 
 waggons are but few and will daily become fewer ; for on such 
 roads as these both waggons and horses break down, and it 
 will be as much as we can do to carry even necessities with us. 
 Come to my tent at noon, it lacks but an hour of it, and I will 
 present you at dinner to some of my knights, among whom for 
 the present I shall rank you." 
 
 So saying he turned away. The young squire held open 
 the entrance of the tent for Oswald to enter, and followed him 
 in. 
 
 " It seems a strange thing to be thus possessed of another 
 man's goods," he said. 
 
 " It is often so," the squire said, " and sometimes even his 
 estates go with them also ; as the earl said, Sir William Baxter 
 had none to whom these things could have been given, seeing 
 that he had, so far as I know, only one sister, to whom armour 
 and horses could be of no use. She is one of the Countess of 
 Talbot's ladies." 
 
 " And what are you going to do yourself? " 
 
 " For the present I know not," the squire said. " I had 
 been with Sir William Baxter but three years. The knight I 
 served with before was thrown from his horse and killed, and 
 Sir William, who had been just knighted, took me into his 
 service." 
 
 "How long have you been a squire? " 
 
 " Six years, and I hoped that in this campaign I might have 
 done something to win my spurs." 
 
 " I am but a poor knight, Master — " and he paused. 
 
 " Henry Pemberton," the squire said. 
 
 " And being but knighted to-day, and having no lands to 
 keep up my knighthood, it may be that the earl will appoint 
 you to another of his knights ; but should he not do so I shall 
 be glnd if, for the rest of this campaign, you will ride with me, 
 
KNIGHTED 303 
 
 and trust that you too may have an opportunity of gaining 
 knighthood before it is over. But whether or no, as soon as 
 we cross the border again I doubt not that you will be able to 
 find some lord under whom you may gain advancement." 
 
 " I will gladly do so, Sir Oswald. Tis strange that I should 
 not have seen your face before, for since we left Worcester I 
 have come to know the greater part of the esquires here." 
 
 " I arrived but an hour ago," Oswald replied, " having made 
 my way through the Welsh on foot with that tall fellow you 
 saw without." 
 
 " That was a dangerous deed, truly," Pemberton said in 
 tones of surprise. " May I ask you why you essayed so 
 perilous a feat? " 
 
 " I was the bearer of a despatch for the king. I was an 
 esquire to Sir Henry Percy, but have for some time been stay- 
 ing with his brother-in-law, Sir Edmund Mortimer. Had Sir 
 William a man-at-arms who served as his servant? for I shall 
 make my man-at-arms, who has gone through many adventures 
 with me, has fought by my side, and saved my life, my second 
 squire." 
 
 " Yes, a very good and trusty fellow." 
 
 " Then of course I shall keep him on. Now, will you tell 
 my man to come in? " 
 
 " Roger," he said, " you doubtless heard the earl's words, 
 and I am now master of this tent, together with the armour, 
 horses, and clothes of Sir William Baxter. Master Henry 
 Pemberton will act as my squire during the campaign. You 
 will be my second squire." 
 
 " Well, master, I never looked so high as to become an 
 esquire, and would rather remain a simple man-at-arms were 
 it not that it will keep me near you." 
 
 "You will find Roger a good comrade, Master Pemberton. 
 He has been a man-at-arms at his own choice, for, as he can 
 
304 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 read and write as well as any clerk, he might have done better 
 for himself." 
 
 Pemberton looked with some surprise at Roger. He him- 
 self had not these accomplishments, and he was surprised at 
 finding a man-at-arms so well endowed. 
 
 "As you may tell by his speech," Oswald went on, "he is, 
 like myself, a Northumbrian, and has done good service in the 
 wars with the Scots." 
 
 "That I can well imagine," the squire said with a smile. 
 " I would certainly wish for no stouter comrade." 
 
 " We must see about arms and armour for you, Roger," 
 Oswald said. 
 
 "There will be no difficulty about that, none whatever, 
 Sir Oswald. We have lost fully three hundred men since we 
 crossed the border, and a hundred and fifty since we came 
 here four days since. There is a pile of harness and arms 
 lying by the roadside, and there, methinks, it is likely it will 
 lie. You have but to go with him when you have attired 
 yourself and buckled on spurs, and you can pick and choose 
 among it ; assuredly no one will gainsay you." 
 
 Oswald now changed his attire. The clothes were hand- 
 some and fitted him well. Then he buckled on the golden 
 spurs, put on the knightly armour, for he had observed that 
 the earl and the knights that he had seen in the camp all kept 
 on full armour, being ever in expectation of sudden attack. 
 
 " Truly you make a handsome figure, Sir Oswald," said 
 Roger, who had been assisting him. " Little did I think 
 when I used to rail at you at your books that you would grow 
 into so stalwart a man, and that I should follow you in the 
 field as your squire. Your armour fits you as if made for you, 
 save that these cuishes scarce meet your body armour. In 
 truth, though bad for him, it was lucky for you that the master 
 of this tent came to his death when he did." 
 
KNIGHTED 305 
 
 " I like a steel cap better than this helmet, though I say not 
 that it looks so well." 
 
 " Not by a long way," Roger said. " Nought could become 
 you better. What cognisance do you mean to take?" 
 
 " I have not thought about it yet ; there will be time enough 
 for that after the war is over." 
 
 " Well, at any rate, master, I will to-day set about getting 
 Sir William Baxter's off the shield. Methinks that with some 
 sand from the river bed I shall be able to manage it with 
 an hour's rubbing." 
 
 " Now, come along, Roger, there is no time to be lost, for I 
 dine at midday with the Earl of Talbot. Master Pemberton 
 will show us where the armour is lying." 
 
 There was indeed a large pile. Oswald then said, " As you 
 are known, Master Pemberton, you had better stop here, for 
 it will take some picking before Roger is suited. As it is but 
 two minutes to twelve, I must hurry back to Lord Talbot's 
 tent." 
 
 Some seven or eight knights were already there. Lord 
 Talbot introduced him to them, and, as rhey dined, Oswald 
 related at their request more particularly how he had got 
 through the Welsh, — a task that seemed to them well-nigh 
 impossible, since the soldiers dared not venture even to the 
 edge of the forest, so thickly were the Welsh posted there. 
 
 " That man-at-arms must be a stalwart fellow indeed," said 
 one, " to kill three Welshmen with nought but a quarter- 
 staff." 
 
 "If you had seen the man and the staff, Sir Victor, you 
 would not be surprised," Lord Talbot said. " He stands some 
 six feet four, and has shoulders that might rival Samson's. As 
 to his quarter-staff, I marked it. It was of oak, and full two 
 inches across, and a blow with it from such arms would crack 
 an iron casque, to say nothing of a Welsh skull." 
 
 JO 
 
306 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 GLENDOWER 
 
 FOR the next ten days the weather was so bad that no 
 operations could be carried on. Every little stream was 
 swollen to a raging torrent. Horses, carrying men in full 
 armour, could scarce keep their feet on the slippery moor, 
 and even the footmen had the greatest difficulty in getting 
 about ; and all excursions were given up, for the Welsh, bare- 
 footed and unweighted with armour, would have been able to 
 fall upon them to great advantage, and could then evade pur- 
 suit with ease. The number of sick increased rapidly, and it 
 became necessary to send another convoy back to Llanidloes, 
 where the guard were to join the force that had gone there 
 ten days before, and to escort some waggons of flour and a 
 number of cattle that had been brought there from Welshpool 
 by a strong levy from Shropshire. 
 
 Ten knights, a hundred mounted men-at-arms, as many on 
 foot, and fifty archers were considered sufficient to escort the 
 sick, who, to the number of two hundred, were closely packed 
 in the ten waggons that were to return with flour. Three of 
 Lord Talbot's knights were to form part of the escort, and 
 among these Oswald was chosen by the earl. It was hoped 
 that the convoy would reach the town without being attacked, 
 for great pains had been taken to prevent the news of its 
 approaching departure getting about, for there were many 
 Welshmen in the camp employed in looking after the baggage 
 animals and in other offices. They had all been hired for the 
 service on the other side of the border, but it was believed 
 that some of them at least must be in communication with the 
 
GLENDOWER 307 
 
 enemy, who were thereby enabled to gather in force to oppose 
 any parties who sallied out from the camp. 
 
 The consequence was that, until half an hour before it left, 
 none save a few of the leaders were aware of the starting of 
 the convoy. Then orders were rapidly issued ; the knights 
 and men-at-arms who had been selected for the service had 
 but a few minutes to prepare themselves. The horses were 
 harnessed to the waggons, and the sick and wounded carried 
 out and placed in them with the greatest expedition, and the 
 party set out in less than half an hour after the first order 
 had been given. It had gone but a quarter of a mile when 
 the shouts among the woods on either side showed that the 
 Welsh were vigilant. Horns were blown in all directions, the 
 sound growing fainter and fainter in the hills. 
 
 " We shall not get through undisturbed," one of the knights 
 said to Oswald, who was riding next to him. 
 
 " No, I think we shall have fighting. It would have been 
 better had we and the men-at-arms been told to leave our 
 horses behind. In this deep soil they will be of little use in a 
 fight, and we should do better on foot." 
 
 " It would be terrible marching in our heavy armour." 
 
 " Doubtless it would have been so, but I should not have 
 minded that. The distance is but six miles, and although in 
 this slippery plain the toil would have been great, methinks 
 that we could have made a better fight than on horseback ; 
 and as these waggons travel but slowly, we could have kept up 
 with them." 
 
 " We can dismount if necessary," the knight said ; " but, for 
 my part, I would rather ride than tramp through this deep mud." 
 
 Their progress was indeed slow, the waggons frequently sank 
 almost up to their axles in the mud, and it needed all the 
 efforts of the dismounted men to get them out. A deep si- 
 lence had succeeded the outcry in the woods. 
 
308 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I like not this silence, Sir Oswald," the knight said, when 
 after an hour's hard work they were still but two miles from 
 the camp. 
 
 " Nor do I," Oswald said ; " it seems unnatural. Do you not 
 think, Sir William, that it would be well if all were to take 
 the picket ropes from their horses' necks and knot them two 
 and two, fastening one end to a waggon and the other to a 
 horse's girth? In that way fifty men-at-arms might be roped 
 on to the waggons, and would aid those drawing them greatly." 
 
 " The idea is a very good one," the knight said. He rode 
 forward to Sir Eustace de Bohun, who was in command, and 
 informed him of Oswald's suggestion, which was at once 
 adopted. As soon as it was carried out the dismounted men 
 were ordered to push behind the waggons, which now pro- 
 ceeded at a much faster rate than before. They were just 
 half-way to the town, and beginning to entertain hopes that 
 they should get through without being attacked, when a horn 
 sounded, and from the forest on both sides a crowd of men 
 rushed out and poured a volley of arrows into the convoy. 
 Hasty orders were shouted by Sir Eustace, the ropes were 
 thrown off, and the troops formed up in a double line on each 
 side of the waggons. 
 
 The knights and mounted men formed the outside line, and 
 the footmen stood a pace or two behind them, so as to cover 
 them from attack should the Welsh break through. Oswald's 
 esquire was on one side of him, Roger on the other. The 
 waggons continued to move forward, for at this point the road 
 was better, running across a bare rock, and the horses were 
 therefore able to draw them along without any assistance. Sir 
 Eustace therefore gave the order for the escort to continue 
 their way, marching on each side of the train. 
 
 "We must fight our way through, men," he showed; " every 
 minute will doubtless add to their numbers." 
 
GLENDOWER 809 
 
 For a short time the arrows flew fast. But the Welsh bows 
 were not to be compared in point of strength with those used 
 by the English archers, and the arrows fell harmlessly upon the 
 armour of the men-at-arms, while on the other hand the Eng- 
 lish archers shot so strongly and truly that after a short time 
 the Welsh bowmen fell back. As they did so, however, a crowd 
 of footmen poured out from the forest, and with loud shouts 
 and yells rushed forward. 
 
 " Halt the waggons ! " Sir Eustace cried. " Keep good 
 order, men, and we shall soon drive this rabble off." 
 
 The archers had time but to send three flights of arrows 
 among their assailants when these threw themselves upon the 
 line. They were armed with short axes, heavy clubs, and 
 other rough weapons, and for a time the horsemen kept their 
 order and beat them back ; but as the horns continued to 
 sound the Welsh swarmed down in such numbers that they 
 broke in between their mounted foes, some trying to tear them 
 from their saddles, while others crept beneath the horses and 
 drove their long knives into their stomachs, or tried to ham- 
 string them with their axes. Then the dismounted men-at- 
 arms joined in the fight, and drove the enemy back beyond 
 the line. Many of the horsemen were, however, dismounted ; 
 these joined their mounted comrades when Sir Eustace gave 
 the word to charge the multitude before they could rally for a 
 fresh attack. 
 
 The Welsh went down in numbers before their lances, but 
 so close was the throng that the horsemen were brought to a 
 stand, and slinging their spears behind them betook themselves 
 to sword and mace. Great was the slaughter of their opponents, 
 but these pursued their former tactics. Horse after horse 
 rolled over in mortal agony, and as they fell the riders were 
 stabbed before they could recover their feet. Soon they were 
 broken up into knots, and their dismounted companions with 
 
310 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 one accord left the waggons and rushed into the fray, for a 
 time beating back the Welsh. 
 
 " It were best to dismount," Oswald cried, and he swung 
 himself from the saddle just as one of the enemy hamstrung 
 his horse. Roger and the squire did the same, and joined 
 the ranks of the footmen. 
 
 "Keep together ! " Oswald shouted to those within hearing; 
 "we can cut ourselves a passage through in that way, while 
 separately we shall perish." 
 
 Ten or twelve men followed his orders, and gathering in a 
 ring, for a time beat off every attack. Looking round, Oswald 
 saw that scarce a man remained mounted. The shouts of the 
 English and the wild war-cries of the Welsh rang through the 
 air. In a dozen places fierce contests were raging — swords 
 and axes rose and fell on helmet and steel cap. In obedience 
 to the shouts of Sir Eustace, who, with three or four men-at- 
 arms around him, was still mounted, the English bands tried 
 to join each other, and in several cases succeeded. Oswald 
 had been near the rear of the convoy when the fight began, and 
 the party with whom he fought were separated by some dis- 
 tance from the others, and the prospect became more and more 
 hopeless. His squire had fallen, and fully half the men who 
 had joined him, and although the loss of the Welsh had been 
 many times as great, the number of their assailants had in no 
 way diminished. He and Roger strove in vain to cut a way 
 through, and their height and strength enabled them to main- 
 tain a forward movement, their opponents shrinking from the 
 terrible blows of Roger's mace and the no less destructive fall 
 of Oswald's sword ; but the men-at-arms behind them fared 
 worse, having to retreat with their face to the foe, and more 
 than one, falling over the bodies of those slain by their leaders, 
 were stabbed before they could rise. Several times the two 
 men turned and covered the rear, but at last they stood alone. 
 
GLENDOWER 311 
 
 . " Now, make one effort to break through, Roger ; " and they 
 flung themselves with such fury upon the Welsh that for some 
 twenty yards they cut their way through them. Then Roger 
 exclaimed, "I am done for, master," and fell. Oswald stood 
 over him and for a time kept a clear circle ; then he received a 
 tremendous blow on the back of his helmet with a heavy club 
 and fell prostrate over Roger. When he recovered his senses 
 the din of battle had moved far away. The other groups had 
 gathered together, and moving down had joined those who 
 still resisted on the other side of the road, and keeping in a 
 close body were fighting their way steadily along. A number 
 of the Welsh were going over the battle-field stabbing all whom 
 they found to be still living. The sick men in the waggons 
 had already been murdered. 
 
 A Welshman, whose appearance denoted a higher rank than 
 the others, approached Oswald as soon as he sat up, and called 
 to four or five of his countrymen. Oswald with difficulty rose 
 to his feet. He still wore round his wrist the chain that Glen- 
 dower's daughter had given him, and he now pulled this off and 
 held it up, loudly calling out the name of Glendower several 
 times. The Welsh leader waved his followers back. Oswald 
 was unarmed and evidently incapable of defending himself. 
 He came up to him. Oswald held out the chain : "Glendower, 
 Glendower," he repeated. The man took the chain and ex- 
 amined it carefully. Some Welsh words were engraved upon 
 the clasp. Oswald was unaware what they were, but the words 
 were, "Jane Glendower, from her father." The Welshman 
 looked much surprised, and presently called to another some 
 distance away. The man came up, and he spoke to him in 
 Welsh. 
 
 "How did you obtain this?" the man asked Oswald in 
 English. 
 
 '■ It was given in token of service rendered by me and my 
 
312 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 squire here to Glendower's daughter. She told me that it* 
 would be of service if at any time I were taken prisoner by 
 her father's followers." 
 
 This was translated to the Welshman, who said : " These 
 men must be taken to Glendower. The story may be true or 
 not ; the chain may have been stolen. At any rate, the prince 
 must decide as to their fate." He now bade the men round 
 him take off Oswald's armour. As soon as this was done the 
 latter knelt down by Roger's side, and removed his helmet. An 
 arrow shot from behind had struck Roger just above the back- 
 piece — which, being short for him, did not reach to his helmet 
 — and had gone through the fleshy part of his neck, while at 
 the same moment a blow with an axe had cleft the helmet in 
 sunder and inflicted a deep gash on the back of the head. At 
 a word from their leader the men at once aided Oswald, who 
 drew out the arrow. The wound bled but slightly, and one of 
 the Welshmen, tearing off a portion of his garment, bandaged 
 it up. Water was fetched from the stream below, and a pad 
 of wet cloth laid on the wound at the back of the head, and 
 kept in its place by bandages ; as this was done Roger gave a 
 faint groan, and a minute after opened his eyes. 
 
 " Do not try to move, Roger," Oswald said ; " you are 
 wounded, but not, I trust, to death. We are prisoners in the 
 hands of the Welsh, but that chain Glendower's daughter gave 
 me has saved our lives." 
 
 A rough litter was constructed of boughs ; on this Roger, 
 after his armour had been taken off, was laid. At their 
 leader's orders six Welshmen took it up, while two placed 
 themselves one on each side of Oswald. Then the leader 
 took the head of the party and moved away into the forest. 
 Oswald's head still swam from the effects of the blow, but as 
 they went on the feeling gradually ceased, and he was able to 
 keep up with his captors. Their course was ever uphill, and 
 
GLENDOWER 313 
 
 after an hour's walking they arrived at a farmhouse situated 
 just at the upper edge of the forest. The litter was laid down 
 outside the house. The Welshman went in, saying something to 
 his men, who at once sat down on the ground, for the journey, 
 with Roger's weight, had been a toilsome one. He made signs 
 for Oswald to seat himself by the side of Roger. The latter 
 was now perfectly sensible. 
 
 " What has happened, master? " he asked. 
 
 " We have been badly beaten, Roger ; but when I last saw 
 them our men had got together and were fighting their way 
 along the road. I fancy more than half have been killed, but, 
 as far as I could see of the field, I should say that three or four 
 times as many Welsh had fallen." 
 
 " That was a lucky thought of yours, Sir Oswald, about that 
 chain." 
 
 " I had always an idea that it might be found useful, and it 
 at once occurred to me as soon as I recovered my senses." 
 
 "Are you wounded too? " Roger asked anxiously. 
 
 " No ; I was beaten down by a heavy club, and my head still 
 rings from the blow, otherwise I am uninjured." 
 
 " What has happened to me, master? " 
 
 " You had an arrow through your neck, Roger, but fortu- 
 nately it was on one side ; an inch to the right and it would 
 have struck your spine, or perhaps gone through your wind- 
 pipe. As it is, it does not seem to have done much harm. 
 Very little blood flowed when I pulled the arrow out. You 
 have got a bad gash on the back of the head, but your head- 
 piece broke the force of the blow ; it has laid your skull bare, 
 but has not, so far as I can see, penetrated it." 
 
 "Then we need think no more about it," Roger said. 
 " Well, that was a fight ! the one we had at Knighton was as 
 nothing to it." 
 
 " Yes, I think that even you could not want a harder one, 
 Roger." 
 
314 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " No ; this was quite enough for one day's work. I should 
 like a drink of water if I could get one." 
 
 Oswald made signs to one of the men, who went into the 
 house and returned with a large jug of water, of which Roger 
 took a deep draught, and Oswald then finished the contents, 
 for he too was parched with thirst. Half an hour later, a tall 
 man in full armour, followed by a number of Welsh chiefs, 
 issued from the forest. He was some five-and-forty years old 
 and of noble presence. The leader of the party who had 
 brought Oswald up advanced to meet him, and saluting him 
 most respectfully, spoke to him for a moment, and then pro- 
 duced the chain. Glendower, for it was the prince, examined 
 it, and then at once walked up to Oswald, who had risen to 
 his feet. 
 
 "How became you possessed of this, Sir Knight?" 
 
 " It was given me by one of your daughters, sir. I and my 
 squire here were on guard round your house on the night after 
 the Earl of Talbot took it. We were at some distance from the 
 other guards when two figures rose from the bushes near us. 
 We pursued them, and coming up to them found they were 
 two ladies, and they at once avowed that they were your 
 daughters. My instructions were to watch and see that no 
 Welshmen approached the house ; and nought had been said 
 to me of arresting any leaving it, seeing that it was not sup- 
 posed that any were there. I war not with women. Being 
 myself from Northumbria, I have no enmity with your people, 
 therefore I let them proceed on their way, — a breach of duty 
 for which, doubtless, I should have suffered had it been known. 
 Happily none but my follower here, who was then but a man- 
 at-arms and I a squire, knew of it, and to this moment I have 
 spoken of it to no one. As they left us, one of the ladies gave 
 me this chain, saying that some day it might be of use to me 
 should I ever fall into the hands of their people. I have 
 
GLENDOWER 315 
 
 carried it on my wrist ever since ; and when your follower 
 came up, and I saw the necessity had arisen, I showed it to 
 him." 
 
 " I have heard the story from my daughters," Glendower 
 said warmly, holding out his hand. "They told me how 
 courteously you had treated them, and that you had refused 
 to accept the jewels they offered you. They said that you 
 had also declined to tell them your name, as it might do you 
 injury should it become known ; and I have often regretted 
 that I did not know the name of the gentleman who had 
 behaved so nobly to them, and had saved them from an Eng- 
 lish prison. Had they been captured, it would have been a 
 sore blow to me, not only in my affections but to my cause ; 
 for had he held them in his power, Henry could have put a 
 heavy pressure upon me. May I ask now what is your name, 
 Sir Knight ? " 
 
 "Sir Oswald Forster. I was at that time a squire of Sir 
 Henry Percy's." 
 
 " Of Hotspur ! " Glendower said in surprise. " I did not 
 know that we had levies from the north fighting against us." 
 
 " You have not, sir. I had simply been sent with twenty 
 men-at-arms by Sir Henry to Sir Edmund Mortimer — who is, 
 as you are doubtless aware, of kin to Sir Henry, who had married 
 his sister — and was sent by Sir Edmund to join the Earl of 
 Talbot and Lord Grey when they made that foray upon your 
 house. After that I returned to the north, but was some 
 months since again sent to Ludlow to keep Sir Henry informed 
 of the doings on this border." 
 
 " But I had heard that Mortimer had sent no troops to 
 Henry's army." 
 
 " That is so, sir. I am here by an accident. A despatch 
 came from London to Ludlow for the king, and as there was 
 no other way of forwarding it, I volunteered to carry it here, 
 
316 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 and succeeded in doing so ; for which service the king 
 conferred knighthood upon me, upon my arrival ten days 
 since." 
 
 " Ah, then, it was you that I heard of ! I was told that 
 two great men had been seen in the woods some distance 
 south of the camp, and that they had succeeded in making 
 their escape after slaying five of my followers, and that, though 
 none knew for certain, it was supposed they had reached 
 Henry's camp." 
 
 " You are right, sir ; the two men were my companion here 
 and myself." 
 
 " It was a notable feat. I think not that any other messen- 
 ger has got through my scouts since the king left Welshpool. 
 You must be swift of foot as well as brave and courteous, for I 
 heard that you had outrun the greatest part of those who 
 followed you." 
 
 "We in the north have to be swift of foot," Oswald said 
 with a smile, " for the Scots keep us in practice, either in 
 escaping them when they come in too great a force to be 
 resisted, or in following them when it is our turn to pursue. 
 I trust, sir, that you will put myself and my squire to ransom, 
 and will take my word for the payment, for until I go north I 
 have no means of satisfying it." 
 
 "That will I not," Glendower said. "Or rather I will take 
 a ransom, since, were I to release you without one, it might 
 cause surprise and inquiry ; and it were well that your noble 
 conduct to my daughters should not be known, for Henry 
 would not be likely to regard it favourably. Therefore we 
 will put you to ransom at the sum of a crown for yourself, 
 and a penny for your squire." 
 
 " I thank you indeed, sir, and shall ever feel beholden to 
 you ; and I will, moreover, give you my knightly word that 
 whatever service I may have to perform, I will never again 
 
GLENDOWER 317 
 
 war with the Welsh. May I ask if any of our party succeeded 
 in reaching Llanidloes?" 
 
 " Yes, some sixty or seventy of them got in. They fought 
 very well ; and indeed in close combat my Welshmen cannot 
 at present hold their own against your armour-clad men. 
 Still, though it would have pleased me better had we annihi- 
 lated the force, our success has been sufficient to give Henry 
 another lesson that though he may march through Wales, he 
 holds only the ground on which he has encamped. Now, Sir 
 Oswald, I pray you to enter my abode. 'Tis a poor place in- 
 deed, after my house in the Vale of the Bards, but it suffices 
 for my needs." 
 
 Before entering he gave orders that Roger should be carried 
 to an upper room, and despatched a messenger to order his 
 own leech, as soon as he had done with the wounded, to come 
 up and attend to him. Then he led the way into a room, 
 where a meal was prepared. In a few words in Welsh he 
 explained to his chiefs, who had been much surprised at the 
 manner in which he had received Oswald, that the young 
 knight had at one time rendered a great service* to his daugh- 
 ters, Jane and Margaret, but without mentioning its precise 
 nature. His experience had taught him that even those 
 most attached to his cause might yet turn against him, and 
 were they to relate the story, it might do serious injury to 
 Oswald. 
 
 " You must, on your way back," he said presently to the 
 young knight, " call and see my daughters, who are at present 
 staying with their sister, who is married to Adda ap Iorwerth 
 Ddu. They would be aggrieved indeed if they heard that you 
 had been here, and that I had not given them the opportunity 
 of thanking yon in person." 
 
 Oswald remained fir a fortnight with Glendower while 
 Roger's wound was healing. At the end of that time he 
 
318 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 learned that Henry, having marched into Cardigan and rav- 
 aged the country there, was already retiring, his army having 
 suffered terribly from the effects of the weather, the impossi- 
 bility of obtaining supplies, and the constant and harassing 
 attacks by the Welsh. Glendower was often absent, but when 
 at the house he conversed freely with Oswald, who was no 
 longer surprised at the influence that he had obtained over his 
 countrymen. His manners were courteous in the extreme, 
 and his authority over his followers absolute. They not only 
 reverenced him as their prince, the representative of their 
 ancient kings, and their leader in war, but as one endowed 
 with supernatural power. 
 
 The bards had fanned this feeling to the utmost by their 
 songs of marvels and portents at his birth, and by attributing 
 to him a control even over the elements. This belief was not 
 only of great importance to him, as binding his adherents 
 closer to him, but it undoubtedly contributed to his success 
 from the fact of its being fully shared in by the English 
 soldiery, who assigned it as the cause of the exceptionally bad 
 weather that had been experienced in each of the three ex- 
 peditions into the country, and of the failure to accomplish 
 anything of importance against him. This side of the charac- 
 ter of Glendower puzzled Oswald. Several times, when talking 
 to him, he distinctly claimed supernatural powers, and from 
 the tone in which he spoke, and the strange expression his 
 face at this time assumed, Oswald was convinced that he 
 sincerely believed that he did possess these powers. 
 
 Whether he originally did so, or whether it had arisen from 
 the adulation of the bards, the general belief in it, and the 
 successes he had gained, Oswald could not determine. Later, 
 when Glendower sullied his fair fame by the most atrocious 
 massacres, similar to that which had already taken place at the 
 storming of New Radnor, atrocities that seemed not only 
 
GLENDOWER 319 
 
 purposeless, but at utter variance with the courtesy and gen- 
 tleness of his bearing, Oswald came to believe that his brain 
 had to some extent become unhinged by excitement, flattery, 
 and superstition. 
 
 At the end of the fortnight Roger's wound, although not 
 completely healed, was in such a state that it permitted his 
 sitting on horseback, and Oswald became anxious to be off. 
 Glendower, who was about to set out to harass the rear of the 
 army as it retired from Cardiganshire, at once offered to send 
 a strong escort with him, as it would have been dangerous in 
 the extreme to have attempted to traverse the country without 
 such a protection. Two excellent horses, that had been cap- 
 tured in the engagement with the English, were handed over 
 to him for his own use and that of Roger. 
 
 Oswald's own armour was returned to him, and he was 
 pleased to find that it had been carefully attended to, and 
 was as brightly burnished as when it came into his possession. 
 When Glendower bid them adieu, he presented each of them 
 with rings similar to those he himself wore. 
 
 " You have promised that you will not fight against me 
 again ; but it may be that on some errand or other you may 
 ride into Wales, or that you may be staying, as you did before, 
 at some castle or town near the border when we attack it. You 
 have but to show these rings to any Welshman you may 
 come across, and you may be sure of being well treated as 
 one of my friends. I trust that when we meet again the war 
 will be over, and that my title to the kingdom of Wales may 
 be recognised by your king and people as it is on this side 
 of the border." 
 
 " Well, Sir Oswald," Roger said as they rode away, accom- 
 panied by twenty of Glendower's followers under the orders of 
 an officer, " we have got out of that scrape better than could 
 have been expected. When you and I were alone in the 
 
320 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 midst of that crowd of Welshmen, I thought that it was all 
 over with us." 
 
 " So did I, Roger. You see that matter of our getting Glen- 
 dower's daughters away uninjured has borne good fruit." 
 
 " It has indeed," Roger agreed. " I thought it much more 
 likely, too, that it would have gone the other way." 
 
 " Be sure you keep a silent tongue as to that, Roger, and 
 remember that our story is, that I have been put at knightly 
 ransom, and on the condition that I will never serve in Wales 
 again. When we once get across the border we will ride 
 straight for Northumberland, without going near Ludlow. I 
 observed that the king much doubted the Mortimers, and 
 were we to return there, and the news came to his ears, he 
 might take it as a proof that there was an understanding 
 between Glendower and Mortimer, and that it was to this that 
 leniency, such as had been shown to no other prisoners, was 
 due ; whereas if we go straight to Percy, 't is not likely that 
 the matter will ever come to his hearing, and at any rate, 
 if it did so, he would scarce connect Mortimer with our 
 escape." 
 
 " I understand, Sir Oswald, and will, you may be sure, keep 
 silent as to aught beyond what you have bade me say." 
 
 Two days' journey brought them to the house of Glen- 
 dower's married daughter. On the officer stating that the 
 knight with him had been sent under his escort by Glendower 
 himself, she requested that he should be shown in. Her 
 husband was away. 
 
 "What is the knight's name?" she asked. 
 
 " Sir Oswald Forster, Lady." 
 
 " I have never, so far as I know, heard it before. Me- 
 thought that he might be one whom I may have met in the 
 houses of my two sisters married to Englishmen in Hereford, 
 but I have no memory of the name. Show him in, sir." 
 
GLENDOWER 321 
 
 Roger had removed Oswald's helmet while the officer was 
 away. 
 
 " Come with me, Roger," he said, " since we were both 
 concerned in this affair." 
 
 He bowed deeply to the Lady Isabel, who, as she returned 
 his salute, saw with surprise that his face was quite strange 
 to her. 
 
 " It seems, Sir Oswald," she said, " from the tenor of the 
 message given me by the officer, that you have come to me 
 as a visitor, and that 't is as an escort only that he has been 
 sent with you? " 
 
 " That is so, Lady, but 't is as a visitor rather to your 
 sisters, the Ladies Jane and Margaret, that I am here ; I had 
 once the pleasure of meeting them." 
 
 Glendower's daughter at once told a maid, who was work- 
 ing with her when the officer had entered, to request her 
 sisters to come to her; and these entered the room a minute 
 later. 
 
 Isabel, seeing that they did not appear to recognise the 
 young knight, said, " Our father has sent this gentleman, Sir 
 Oswald Forster, whom you know, to visit you." 
 
 The two girls looked with surprise at Oswald. 
 
 "Do you not know this gentleman?" their sister asked in 
 equal surprise. 
 
 " He is not known to us," Jane replied. " I have never 
 seen him before — at least, that I can remember." 
 
 " We have met before, nevertheless, Lady," Oswald said 
 with a smile, " though it may well be that you do not remem- 
 ber my face, or that of my squire there, seeing that we were 
 together but a few minutes and that in the moonlight." 
 
 The girls looked up at him puzzled, and then their eyes fell 
 upon Roger. 
 
 " Now I know ! " Margaret exclaimed. " Look at the 
 
322 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 squire's height. Surely, Jane, these are the two soldiers 
 who allowed us to pass them that night when we fled from 
 Sycharth." 
 
 " That is so," Oswald said ; " I thought that you were more 
 likely to recognise my squire than myself, seeing that I have 
 grown several inches since then, and have but lately assumed 
 this knightly armour in which you see me." 
 
 " Oh, sir," Jane said, going swiftly up to him and holding 
 out her hand, which he raised to his lips, as he did that of 
 Margaret as she followed her sister, " we have thought of you 
 so often, and have prayed that you should both be rewarded 
 for your kindness to us ! How glad I am to see you again, and 
 have an opportunity of thanking you ! You have heard, Isabel, 
 of our adventure, and how we escaped by the kindness of two 
 Englishmen on guard near the edge of the forest from being 
 carried as prisoners to London, where but for them we should 
 now be lodged in some dungeon of the usurper ; but till now I 
 have never known the name of our preserver. 
 
 "Thanks also to you, good squire," she said, turning to 
 Roger. 
 
 " I but carried out the orders of my master," Roger said, 
 colouring like a boy, as she held out her hand to him ; " there 
 is no credit due to me." 
 
 " But how came you here?" Lady Isabel asked Oswald. 
 
 " Your sisters have, although they know it not, more than 
 repaid their obligations to me ; for while they may perhaps 
 owe their liberty to me, I owe my life to them. See, ladies," 
 and he turned to Jane, " there is the chain you gave me. I 
 have worn it always on my wrist. I and my squire were 
 beaten down by your father's followers, my squire grievously 
 wounded and insensible, while I had been left for dead, though 
 but stunned from a blow. I luckily recovered my senses just 
 as those employed in despatching the wounded came up ; and 
 
"HOW GLAD I \\I I" HAVE AN OPPORT1 Ml \ Of ["HANKING YOU. 
 
GLENDOWER 323 
 
 happily remembering your bracelet, I took it off and held it 
 up, calling out your father's name. Struck, I suppose, by the 
 action and words, an officer examined the bracelet closely, and 
 making out the inscription on the clasp, had my squire and 
 myself taken to the house where your father lodged, so that 
 the manner of my being possessed of the trinket might be ex- 
 plained. On your father's return he recognised it ; and having 
 heard from you the circumstances of our meeting, treated us 
 with the greatest kindness and hospitality, and freed us with- 
 out ransom, save a nominal one in order that on my return I 
 could say that I had been put to ransom. On the recovery of 
 my squire from his wounds he restored our armour to us, pre- 
 sented us with horses, and sent us here under escort, deeming 
 that you might be glad to see us." 
 
 " There he was indeed right," Jane said. " We have oft 
 regretted that you would not accept a more valuable jewel 
 than that little chain, which was given to me by my father 
 when I was but a child. But 't is well indeed that you so 
 withstood us, for had it been any other of our jewels but this 
 it would not have been recognised." 
 
 "That is so, Lady, and since my capture I often thought 
 that it was strange it so happened." 
 
 After staying a day there Oswald continued his journey, to 
 the regret of the ladies, who were glad to hear that he would 
 never again fight against the Welsh. His escort accompanied 
 him as near the border as it was safe for them to go. The 
 next day they rode into Chester, and then by easy stages up 
 to Alnwick. 
 
 Oswald went to Hotspur's apartments as soon as he entered 
 the castle. " I congratulate you heartily," Hotspur said as he 
 entered. " I see that you have won your spurs. I said to myself 
 when I received your letter, saying that you were starting to 
 carry a letter to the king, that your enterprise would bring you 
 
324 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 either death or a pair of gold spurs. I am glad indeed to see 
 that it was the latter. I hear that the king's army is falling 
 back. A messenger brought me news from my kinsman. He 
 said that it was but a rumour that had reached him, but that 
 it seemed likely enough, for it was said that they had suffered 
 terribly, both from the weather and the attacks of the Welsh." 
 " That rumour is true, Sir Henry, and also that the army is 
 retiring." 
 
 "And they have done no more than they did before?" 
 " No more indeed, Sir Henry. They have burnt many 
 villages, and slain many Welshmen, but they have done noth- 
 ing whatever towards subduing Glendower." 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 
 
 " T)UT how have you made your way back ahead of the 
 
 Lj army?" Hotspur asked, after Oswald had given him 
 full information as to the military operations. 
 
 "Roger and I were left for dead in that fight I have told 
 you of near Llanidloes, and we fell into the hands of the 
 Welsh and were taken before Glendower, who treated us well 
 and put me to ransom, with the engagement that I was not 
 again to bear arms in Wales." 
 
 "That was a strange leniency on his part," Hotspur ex- 
 claimed, " for I hear he puts to the sword all who fall into his 
 hands, without any regard for the rules of civilised war." 
 
 "He is a strange man, Sir Henry, and subject, I fancy, to 
 changeable moods. Wnen I was brought before him he was 
 in a happy one over the success he had gained, and it may be 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 325 
 
 that he took a liking for me. At any rate, he fixed my ransom 
 at a very small sum." 
 
 "Which I will, of course, pay," Hotspur said, "since you 
 were my squire and were at Ludlow on my service." 
 
 " I thank you much, Sir Henry, but 't is so small a sum that 
 I myself discharged it without difficulty." 
 
 " 'T is strange, most strange, that you should have gone into 
 the lion's den and have come out unscathed. Strange indeed 
 that Glendower, who, as we know, is greatly in want of money, 
 should have fixed your ransom at a low sum. How much was 
 it, Sir Oswald ? " 
 
 " I will tell you the story, Sir Henry, though I would tell 
 no one else, for my freedom is due to something that happened 
 nigh two years ago, when I was first with Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer. I failed in what was my strict duty, although I 
 disobeyed no orders that I had received, and my conscience 
 altogether acquits me of wrong." 
 
 " You may be sure, Sir Oswald, that the matter will go no 
 further, and knowing you as I do I feel sure that whatever the 
 matter was it was not to your discredit." 
 
 " So I trust, myself, my lord, but it might have cost me my 
 head had the king come to know it. I will first tell you that my 
 ransom was fixed at a crown, and that of Roger at a penny." 
 
 Hotspur, who had been looking a little grave, laughed. 
 " Surely never before was so much bone and sinew appraised 
 at so small a sum." 
 
 " It was so put, simply that I might with truth avow that I 
 was put to ransom. However, I paid the crown and the penny, 
 and have so discharged my obligations. This was how the 
 matter came about ; " and he related the whole circumstances 
 to Sir Henry, and the manner in which the little chain given 
 to him by Glendower's daughter had been the means of saving 
 his life. 
 
326 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 " I blame you in no way, Sir Oswald," Hotspur said cordially 
 when he had heard the story, " though I say not that the king 
 would have viewed the matter in the same light. Still, you 
 held to the letter of your orders. You were placed there to 
 give warning of the approach of any hostile body, and nought 
 was said to you as to letting any man, still less any women, 
 depart from the place. But indeed how could I blame you, 
 since heaven itself has assoiled you ; for assuredly it was not 
 chance that placed on your arm the little trinket that alone 
 could have saved your life from the Welsh. Now to yourself, 
 Sir Oswald ; you will, I hope, continue my knight as you have 
 been my squire." 
 
 " Assuredly, Sir Henry, I have never thought of anything 
 else." 
 
 " Very well, then, I will as soon as may be appoint to you 
 a double knight's feu. I say a double feu, because I should 
 like to have you as one of the castle knights, and so have much 
 larger service from you than that which a knight can be called 
 upon to render for an ordinary feu. I will bid Father Ernulf 
 look through the rolls and see what feus are vacant. One of 
 these I will make an hereditary feu to pass down from you 
 to your heirs irrevocably ; the other will be a service feu, 
 to support the expenses caused by your extra services, and 
 revocable under the usual conditions." 
 
 A week later there was a formal ceremonial at the castle, 
 and in the presence of the earl, Hotspur, and the knights and 
 gentlemen of their service, Oswald took the oath of allegiance 
 to Sir Henry Percy, and afterwards, as required by law, to 
 the king, and received from Hotspur deeds appointing him to 
 two knight's feus, including the villages of Stoubes and 
 Rochester in Reddesdale. There were at the time six knight's 
 feus vacant, and as Percy had left it to him to choose which he 
 liked, he had selected these, as they lay but a twelve miles' ride 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 327 
 
 over the hills from his father's place in Coquetdale. The 
 oath of allegiance to the king as well as to the feudal lord 
 was enacted by Henry II. with the intention of curbing to 
 some extent the power of the great vassals ; but although taken 
 by all knights on being presented with a feu, it was deemed of 
 no effect in the case of the immediate lord being at war with 
 the king, and whenever troubles arose the lord's vassals always 
 sided with him, it being universally understood that the oath 
 to him from whom they had received their land was para- 
 mount over that to the king. 
 
 There having been several formalities to be observed and 
 matters to be discussed, Oswald was unable to ride home until 
 after this ceremony had taken place, but upon the following 
 morning he and Roger started early and arrived that evening 
 at Yardhope. His welcome was a warm one, and the satisfac- 
 tion of his father and the delight of his mother at seeing him 
 in knightly armour was great indeed, and it increased when he 
 told them that he had received knighthood at the hands of the 
 king himself, and that Hotspur had granted him the feus of 
 Stoubes and Rochester. 
 
 " Then we shall have you within a ride of us," his mother 
 exclaimed. " That will be pleasant indeed." 
 
 " The feus have always gone together," John Forster said, 
 " and Stoubes castle, although small, is a strong one. How 
 many tenants will you have ? " 
 
 " Twenty-three. That at least was the number of names set 
 down in the parchments." 
 
 " That is not bad as a beginning. Of course you will keep 
 some ten or twelve retainers in the castle, and with such men 
 as will come in from the villages at the approach of danger you 
 will be able to muster fifty or sixty in all for the defence." 
 
 " I shall live chiefly at Alnwick, father. Rochester is given 
 to me as an hcredi::-- r "» but I shall hold Stoubes for extra 
 
328 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 service at the castle ; and I have little doubt that Percy will, if 
 I do him good service, make it also hereditary. He as much 
 as said so." 
 
 " It will make a good portion, lad. Yardhope is a knight's 
 feu, though I have never taken up the knighthood, and the 
 Percys know that I should fight just as stoutly as John 
 Forster as if I wore knightly armour; but though the lands 
 are wide they are poor, while yours are fertile, lying down by 
 the river. Moreover, Coquetdale is more liable to Scotch in- 
 cursions than Reddesdale, as the road into Scotland runs along 
 it. If needs be we can lend a hand to each other, though both 
 together we could not hold either your place or mine against 
 a strong invasion. Now, tell us how it was that you won your 
 spurs, and how it was that the king himself knighted you." 
 
 " After I have eaten and drank I will do so, father, for 
 indeed Roger and I are well-nigh famishing." 
 
 After the meal he related the whole story of his adventures. 
 
 "Well, lad, you were in luck," his father said when he had 
 finished. "The help you gave those maidens might have 
 brought your head to the block ; but it turned out well and was 
 the saving of your life, so I will say nought against the deed, 
 especially as you owed no allegiance either to Mortimer or 
 to Talbot, and were, save for the orders that Hotspur had 
 given you, your own master." 
 
 Two days later, having sent over on the morning after his 
 arrival a message to the tenants to present themselves at 
 Stoubes to take their oaths to him, Oswald, accompanied by 
 his father, rode into Reddesdale. He found the castle a much 
 stronger place than Yardhope, which was but a fortified house, 
 while this was a moated building with strong walls and flanking 
 towers, and a keep that could be held successfully even if the 
 walls were captured by a sudden assault. At twelve o'clock 
 the tenants assembled. Oswald read to them the two parch- 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 329 
 
 ments, and they then took the oaths to him. They were well 
 satisfied to have a young knight as their lord, for the feus had 
 been held by a minor, who had died two years before, and had 
 not been at the castle since he was taken away as a child to be 
 brought up at the town of Alnwick, where he had remained 
 under the eye of the Percys. It had long been understood, 
 however, that the feu would not be granted to him, for he was 
 weakly from his birth and wholly unfitted for the charge of a 
 castle so near the Scottish border. According to feudal usage 
 each tenant expected that he would be called upon to pay a 
 heavy sum under the name of a relief, as was customary in 
 the case of a new lord taking possession, and they were greatly 
 relieved when Oswald told them that, as he already possessed 
 armour and horses, he would quit them for a fourth part of the 
 usual amount, although he should of course require their ser- 
 vices to enable him to repair such dilapidations as the castle 
 had suffered during the long term that it had stood empty. 
 
 For the next three months he stayed in Stoubes. Roger 
 had been sent off at once with two men-at-arms to bring the 
 horses and armour that had been left at Welshpool, bearing a 
 letter to the governor from Oswald thanking him much for 
 having taken care of them, and saying briefly that he had 
 been left on the field for dead after the fight near Llanidloes, 
 but had recovered and been well treated by Glendower, who 
 had put him to ransom. He took money with him to pay the 
 expenses for the keep of the horses, and returned with them 
 and the armour after an absence of three weeks. Passing 
 through Worcester on his way back, he had at Oswald's order 
 purchased for himself clothes suitable for his position as an 
 esquire. As for armour, it had been arranged that he should 
 have it made for him at Alnwick, as it would be difficult to 
 obtain a suit sufficiently large for him. 
 
 At the end of the three months the necessary repairs to the 
 
330 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 castle were finished, the gates had been greatly strengthened 
 with thick bands of iron, the moat cleared out, and at various 
 points the defences had been strengthened. The small amount 
 of furniture then deemed necessary still remained there, and 
 where needful had been repaired and put in good order. 
 Eight men-at-arms had been taken by Oswald into his ser- 
 vice, and a trusty man appointed as seneschal. Then, after 
 paying another visit to Yardhope, Oswald rode with Roger 
 and two well-mounted men-at-arms to Alnwick. 
 
 It was now April, and bad news had just arrived. Glen- 
 dower had commenced the campaign with great vigour, as the 
 appearance of a comet had been interpreted by the bards as 
 an omen most favourable to him, and his force had greatly 
 increased during the winter. He had destroyed the houses 
 and strong places of all Welshmen who had not taken up arms 
 at his orders, and had closely blockaded Carnarvon. He 
 marched to Bangor, levelled the cathedral and that of St. 
 Asaph by fire, burnt the episcopal palaces and canons' houses. 
 So formidable did he become that the king issued writs to the 
 lieutenants of no fewer than thirty-four counties to assemble 
 their forces at Lichfield to crush Glendower. The latter had 
 now taken the offensive and advanced towards Hereford, and 
 carried fire and sword through Mortimer's lands. Sir Edmund 
 gathered his own and his nephew's tenants and retainers from 
 Herefordshire and Radnorshire and advanced against Glen- 
 dower. The armies met on the 22nd of June, 1402, at a 
 short distance from Knighton. The battle was obstinately 
 fought, but was decided by the desertion of the Welsh tenants, 
 and by the Welsh bowmen in Mortimer's service turning their 
 bows against his men-at-arms, and finally the English were 
 defeated with the loss of eleven hundred men, Sir Edmund 
 himself being made a prisoner. 
 
 After the battle the Welsh behaved with the greatest sav- 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 331 
 
 agery, killing all the wounded, stripping the fallen, and horribly 
 mutilating their bodies. The news created great excitement 
 at Alnwick, and had not the situation in the north been criti- 
 cal Percy would have gathered his forces and marched with 
 all speed to avenge the defeat and capture of his brother-in- 
 law. The Earl of Dunbar, with many of the tenants of his 
 former estates, and numbers of the English borderers, had en- 
 tered Scotland and carried out considerable raids. In revenge 
 for this Douglas despatched Thomas Halliburton and Patrick 
 Hepburn, each with a considerable force, to invade Northum- 
 berland. Halliburton ravaged the country as far as Bam- 
 borough, collected great spoils and returned with them. 
 Hepburn, who had a still larger force, penetrated farther into 
 England, carried his ravages to within a few miles of Alnwick, 
 and then retired north with an enormous amount of booty. 
 
 When, however, he had crossed the border into the country 
 known as the Merse, north of Berwick, the Earl of Dunbar fell 
 upon him at West Nesbit, and completely defeated him. Hep- 
 burn himself with a large number of his men fell in the battle, 
 and many important prisoners were captured. This battle was 
 fought on the same day that Glendower defeated Mortimer. 
 The victory caused great exultation on the border ; but Alwyn 
 said to his nephew : 
 
 " Although this is good as far as it goes, Oswald, you may 
 be sure that Douglas will not brook this disaster with patience, 
 but will gather the Scottish forces, and we may expect him ere 
 long at the head of twenty thousand men, and we shall have a 
 fight as stiff as that of Otterburn. We shall have Northumber- 
 land ablaze, and you will see that the earl and Hotspur will 
 soon be preparing to meet the storm. These last forays took 
 them by surprise, and as lords of the marches they have suf- 
 fered serious humiliation, for this victory was not theirs, but 
 the work of I )unbar, and had he not intercepted the Scots on 
 
332 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 their own side of the border they would have returned scath- 
 less with the spoils of our northern districts. This disgrace 
 will spur them on to make great efforts, and these will be 
 needed or we shall see Northumberland, Cumberland, and 
 Durham in flames." 
 
 Alwyn was not mistaken. Messengers were sent off to all 
 those holding knights' feus throughout the county, bidding 
 them to prepare to answer to the Percys' call, and to hold 
 themselves and their tenants in readiness to march to any 
 point fixed upon for a general rendezvous. They were to warn 
 all the countryside that directly news arrived that the Scots 
 were in motion they were to drive their cattle and horses to 
 the nearest fortified town, or to take them to hiding-places 
 among the hills. Everything of value was to be taken away 
 or hidden, so that the enemy should find but empty houses. 
 Oswald rode to Yardhope with the message to his father. 
 
 " I know, father," he said, " that it needed not to warn 
 you, but as it was but a short distance out of my way to come 
 round here I thought that I would pay you a day's visit." 
 
 " No, lad ; directly I heard of the victory of Dunbar I said 
 to myself, this will bring the Scots upon us in force. Douglas 
 will never put up with the defeat, and will make every effort to 
 turn the tables. I shall send all there is worth taking away 
 to a shepherd's hut among the fells, and shall, as soon as I 
 hear that Douglas's preparations are well-nigh complete, jour- 
 ney with your mother to Alnwick, and leave her there. I 
 shall return, and with my men will drive the cattle and horses 
 to places where there is little chance of the Scots finding them, 
 and will then, after leaving three or four men to look after 
 them, come back to Alnwick. What do you propose to do? " 
 
 " I shall do much the same, father. Stoubes is strong 
 enough to hold out against any ordinary raid, but not against 
 an army led by Douglas. I shall remove the furnishing and 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 333 
 
 tapestry, and shall send the most valuable into Alnwick and 
 have the rest of them hidden in the woods. These are the 
 orders that have been sent all along the border. Any whose 
 places are so strong that they may well defend themselves for 
 some time are to gather all their neighbours there ; the rest 
 are to repair to Alnwick to join Percy's force. You see there 
 is no knowing where the storm may break ; the Scots may 
 cross the Cheviots anywhere between Berwick and Carlisle, 
 and until their movements are known the earl and Hotspur 
 must keep their forces at Alnwick in readiness to march where- 
 soever required. 
 
 " Hotspur has sent messengers down to the Midlands to 
 engage as many archers as he can get. Of course we have 
 many here, but the borderers are spearmen rather than archers, 
 and it were well to strengthen our force. Still, however large 
 a force he may raise, we cannot hope to check their first incur- 
 sion. The whole country is open to them, and if they enter 
 near Carlisle they may be in the heart of Cumberland or Dur- 
 ham before we are fairly in motion. We may count, however, 
 on meeting them as they retire, if not before." 
 
 Oswald then rode to his own place, bade all the tenants 
 prepare to ride with him to Alnwick at an hour's notice, and 
 either to send their women and children on there as soon as it 
 was known that the Scotch army was gathering strongly on the 
 border, or else to gather stores of provisions up in the hills, and 
 to send the women and children there the moment word came 
 that the Scots were on the move. The news of Mortimer's 
 defeat and capture had been received by the time Oswald re- 
 turned to Alnwick. 
 
 "Tis bad news indeed," Percy said to him, "and I know 
 that as you have been staying so long at Ludlow you will be 
 deeply grieved at the misfortune that has befallen Mortimer. 
 1 lowever, I doubt not that he will soon be ransomed. I know 
 
334 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 that the king appointed a commission of knights to treat at 
 once with Glendower for Lord Grey's ransom, and has given 
 orders for the raising of the great sum demanded. It is to be 
 gathered from a tax on church properties and in other ways, 
 and doubtless he will do the same for Mortimer, whose lands 
 have been so harried by the Welsh that it will be impossible 
 to raise any large sum from the tenants." 
 
 " I fear, Sir Henry," Oswald said, " that the king will be 
 lukewarm on the subject. During his three invasions he has 
 never once summoned Sir Edmund to join him, nor has he 
 passed through Ludlow, as he might well have done, seeing 
 that it is a central position and the nearest way for an army 
 marching towards Plinlimmon. I remarked, too, that when I 
 mentioned Mortimer's name in my discourse with him, the 
 king's brow clouded as if ill-pleased at the name." 
 
 "Then he acts wrongly," Hotspur said angrily. " Mortimei 
 has given no cause for offence. He has never in any way up- 
 held the cause of the young Earl of March, and knows well 
 enough that it would be madness to set up his claim to the 
 throne when Henry has given no cause for complaint, and that 
 the boy's existence seems to be well-nigh forgotten by the 
 country. However, as soon as this business is over, I will 
 myself to London, and will beg the king to exercise the same 
 benevolence in the case of Mortimer as he has shown on behalf 
 of Lord Grey. Why, he might as well suspect us, to whom 
 he largely owes his kingdom, as Mortimer, seeing that my wife 
 is aunt to the young earl." 
 
 Early in August it became known that preparations were 
 being made upon a great scale by Douglas for the invasion of 
 England, and that as Military Governor of Scotland he had 
 summoned all the great nobles to join with their forces, and it 
 was even said that numbers of P'rench knights were, on ac- 
 count of the long friendship between France and Scotland, 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 335 
 
 crossing the seas to fight under Douglas against their old 
 enemies. 
 
 " Methinks," Hotspur said to his knights, " there can be 
 little doubt that there is an agreement between Scotland and 
 Glendower, and this would account for the fury the Welshmen 
 have been showing, and the manner in which they have 
 destroyed the cathedrals, churches and castles alike, and so 
 forced Henry to march against them with the forces of the 
 greater part of England, just when Douglas is preparing to 
 assail us here. 
 
 "The forces of Westmoreland, Cumberland, Durham, and 
 Northumberland, if together, might hope to make a stout re- 
 sistance even against so large a force as Douglas is collecting, 
 but we cannot so gather. The Earl of Westmoreland, who 
 commands the forces of his own county and Cumberland, 
 must needs hold them together, lest the Scots pour down, 
 besiege Carlisle, and carry fire and sword through those 
 counties. From here up to Berwick the country has been so 
 plundered and devastated that it is almost a desert, and I can 
 draw no strength from there. As to Durham, they urge, and 
 with some truth, that as the Scots have before now laid portions 
 of their county waste, they cannot send their forces so far 
 north as this place, as it would leave them unprotected should 
 the enemy march through Tynedale into their county. 
 
 " The king has entered Wales with the fighting men of thirty- 
 four counties, so from him no aid can be expected, and it 
 seems to me that we shall be quite unable to make head against 
 the invasion, though assuredly when we have gathered our 
 forces, and are joined by those Dunbar will bring us, we will 
 meet them as they return spoil-laden to the border." 
 
 Well-mounted messengers had been placed on every road 
 by which the Scots could cross the border, and on the 18th of 
 August one came with the news that twelve hours before they 
 
336 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 had crossed into Cumberland at Kirksop Foot, that they were 
 reported to be ten thousand strong, and that a dozen villages 
 were already in flames. Another portion of their army had 
 crossed near Tynehead, and were pouring into Tynedale. 
 
 John Forster and his wife had arrived some days before ; 
 Oswald had found comfortable lodgings for his mother in the 
 town, which was already crowded with women and children 
 from the border. His father had left again at once, but re- 
 turned with twenty spears twelve hours after the messenger had 
 brought the news. 
 
 " I had two or three of my men out," he said to Oswald as 
 he rode in and dismounted in the castle yard, " but as soon as 
 I heard that the Scots had entered Tynedale I knew that it 
 was time to be off, for they are sure to send over strong parties 
 to ravage Coquetdale. The road was well-nigh blocked in some 
 places with fugitives. In spite of the warnings that have been 
 issued, most of the people seem to have thought that the Scots 
 could never come in their direction, and the news has caused 
 a panic. However, near the border the Scots will find but 
 little plunder. We have had so many invasions that no man 
 is foolish enough to spend money on aught that he cannot 
 easily carry away, and the raiders will there find but empty 
 houses. They may sweep in some of the cattle from the hills 
 to supply them with food on their march, but more than this 
 they will not take as they go south, as it would be but an 
 encumbrance." 
 
 In a few days a strong force was collected at Alnwick, but 
 though chafing at the news of the terrible devastations that 
 were being made by the Scots in Cumberland and Durham, 
 the earl and Hotspur could at present do nothing. The in- 
 vasion was indeed one of the most disastrous that had ever 
 taken place, and after having almost devastated the two coun- 
 ties, Douglas, with the united force, and an enormous train 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL 337 
 
 of waggons laden with plunder, great quantities of cattle and 
 other spoil, turned north again at the end of the second week 
 of September. In the meanwhile Percy's force had been 
 steadily growing. He had early resolved that upon the return 
 of the Scots the battle must be fought, and contented himself 
 with sending small bodies of well-mounted knights and horse- 
 men to hover in the neighbourhood of the Scotch army, and 
 to keep him informed of their intentions and the route they 
 seemed disposed to take. 
 
 Douglas had carried his devastations up to the walls of New- 
 castle, but had not attempted to attack that strongly-defended 
 town. He had indeed gathered as much spoil as could pos- 
 sibly be taken along, and he moved north in a quiet and lei- 
 surely way, being greatly hampered by the enormous train of 
 loaded waggons. As soon as the Earl of Northumberland and 
 his son saw that he intended to march up through Northumber- 
 land instead of returning by the line that he had come through 
 Tynedale, they set their force in motion, and marched out, 
 leaving a sufficient strength to hold Alnwick should Douglas 
 attack it. Being joined two days later by the Earl of Dunbar, 
 they posted themselves in a position whence they could march 
 to intercept the Scots upon any road they might follow on their 
 way north. 
 
 On the 1 2th they learned for certain that the Scots were 
 following the road that would take them through Wooler. 
 Moving instantly, the earl with his forces came up to them 
 posted on a hill a mile to the north-west of Homildon. He 
 at once seized a hill facing it, and disposed his knights, men- 
 at-arms, and spearmen along the crest. Hotspur would straight- 
 way have charged down and attacked the Scots in their 
 position, but Dunbar put his hand on his bridle, and urged 
 him strongly to await the assault, and to provoke the Scots 
 into taking the offensive by galling them with his archers, in 
 
 2Z 
 
668 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 which he was far superior to them, while on the other hand 
 they were much stronger in spears and horsemen. 
 
 Hotspur, seeing the goodness of the advice, assented to it, 
 and ordered the archers to descend at once into the valley 
 between the two hills, and to launch their arrows against the 
 Scots. On descending, it was found that the Scottish bowmen 
 were already in the valley. These they speedily drove up the 
 hill, and then sent their arrows thick and fast among the 
 Scottish men-at-arms. Douglas had, like the Earl of Dunbar, 
 perceived at what disadvantage the party who took the offen- 
 sive would have to fight, and had determined to stand on the 
 defensive, especially as, if he moved forward, the English 
 could detach bodies of horsemen to work round the hill and 
 fall upon his immense train of waggons. 
 
 For a time he refused to accede to the earnest entreaties 
 of his knights to advance, but as man after man fell under 
 the English arrows, their impatience increased, until one of 
 his best knights, Sir John Swinton, rode a few paces out of 
 the ranks and in a loud voice said, " My brave comrades, what 
 fascinates you to-day that you stand like deer and fawns in 
 a park to be shot, instead of showing your ancient valour and 
 meeting your foes hand to hand ? Let those who will, descend 
 with me, and, in the name of God, we will break that host 
 and conquer, or, if not, we will at least die with honour like 
 soldiers." 
 
 A mighty shout followed his words, and the whole Scottish 
 host dashed down the hill. The English archers fell back a 
 little, still shooting as they did so, but halted a short way up 
 the hill, and shot so hotly and strongly that they pierced 
 helmet and armour with their arrows. Nothing could with- 
 stand these missiles, shot by the finest and strongest bowmen 
 in the world. The Scots rolled over in heaps. Douglas, 
 although clad in the most perfect steel armour, was wounded 
 
THE BATTLE OF HOMILDON HILL S3 ( J 
 
 in five places, one arrow destroying the sight of one of his 
 eyes. He fell from his horse, and utter confusion reigned in 
 the Scottish ranks. Swinging their bows behind them the 
 archers drew their axes and rushed into the crowd, effecting 
 a terrible slaughter. 
 
 Douglas was made prisoner, as was the Earl of Fife, a son of 
 the Regent Albany, the Earls of Moray and Angus and Orkney. 
 Two barons, eighty knights, among whom were several French- 
 men, and several other persons of rank were also captured ; 
 while Swinton, Gordon, and many other knights and gentlemen 
 were slain, together with seven hundred of the commonalty. 
 With the exception only of Flodden, no battle on the border 
 was so fatal to the Scottish nobility, whose defeat was effected 
 by the archers only. The confusion was so terrible that the 
 Earl of Northumberland refused to allow his knights and men- 
 at-arms to charge, seeing that they must trample down both 
 friend and foe ; therefore they stood as passive spectators of 
 the desperate fight, not a lance being couched nor a blow struck 
 by any of them. When all was over they took up the pursuit 
 of the fugitives ; many of these were overtaken and killed, and 
 the pursuit was continued to the Tweed, where, not knowing 
 the fords, many of the fugitives were drowned while endeav- 
 ouring to swim the river. 
 
 " Roger, what say you to that? " Oswald asked, as he and his 
 squire drew rein after pursuing the enemy for some distance. 
 
 Roger's face expressed the strongest disgust. " Well, Sir 
 Oswald, I flon't call it a battle at all. Who ever heard of a 
 battle where neither knight nor man-at-arms drew sword? 
 'T is out of all reason to fight in that manner." 
 
 " Nevertheless, Roger, as we have won a great victory, what 
 matter is it whether we or the archers bore the chief hand in 
 it? The last battle we fought in was a different matter. We 
 had plenty of fighting, but no victory." 
 
340 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 "It was more to my taste, nevertheless," Roger grumbled, 
 " even though the Welsh well-nigh made an end of me ; and, 
 for myself, I could not help hoping that the archers would be 
 beaten, and leave it to us to take our part in the fighting. 
 They had done more than their share when they had broken 
 the Scottish ranks, and slain I know not how many, and it 
 would have been fair of them after that to draw back and 
 leave it to us to finish the business." 
 
 " 'T is well as it is, Roger, and for one I am well satisfied. 
 We have given the Scots a lesson that will keep them quiet 
 for a long time. We have recovered all the spoil they were 
 carrying off, and we could have won nothing more had we 
 been in the thick of the melee, and come out of it perhaps 
 sorely wounded again." 
 
 Roger, however, was by no means satisfied, and to the end 
 of his life always fell into a bad temper when the battle of 
 Homildon was spoken of. All the prisoners of consequence 
 were taken to Alnwick, where the army fell back, much to the 
 disgust of some of the more eager spirits, who would fain have 
 crossed the frontier and made reprisals for the woes the Scots 
 had inflicted. Northumberland, however, was well satisfied 
 with what had been won, and did not wish to provoke the 
 Scots to extremities, feeling that with so many of their leaders 
 in his hands he might be able to arrange terms that would 
 ensure peace for a considerable time on the border. 
 
 The prisoners were all treated with great kindness and 
 consideration. They were lodged in the castle and were 
 treated as guests rather than as prisoners. Oswald and his 
 father were both pleased to hear, two days after the battle, 
 that when the Scottish dead were examined, the bodies of 
 William Baird and ten of his kinsmen were found lying 
 together. They had resisted desperately to the last, refusing 
 to surrender themselves, well knowing that their misdeeds 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 341 
 
 and many depredations in England would bring them to the 
 gallows if taken alive. 
 
 " Well, father, we shall be able to live in peace for a time 
 now. No doubt the Bairds have brought with them every 
 spear they could muster, for none would willingly have stayed 
 at home when there was a promise of gathering so much 
 booty ; therefore their strength must be altogether broken, 
 and it will be long indeed before the Bairds ride in a raid 
 into Northumberland." 
 
 His father nodded. " 'T is a good thing, Oswald, assuredly, 
 though I would rather that we had had the attacking of them 
 in their own hold. Still, at any rate there is an end of the 
 feud for years to come, and I shall be able to lie down to 
 sleep without wondering whether they will be knocking at the 
 gate before morning." 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 
 
 DURING the time that had elapsed between his receiving 
 the news of Mortimer's capture by Glendower and the 
 battle of Homildon Hill, Percy had written several times to 
 the king with reference to his taking the same steps to ransom 
 Mortimer that he had taken on behalf of Lord Grey. The 
 king, however, answered very coldly, and one of his letters 
 more than hinted that he believed that Mortimer had volun- 
 tarily placed himself in Glendower's hands, and that an agree- 
 ment existed between them. Not only was Hotspur furious at 
 such an accusation, but the earl himself was deeply angered. 
 " ' T is past all belief," Hotspur said, " that such a charge 
 
342 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 should be made. Had Mortimer wished to join Glendower he 
 could have gone to him, not as a prisoner, but at the head of 
 three thousand good fighting men. Why should he have 
 thrown away the lives of twelve hundred of his own vassals 
 and those of his nephew? Nay, more, had Mortimer intended 
 treachery, he might have marched and fallen on the rear of 
 the king's army, entangled among the Welsh mountains and 
 forests, while Glendower fell upon him from in front. 'T is a 
 lie, and bears its mark on its face ; 't is but an excuse for 
 refusing to ransom Mortimer, who he hopes will be kept a 
 prisoner for years, and whose estates he will thus be able to 
 appropriate. 'T is an insult not only to Mortimer but to us, 
 to whom he owes his crown. But let him beware ; those who 
 built up can pull down." 
 
 The knights standing round put their hands on their sword- 
 hilts significantly. The king was to the followers of great 
 barons a person of but small consequence in comparison with 
 their lord, and they would draw their swords at the latter's 
 order as willingly against a king as against a foreign foe. 
 That it was their duty to do so was so fully recognised that, 
 in the troubles between the king and his nobles, while the 
 latter were, if defeated, executed for treason, their vassals were 
 permitted to return home unmolested ; and it was not until 
 the battle of Barnet that Edward, enraged at the humiliation 
 that he had suffered when he had been obliged to fly to France, 
 gave orders that no quarter was to be shown to Warwick's 
 vassals and retainers. 
 
 Northumberland and Hotspur were still smarting under this 
 treatment of Mortimer when, eight days after the battle, the 
 messenger they had despatched to the king in Wales with the 
 report of their great victory and the capture of Douglas and 
 other important nobles, returned with an order from the king 
 that these prisoners were not to be ransomed. 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 343 
 
 This order was received with passionate indignation by the 
 earl and Hotspur. Although not altogether contrary to the 
 usages of the age, since similar orders had more than once 
 been issued by Edward III., the ransom of prisoners taken 
 in battle was regarded as one of the most important sources of 
 revenue, and as the means of defraying the expenses that 
 nobles and knights were put to in aiding with their vassals 
 the king in his wars. Occasionally, however, in the case of 
 prisoners of importance, monarchs deemed it necessary for poli- 
 tical reasons to forbid the ransom of prisoners. The Scottish 
 nobles were as indignant as the Percys. They had regarded 
 it as a matter of course that they would be shortly liberated. 
 Their ransom, however heavy, would be soon forthcoming, for 
 it was one of the conditions on which land was held that in 
 case of the lord being taken prisoner, each of his tenants must 
 contribute largely, in proportion to his holding, towards the 
 payment of his ransom. 
 
 The order of the king clearly meant that they were to be 
 taken to London and held there as hostages perhaps for years, 
 and so not only to ensure England against another invasion, but 
 to further any designs of conquest that the king might enter- 
 tain. With three of the great earls of Scotland — one of them 
 the son of the Regent — and Douglas, the military leader of the 
 Scots, in his hands, and with the Earl of Dunbar as his ally, 
 Scotland would be practically at his mercy. An important 
 meeting was held at Alnwick, at which the Scottish nobles, the 
 Earl of Northumberland, and Hotspur were alone present, 
 and here matters of vital interest to the kingdom were 
 arranged. 
 
 For six months things remained in the same state. The 
 king's fourth expedition into Wales had effected no more than 
 the preceding. Glendower was still virtually master of Wales. 
 Cardiff had been burned by him, with its numerous priories 
 
344 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 and convents, with the exception of that of the Franciscans ; 
 the castle of Penmarc and the town and castle of Abergavenny 
 had been burned, and other strong places captured. The 
 Percys remained during this time sullen and inactive, although 
 somewhat mollified by the thanks voted them by Parliament. 
 The king, as a reward for their services, bestowed upon them 
 the estates of Douglas. This, however, they treated with scorn, 
 for as well might he have presented to them the city of Naples 
 or Paris, since, unless all Scotland was conquered they could 
 not come into peaceful mastership of the Douglas estates. 
 Nor, indeed, could the king have intended it in earnest, for he 
 was far too politic to think of adding so great an increase of 
 territory to the estates of the Percys, who had already shown 
 their power by placing him on the throne, and who might some 
 day take back what they had given him by declaring in favour 
 of the Earl of March. 
 
 One day in February, 1403, Oswald was summoned from 
 Stoubes to Alnwick, and on his arrival there was requested to 
 go to the earl's chamber. Such a summons was extremely 
 unusual. Hotspur had his own estates and his own retinue 
 and following, and was jointly with his father warden of the 
 marches, and though he dwelt generally with him at Alnwick, 
 he had his own portion of the castle. Thus it was seldom 
 that the earl had any communication with Hotspur's knights. 
 Hastening to obey, Oswald found Hotspur with his father. 
 
 " I have a mission for you, Sir Oswald," Hotspur said, " on 
 the part of the earl and myself. You know that for a long 
 time there has been a disputation between my father and the 
 Earl of Westmoreland respecting the Scottish prisoners. The 
 earl sent a small force to fight under me at Homildon, but it 
 was a mere handful, and on the strength of this he advanced 
 a claim to a considerable share of the ransoms of the prisoners ; 
 or, since they could not be ransomed, to the custody of the 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 845 
 
 persons of the Earls of Moray and Angus. The king has 
 now, contrary to all reason, inflicted upon us the indignity of 
 appointing four commissioners, two of whom are but knights 
 and the other two men of no consequence, to inquire into 
 the question between my father and my uncle, the Earl of 
 Westmoreland. 
 
 " Does he think that two of his earls are going to submit 
 themselves to so gross an indignity — we, who are as much 
 masters in the north of England as he is in the south? — and 
 even that he owes to us. I have ridden over and seen West- 
 moreland, who is as indignant as we are, and we at once 
 arranged the little matter in which we are at variance, and 
 agreed upon common measures. But this is not all. Seeing 
 that the king absolutely refused to do to Mortimer the same 
 service that he did to Lord Grey, whose ransom he has now 
 paid — and who, by the way, has married Glendower's daughter 
 Jane — Mortimer's vassals, with some aid from ourselves, have 
 raised the money required to free Mortimer. Now the king 
 has interfered and has given orders that such ransom shall 
 not be paid. 'T is evident that he determines to drive us to 
 extremities. 
 
 " I tell you these things in order that you may see how 
 intolerable the condition of affairs has become. My father 
 and myself believe that it is the judgment of heaven upon us 
 for having helped to dethrone King Richard, the lawful 
 sovereign of this country, and to place this usurper on the 
 throne. Even had Richard's conduct rendered his deposition 
 necessary, we did wrong in passing over the lawful heir, the 
 young Earl of March. 'T is true he was but a child at that 
 time, but he is older now, and we feel shame that he should 
 be kept as a prisoner by Henry. Had not the king perjured 
 himself, we should not have been led into this error, fur, 
 before we assisted him, he swore a great oath that he had no 
 
346 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 intention of gaining the throne, but only to regain his own 
 dukedom of Lancaster. It was on that ground that we lent 
 him our aid ; and now, forsooth, this perjured usurper treats 
 us, who made him, as dirt under his feet ! We are resolved 
 to suffer it no longer ; and, since we may not ransom Morti- 
 mer, we will secure his freedom in other ways, and for this 
 you may give us your aid." 
 
 "Assuredly, Sir Henry and my Lord Earl," Oswald, who 
 was deeply indignant at the unworthy treatment of his lords, 
 replied hotly. " My life is at your service." 
 
 " I expected nothing else," Hotspur said warmly. " The 
 matter stands thus. Owen Glendower was a warm partisan of 
 King Richard, and was one of the few who remained faithful 
 to the end, thereby incurring the deep hostility of Henry and 
 of his adherent Lord Grey. It was for this his lands were 
 unjustly seized, for this that Henry's parliament refused to 
 accede to his complaints, and so drove him to take up arms. 
 Thus, then, in an enterprise against Henry, Glendower is our 
 natural ally ; and we intend to propose to him that alliance, 
 undertaking that if he will give us aid, his claim to the crown 
 of Wales shall be acknowledged, and that he shall govern his 
 country without interference from England. 
 
 "There is none who could carry out this negotiation so 
 well as yourself, since you can, by virtue of that ring he gave 
 you, pass unarmed to him, while any other knight would be 
 assuredly slain. You will bear a letter, signed by the earl and 
 myself, offering him our friendship and alliance on those terms, 
 and explain to him more fully the manner in which we have 
 been driven to throw off Henry's authority. You can tell him 
 that we shall proclaim the Earl of March lawful king ; and if 
 he agrees to join in our project, which would be clearly both to 
 his liking and advantage, it would be as well that he should, 
 as soon as we move, which may not be for some time yet, 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 347 
 
 release Sir Edmund Mortimer, who, as the boy's uncle, will 
 assuredly raise his vassals on his behalf, now that Henry has 
 shown such animosity against him." 
 
 " I will gladly undertake the mission, my lord, and all the 
 more gladly since it may lead to the liberation of Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer, who treated me with the greatest kindness and 
 condescension during my stay at Ludlow." 
 
 " Prepare to start to-morrow, then," the earl said. " The 
 letter shall be ready for you to-night : and beyond what my 
 son has told you, you can tell Glendower that we have good 
 hopes of large help from Scotland, with whom it is said he is 
 already in alliance." 
 
 The next morning Oswald started, taking no one but Roger 
 with him. He had the evening before told his squire only 
 that he was starting on a journey, promising to tell him more 
 as they rode. Accordingly, when well away from Alnwick, lie 
 beckoned to Roger to bring up his horse alongside of him. 
 
 "Where think you that we are going, Roger? I will give 
 you fifty guesses, and would warrant that you would not come 
 at the truth." 
 
 " It matters nothing to me, master; so that I ride with you, 
 I am content." 
 
 " You know, Roger, how grievously the king has treated 
 the Percys ; how he has prevented their taking ransom for 
 their prisoners, and has refused to ransom Sir Edmund Mor- 
 timer ; how he, in bitter jest, offered the earl the estates of 
 Douglas; and how he has put upon them the indignity of 
 sending four men of no import to decide upon their difference 
 with Westmoreland? " 
 
 " Ay, ay, Sir Oswald, everyone knows this, and not a few 
 have wondered that the Percys have suffered these things in 
 quietness." 
 
 "A fresh thing has happened, Roger. The tenants of Mor- 
 
348 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 timer, with aid from the earl and Hotspur, have raised the 
 sum that Glendower demanded as ransom, and now the king 
 has laid on them his order that this money is not to be paid." 
 
 " By Our Lady," Roger exclaimed wrathfully, " this is too 
 much ! Sir Edmund is a noble gentleman, and that the king 
 should refuse to allow his friends to ransom him passes all 
 bounds." 
 
 " So the earl and Hotspur consider," Oswald said, " and ere 
 long you will see that they will hoist the banner of the young 
 Earl of March and proclaim him King of England." 
 
 " 'T is good," Roger exclaimed, slapping his hand on his leg. 
 " To me it matters nought who is King of England, but I 
 always held that it was hard that King Richard should be 
 deposed and murdered by one who was not even his lawful 
 successor. I am not one to question the conduct of my lord, 
 but I always thought that the Percys were wrong in bringing 
 this usurper over." 
 
 " They feel that themselves, Roger, and consider the ingrati- 
 tude of the king to be a punishment upon them for having 
 aided him to the throne." 
 
 " But what has this to do with your journey, master?'* 
 
 " It has much to do with it, Roger, seeing that I am on my 
 way to Glendower to offer him alliance with the Percys." 
 
 " A good step ! " Roger exclaimed. " We know that these 
 Welsh can fight." 
 
 " Moreover, Roger, it may bring about the freeing of Morti- 
 mer, for the evil feeling the king has shown against him will 
 surely drive him to raise all his vassals and those of the young 
 earl in Herefordshire and elsewhere, and thus the Percys will 
 gain two powerful allies, Glendower and Mortimer, and as 
 they advance from the north the Welsh and Mortimer will 
 join them from the west. When victory is gained there will 
 be peace on the Welsh marches. Owen will be recognised 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 349 
 
 for what he is, the King of Wales, and doubtless he will then 
 suffer the English to live quietly there, just as the Welsh have 
 lived quietly in England. Then, too, all the western counties 
 will see that it is their interest to side with Mortimer and 
 Glendower. Four times during the last three years have they 
 been called out and forced to leave their homes to follow the 
 king into Wales, and as often have had to return, leaving 
 behind them many of their number. They will see that if 
 Glendower is acknowledged King of Wales, this hard and 
 grievous service will no longer be required of them." 
 
 " That is so, Sir Oswald, and in truth I like the project well. 
 It matters not a straw to me who is king, but if a king treats 
 my lords scurvily I am ready to shout ' Down with him ! ' and 
 to do my best to put another up in his place ; though, indeed, 
 't is a salve to my conscience to know that the man I am fight- 
 ing against is a usurper, and one who has set himself up in 
 the place of the lawful king." 
 
 " My conscience in no way pricks me, Roger. I fight at my 
 lord's order against his foes, that is the duty I have sworn to ; 
 as between him and the king, 't is a matter for him alone. At 
 the same time I am glad that the business is likely to end in the 
 rescue of a knight who has been very kind to me. Between 
 Henry and the young Earl of March I have no opinion, but it 
 seems to me that since Henry ascended to the throne by 
 might and by the popular voice, he has no cause to complain 
 if he is put out of it by the same means." 
 
 " But, should the war go against the Percys, master?" 
 
 " That again is a matter for the earl and Hotspur. They 
 know what force they and the Earl of Westmoreland can put 
 in the field. They know that Glendower can aid with ten 
 thousand Welshmen, and that Mortimer can raise three or four 
 thousand men from his vassals. They should know what help 
 they can count on from Scotland, and doubtless during the last 
 
350 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 six months have made themselves acquainted with the general 
 feeling respecting the king. It is upon them that the risk 
 chiefly falls. We knights and men-at-arms may fall in the 
 field of battle, but that is a risk that we know we have to face 
 when we take to the calling of arms. If our cause is lost, and 
 we escape from the battlefield, we have but to depart to our 
 holds or our villages and we shall hear nought more of the 
 affair, while our lords, if taken, would lose their heads. It 
 will be a grief for us to lose masters we love, and to have to 
 pay our quittance with money or service to a new lord ; but 
 beyond that, we risk nought save our lives in battle. There- 
 fore I trouble myself in no way as to the matter between the 
 Percys and the king, which I take it in no way concerns me, 
 and am content to do my duty and to render my service, as I 
 have sworn to do." 
 
 " It is well, Sir Oswald," Roger said, after a long pause, 
 " that Glendower gave us those rings, for from all accounts he 
 and his Welshmen are more furious than ever, and there would 
 be small chance of our ever reaching him without them. The 
 chain did its work last time. 'T is not every Welshman who 
 would stop to examine it before striking, and few who could 
 read the inscription if they did so ; while 't is like that most of 
 them are well acquainted with Glendower's signet." 
 
 " That is so ; but, nevertheless, Roger, it will be better when 
 we have once crossed the border that you should ride behind 
 me with a white flag displayed, as a token that we come not 
 for war but on a peaceful mission. 'T is probable, at any rate, 
 that any band of Welshmen who may meet us will, in that case, 
 before attacking, stop to inquire on what errand we come." 
 
 They rode fast, for the earl had said that he needed to have 
 the news of Glendower's decision before proceeding further in 
 the matter, and in four days arrived on the border. At 
 Shrewsbury Oswald inquired carelessly of the host of the inn 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 351 
 
 where he put up, where Glendower was now thought to be, as 
 he intended to journey south to Hereford, and would fain 
 know whether there was any risk of falling in with bands of the 
 marauders. 
 
 "Methinks, Sir Knight, that you may travel without un- 
 easiness, seeing that the country between this and Hereford 
 has been so harassed by them that there is nought to tempt 
 them to cross the border, save with so large a force that they 
 can invade Gloucester or Worcestershire. Men say, moreover, 
 that Glendower is at present in Cardiganshire. There are still 
 a few Welsh inhabitants here. They declare that they are 
 loyal to the king, and love not their wild countrymen. 
 Whether it is so or not I cannot say, but they certainly 
 manage to keep up communications with the Welsh. This 
 may be for a treacherous purpose, or it may be as they say 
 that, knowing that they and all belonging to them would be 
 slain should Glendower capture the town, they, for their own 
 safety, try to learn his intentions and movements, in order to 
 warn us should a surprise be intended." 
 
 Starting early the next morning Oswald crossed into Mont- 
 gomeryshire by a road through Worktree Forest, so as to avoid 
 both Ludlow and Welshpool, and kept along by a country 
 track near the border of Radnor, so passing south of Llanidloes. 
 As soon as they had left Radnorshire, Roger fastened to his 
 spear a white cloth they had brought from Shrewsbury ; then 
 they continued their journey west. It was not until they had 
 crossed the Wye, here an insignificant stream, that they came 
 upon a native of the country. They were following a track 
 between two rough hills covered with brushwood, when a man, 
 evidently of the better class, stepped out before them. 
 
 "Sir Knight," he said in English, " 'tis a strange sight to 
 see an Englishman with one esquire travelling alone by so wild 
 and lonely a road as this, and strange indeed that he should 
 
Si)2 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 bear a flag of truce, for were you here on your king's business 
 you would surely be attended with a braver show. I had 
 notice two hours ago, brought by one who had seen you cross 
 the Wye, and in the bushes round lie fifty men who, did I 
 raise my hand, would let fly their arrows against you. But if 
 you have reason for your coming this way assuredly we should 
 not hinder you." 
 
 Oswald held out his hand. " This signet ring, sir, was given 
 me by Glendower, who said that any Welshman to whom I 
 might show it would act as my guide and escort to him. I 
 come on an important mission, not from the king, but from 
 one from whom Glendower may be glad to hear ; therefore I 
 pray you take me to him, or at least send a party of your men, 
 for I might peradventure fall in with some who would shoot 
 before they questioned." 
 
 " 'T is assuredly the prince's signet," the man said after care- 
 fully examining it, " and right gladly will I escort you to him. 
 He is at present at Aberystwith." 
 
 " Thanks for your courtesy, sir. To whom am I speaking? " 
 
 " My name is Howel ap Ryddyn. You passed my abode, 
 which cannot be seen from the road, and I would, were you 
 not pressed for time, gladly entertain you ; but if we push for- 
 ward we may reach Aberystwith before nightfall, and I make 
 no question that would better suit your wishes." 
 
 " Thanks, sir. My business is somewhat urgent, and I shall 
 be glad to meet the prince as soon as possible ; indeed, I 
 should not be sorry to reach a spot where we can sup and 
 sleep, seeing that we have twice slept in the woods since we 
 left Shrewsbury." 
 
 The man called out an order in Welsh ; four men at once 
 issued from the bushes, and under their guidance the horse- 
 men soon reached Aberystwith. 
 
 " I had scarce expected this pleasure, Sir Oswald," Glen- 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 353 
 
 dower said warmly, as the young knight entered. " To what 
 good fortune do I owe your visit ? But no, 't is but poor 
 hospitality questioning thus, when it will be time enough to 
 talk of such things later." 
 
 " And 't is a matter that is best discussed in private," Oswald 
 replied in an undertone. 
 
 " And how have you fared since we parted?" 
 
 " Since I saw you over a year ago the time has passed 
 quietly, save for the battle with the Scots, where, although we 
 beat them, there was no credit gained by the knights and 
 men-at-arms, seeing that the archers alone did the fighting." 
 
 " So I heard. On our side we have been busy ever 
 since." 
 
 " And successful too, as I have heard." 
 
 " Yes, fortune has been in our favour. Lord Grey's ransom 
 has been of much use to us, and, having married my daughter 
 Jane, he can no longer be considered a foe. Yet, to do him 
 justice, he would not promise even to stand neutral, though, 
 unless under special orders from the king, he will not draw 
 his sword again. I love a stanch man ; and though Grey has 
 taken, as I consider, the wrong side, he stands to it faithfully. 
 I offered him freedom without ransom if he would promise 
 neutrality, and that when I had put down all other opposition 
 he would hold his Welsh lands from me ; but he refused, and 
 said that he would rather remain in chains all his life than be 
 false to his vows to Henry. 
 
 " That was good, and I would that all Welshmen were as 
 faithful. They take the oath to me»one week, and make their 
 peace with Henry the next. Nay, some to please him would 
 go so far as to try to assassinate me. Two such plots have 
 there been this year, and it was only that I wore a good mail 
 shirt under my garments that my life was saved from a bow- 
 shot, and from one who professed to be my warm friend, and 
 
 -3 
 
354 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 who had broken bread with me half an hour before. It is 
 destiny, Sir Oswald. The powers watch over me and keep me 
 from harm, and these will, I know, protect me to the end 
 against the stroke of English foes or of Welsh traitors." 
 
 After supper was over, Glendower led Oswald to his private 
 chamber. 
 
 " Now, Sir Oswald, you can speak freely. I have placed a 
 guard outside the door, and there is no fear of interruption. 
 Do you come on your own account or from another? " 
 
 " I come from the Earl of Northumberland, and his son Sir 
 Henry Percy, and am charged in the first place to deliver this 
 letter to you, and then to give you such further intelligence as 
 to the matter as it may be needful for you to know." 
 
 " From the Percys ! " Glendower said in surprise, as he cut 
 the silk that held the roll together. His countenance ex- 
 pressed great surprise as he read the contents. " There is no 
 snare in this? " he said suddenly, after reading it through two 
 or three times, and looking sharply at Oswald. " 'T is not 
 from the Percys, who more than any other assisted the usurper 
 to the throne, that I should have looked for such an offer." 
 
 " I should be the last to bring such a letter to you, Glen- 
 dower, were there aught behind what is written. The earl 
 and Hotspur spoke of the matter at length to me. They regret 
 now the part they took in enthroning Henry, at whose hands 
 they have now received such indignities that they are resolved, 
 if it may be, to undo their work, and to place the lawful king, 
 the young Earl of March, on the throne." 
 
 He then related the various complaints that the Percys had 
 against the king, and told Glendower that the matter had been 
 brought to a head by Henry's refusal to allow them to pay the 
 ransom that had been collected for Sir Edmund Mortimer. 
 
 " Whom have they with them ? " Glendower asked, after 
 listening in silence. 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 355 
 
 " They have the Earl of Westmoreland, who, like themselves, 
 is greatly offended at the appointment of four commissioners, 
 men of no standing or position, to judge between two of the 
 great barons of England, blood relations too, whose difference 
 is on a matter of but small importance. No other name was 
 mentioned before me, but the earl stated that he looked for 
 much assistance from Scotland." 
 
 " Ay, ay ! As they hold in their hands Douglas and the 
 Regent's son, Moray and Angus, they may well make terms 
 with Scotland. Yes, it is a very great plot, and since I can 
 get no ransom for Mortimer, and he can raise some three or 
 four thousand men, he would be of more value to us free than 
 as a prisoner." 
 
 "It is not only that," Oswald said; "the fact that he, as 
 young March's uncle, should head his following and raise his 
 banner, will show that the Percys and you are not using young 
 March's name as a mere pretext for taking up arms. If 
 Mortimer, the head of his house during his minority, and 
 guardian of his estates, were with them, men would see that 
 't is really a struggle to place the lawful king on the throne, 
 and many would join who, did they think it was but an affair 
 between the Percys, of whom they know but little in the south, 
 and you, whom they have been taught to consider a rebel, 
 would stand aloof." 
 
 " 'T is well thought of, and the project pleases me. Even 
 without such allies, I may hold my mountains and continue 
 my warfare, but there could be neither peace nor prosperity 
 for years ; but with the overthrow of the usurper and my 
 acknowledgment as King of Wales, and of the entire indepen- 
 dence of the country from the Dee to the Severn, the freedom 
 of my country might be permanently secured. But I will give 
 no certain answer to-night. 'T is a matter to be turned over 
 in my mind, as it seems to me that I may gain much good by 
 
356 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the alliance, and that even if the Percys fail in their enterprise, 
 I can be no worse off than I am at present." 
 
 It was not until the following evening that Glendower gave 
 a decided answer. " I accept Percy's offer," he said. " I have 
 thought it over in every way ; even putting aside the benefits 
 to my country and myself, I would enter upon it were it but 
 for the satisfaction of seeing the usurper and murderer of my 
 dear master, King Richard, have the same measure meted out 
 to him that he gave to his sovereign. To-night I will write an 
 answer to the Percys for you to bear to them. To-morrow 
 morning I will ride with you to the stronghold where Morti- 
 mer is at present held in durance, and if he consents to join 
 us I will give him his freedom without ransom." 
 
 They started the next morning early, and at noon arrived at 
 a strong house lying in the heart of the hills. 
 
 " It were best that you should see him first, Sir Oswald, 
 and explain the matter to him ; after that I will meet him 
 with you." 
 
 Great was the astonishment of Sir Edmund when Oswald 
 was ushered into the little room in which he was confined. It 
 was some ten feet square, furnished with a pallet, chair, and 
 small table. The window was very strongly barred, and 
 Oswald observed with pain that his ten months' imprisonment 
 had told very heavily upon Mortimer. 
 
 " Why, Oswald ! Ah ! I see I should say Sir Oswald. What 
 brings you here ? Some good news, I trust. Has my ransom 
 been collected? " 
 
 " It has been collected, Sir Edmund," Oswald said, as they 
 shook hands, " but the king, who refused altogether to pay 
 your ransom as he did Lord Grey's, has forbidden the money, 
 raised partly by your tenants and partly by the tenants of 
 your nephew, to be handed over. 'T is clear that he views you 
 as an enemy, and has indeed ventured to declare his belief 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 357 
 
 that your capture by Glendower was a thing arranged before- 
 hand." 
 
 " He lies ! " Sir Edmund exclaimed angrily. " We fought 
 stoutly, and, had it not been for the treachery of the Welsh 
 bowmen, should have won the day. Then, how stands the 
 matter, Sir Oswald, and how is it that you are here ? " 
 
 Oswald then related the purport of his mission, and gave 
 Mortimer some messages with which Hotspur had charged 
 him on the evening before he started. 
 
 " Assuredly I will join," Sir Edmund exclaimed, when Oswald 
 brought his story to a conclusion. " Have I not suffered 
 enough by keeping a force on foot, by having my lands 
 harried and my vassals slain, in order to support Henry's 
 claims to the kingdom of Wales, only to be suspected of 
 treachery ? Had I intended to join Glendower, I should have 
 done so a year before, and with my force and his we could 
 have kept Henry at bay. Why should I have kept up the 
 pretext of loyalty when there was nought to have prevented 
 my joining Glendower? Why should I have fought him at 
 the cost of the lives of some twelve hundred of my men, when 
 I could have marched them into his camp as friends? Why 
 should I suffer nine months of close imprisonment at the 
 hands of an ally? 
 
 " Henry lied, and knew that he lied, when he brought such 
 a charge against me. He wished to be able to work his will 
 on the young earl, and maybe to murder him as he murdered 
 Richard, without there being one powerful enough to lift his 
 voice to condemn the murder. All is at an end between us, 
 and henceforth I am his open enemy, as he is mine, and would 
 be heart and soul with the Percys in the overthrow of Henry, 
 even if my nephew were not concerned, and did the earl pur- 
 pose himself to grasp the crown." 
 
 " ( rlendower is below, Sir Edmund, and will himself speak 
 
358 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 to you, but he thought that it were best that I should first 
 open the matter to you." 
 
 A quarter of an hour later the keeper of the hold came up 
 and said that the prince bade Sir Edmund to descend and 
 speak with him. 
 
 As they entered the room where Glendower was waiting, 
 the latter glanced at Oswald inquiringly. 
 
 "The matter is settled," the latter said; "Sir Edmund will 
 join us with heart and hand." 
 
 " I am indeed glad to hear it, Sir Oswald. Sir Edmund 
 Mortimer," he went on courteously, " hitherto we have re- 
 garded each other as enemies ; henceforth we are friends, and 
 you are my guest and not my prisoner. I have thought it 
 over, and methinks that you must tarry here till we have 
 certain news of the day on which the Percys will set on foot 
 their enterprise. It would not be safe for you to return to 
 your estates until you are in a position to call your vassals 
 to arms at once, for the king, were he to hear that you were 
 at Ludlow, might call on the lieutenants of the western coun- 
 ties, and the owners of all the castles, to attack you at once. 
 Therefore, until it is time to strike it were best that you 
 should remain with me. I do not propose that you should 
 accompany me on my expeditions, for to do so might do harm 
 across the border ; I will therefore assign you a suitable 
 house at Aberystwith, with such attendance and furnishing as 
 are due to a guest of your quality. The prospect seems to be 
 a fair one. The northern lords, aided by the Scots, should by 
 themselves be a match for any gathering Henry could collect 
 at short notice, and joined by my forces and yours should 
 surely be able to overthrow all opposition." 
 
 " So it appears to me," Sir Edmund said. " 'T is indeed a 
 powerful confederation, and, if all goes well, ought to leave no 
 option to the usurper but to die in battle or to fly to France." 
 
THE PERCYS' DISCONTENT 359 
 
 " Will you return with us to Aberystwith, Sir Oswald ? " 
 Glendower presently asked the young knight. 
 
 " I will ride straight for England, with your permission," 
 Oswald said. " I am already thirty miles on my way, and the 
 Percys urged me to return as soon as possible." 
 
 " So be it. As soon as we have dined, an officer and four 
 horsemen will be in readiness to ride with you as an escort." 
 
 A week later Oswald reached Alnwick. He was the bearer 
 of letters from Glendower and Mortimer, and was able to 
 report the complete success of his mission. As a mark of 
 his satisfaction, the earl ordered a deed of gift to be made to 
 him of a large strip of land extending over the hills between 
 Stoubes and Yardhope. 
 
 " Some day," he said, as he handed the document to him, 
 " you will be master of Yardhope, and by thus joining that feu 
 to that of Stoubes you will have an estate that will make you 
 a power in the upper glades of Reddesdale and Coquetdale, 
 and will support the dignity of a knight banneret, which I 
 now bestow upon you, and also appoint you a deputy warden 
 of the marches, with power of life and death over all marauders, 
 reivers, and outlaws. I have long felt that it would be well 
 that there should be one who, in case of necessity, could raise 
 a hundred spears and so prevent bodies of marauders from the 
 other side of the border making sudden irruptions into the 
 dales, and from what I have heard of you from Sir Henry I 
 am sure that you will carry out the charge most worthily." 
 
 The new acquisition would not very largely increase Oswald's 
 revenues, for the greater portion of the grant was hill and 
 moor. Nevertheless, there were a good many houses and 
 small villages scattered in the dales, and it was these that 
 raised the tract of land to the value of a knight's feu. In 
 point of position, however, it was a large addition. As a 
 knight banneret, with the castle of Stoubes at one end of his 
 
360 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 holding and the hold of Yardhope at the other, he would 
 occupy an important position on the border, and could raise 
 at least a hundred spears among his tenants, in addition to 
 the men-at-arms of the two strongholds. 
 
 Three days later Hotspur released the whole of his Scottish 
 prisoners and sent them under escort to the border. The 
 Percys now began in earnest their preparations for war. For 
 greater convenience, Hotspur went down to Morpeth, while 
 the earl betook himself to Berwick-on-Tweed, where he could 
 confer more easily with his Scottish allies, who on their part 
 were carrying out the condition on which they had been re- 
 leased without ransom, namely, that they would join their 
 forces to those of the Percys. Oswald made another journey 
 to Wales, this time by ship from Carlisle to Aberystwith, and 
 there acquainted Glendower and Mortimer with the prepara- 
 tions that had been made, assuring them that the rising 
 would take place at the end of May. He also asked Glen- 
 dower to raise as large an army as possible without delay, and 
 Sir Edmund Mortimer to betake himself at once to Hereford, 
 there to raise his banner and summon his vassals and those of 
 the Earl of March to join him — the king having on his return 
 from his last expedition entered Ludlow, seized Mortimer's 
 plate and other property, and appointed to the governorship 
 of Ludlow, a knight on whose devotion he could rely. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 SHREWSBURY 
 
 THE Percys' preparations could not be carried on without 
 exciting attention, and in March, the king, seeing that 
 the open defiance of his authority by the release of the 
 
SHREWSBURY 361 
 
 Scottish prisoners would assuredly be followed by armed rebel- 
 lion, which the Douglas would probably have pledged himself 
 to aid as the condition of his release, began on his side to 
 make similar preparations. Levies were called out, and the 
 Prince of Wales was appointed to the command of the Welsh 
 marches and the governorship of Wales. Towards the end of 
 June, Douglas, faithful to his agreement, crossed the frontier, and 
 was at once joined by Hotspur with the force he had gathered. 
 Hotspur's father was lying sick at Berwick, but was to follow 
 as speedily as possible with the army collected in the north of 
 the county and from Dunbar's estates. 
 
 It had been arranged that Glendower should meet the 
 allies at Lichfield ; and, on his being joined by his uncle, the 
 Earl of Westmoreland, with his following, Hotspur marched 
 south. His intention was, after effecting a junction with Glen- 
 dower, to march and give battle to the army with which 
 Henry and the Prince of Wales were advancing against him. 
 At Lichfield, however, he learned that Glendower had not 
 completed his preparations in sufficient time to join him. He 
 therefore changed his direction, and made for Shrewsbury, 
 towards which place Glendower was marching. Percy's array 
 had swollen as he went south. He had been joined by a 
 number of archers from Cheshire and by other adherents of 
 the late king, these regarding the war as an attempt, not to 
 place the Earl of March upon the throne, but to overthrow 
 the usurper who had dethroned their king. 
 
 Oswald rode with sixty spearmen from his own estate, 
 while his father, with thirty men from Yardhope, rode in his 
 company. Both regarded the failure of Glendower to come 
 to the place appointed as a serious misfortune. 
 
 "Of course," Oswald said, "if he joins you at Shrewsbury 
 before the king comes up it will not matter much, and indeed 
 would be in one respect the better. Mortimer with his force 
 
362 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 will be coming on, and though he is scarce likely to arrive at 
 Shrewsbury in time for the battle, for he could not leave 
 Wales to summon his levies to the field until the Prince of 
 Wales had drawn off his force and marched to join his father, 
 his reinforcement afterwards will fill up the gaps in our ranks, 
 and be a great assistance should Henry be able to rally another 
 army in the Midlands. He cannot hope to do so before we 
 reach London." 
 
 " That sounds fairly, Oswald, but 't is always better to carry 
 out the plans you have made, and this absence of Glendower 
 at the point arranged, to my mind augurs ill." 
 
 Henry was an able general. Believing that the Percys 
 would make for the Welsh border, he had posted himself at 
 Burton- on-Trent ; but as soon as he heard that they had 
 changed their course he started for Shrewsbury, and marched 
 so quickly that he arrived there before Hotspur, thus throwing 
 himself between the Percys and the Welsh. Hotspur, on arriv- 
 ing near the town, was enraged at hearing that Glendower 
 had not arrived according to his promise. The king's army 
 was encamped on the eastern side of the town, and the north- 
 ern forces took post a short distance away. That night Hot- 
 spur sent a document into the royal camp, declaring Henry to 
 be forsworn and perjured, — in the first place, because he had 
 sworn under Holy Gospel that he would claim nothing but his 
 own proper inheritance, and that Richard should reign to the 
 end of his life ; secondly, because he had raised taxes and 
 other impositions contrary to his oath and by his own 
 arbitrary power ; thirdly, because he had caused King Richard 
 to be kept in the castle of Pontefract without meat, drink, or 
 fire, whereof he perished of hunger, thirst, and cold. 
 
 There were other clauses, some of them regarding his con- 
 duct to Sir Edmund Mortimer ; the claims of the young Earl 
 of March to the throne were also set forward, and the docu- 
 
SHREWSBURY 363 
 
 ment ended with a defiance. Henry simply sent as reply, that 
 he had no time to lose in writing, but that he would, in the 
 morning, prove in battle whose claims were false and feigned. 
 Nevertheless, in the morning, when the two armies were 
 arrayed in the order of battle, the king sent the Abbot of 
 Shrewsbury to propose an amicable arrangement. Hotspur 
 and Douglas, however, rejected the offer : the trumpets then 
 blew on either side, and the armies joined battle. 
 
 Their numbers were about equal ; each consisted of some 
 fourteen thousand men. Douglas and Hotspur had taken 
 their place in the centre of their line, having behind them a 
 party of their best knights. These charged with fury down 
 upon the king's standard, which stood in the centre of his array. 
 Hotspur and Douglas, his former rival, were accounted two of 
 the best knights in Christendom, and the fury of their charge 
 was irresistible. The centre of the royal line was cleft in 
 sunder, the king's guards were at once dispersed, and had 
 not Henry taken the precaution of arraying himself in plain 
 armour, while two of his knights had put on royal surcoats, 
 the battle would at once have been decided. As it was, the 
 two knights were both killed, as were the Earl of Stafford and 
 Sir Walter Blount. The royal standard was overthrown, and 
 the young Prince of Wales sorely wounded in the face. 
 
 He had already shown signs of great military talent, and in 
 spite of his wound now showed a courage and presence of 
 mind that justified the confidence his father had shown in giv- 
 ing him important commands. He rode hither and thither 
 among the disorganised troops, saw that the gap in the centre 
 was again closed up, and was ever to be met where the fight 
 was hottest. The impetuous charge of Hotspur and Douglas 
 was the ruin of themselves and their army. Had they paused 
 until their troops had advanced close to the enemy, and the 
 mounted men-at-arms were all ranged closelv U~v>;nrl them and 
 
364 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 in a position to support them, the fight would assuredly have 
 speedily terminated in their favour; but before these arrived 
 the royal army had closed its ranks, and the rebel leaders with 
 all their principal knights were cut off from the main body. In 
 vain the men of the north tried to cut their way through the 
 southern ranks and to come to the assistance of their chiefs, 
 who, surrounded now by the English knights and men-at-arms, 
 were fighting desperately against overwhelming numbers. Ai 
 hour after the battle began many parties of Welshmen came up 
 and joined in the conflict ; but the absence of leaders, and the 
 loss of their respective captains, Hotspur and Douglas, para- 
 lysed the efforts of the Northumbrians and the Scottish con- 
 tingent. Yet both fought stoutly, and suffered very heavy losses. 
 
 For upwards of two hours Hotspur maintained the unequal 
 fight, but at length an arrow pierced Hotspur's vizor, and he 
 fell dead from his horse. Further resistance was useless, and 
 the survivors of the group, which had been reduced to a mere 
 handful, surrendered. For another half-hour the main battle 
 raged ; then came the news that Hotspur was killed and 
 Douglas and Westmoreland prisoners ; the English horsemen 
 dashed down on the flanks of the northern line, the spearmen 
 pressed forward, and the Scotch and Northumbrians broke and 
 fled. 
 
 When the knights first charged, Oswald had been with his 
 own following and a hundred other horsemen on the left flank. 
 As soon as he saw what had happened he endeavoured to ride 
 round the right flank of the royal army, but was met by a much 
 larger force of men-at-arms, and, after hard fighting, driven 
 back. Oswald himself, with Roger on one hand and his father 
 on the other, had several times hewed his way deep into the 
 enemy's squadron, and would have been cut off had not the 
 Yardhope moss-troopers spurred furiously in to the rescue and 
 brought them all off again. 
 
SHREWSBURY 365 
 
 Several times the charge was renewed, but ineffectually. 
 Half the rebel army had been killed, and when at last the 
 infantry broke and it was clear that there was no more to be 
 done, Oswald, who was wounded in half a dozen places, called 
 the survivors of his troop to follow him, and with his party 
 rode off in good order. A mile from the field they halted for 
 a few minutes ; not one of them but had been more or less 
 severely wounded in the desperate mel£e. They now took off 
 their armour and bandaged each other's wounds, and then, 
 mounting again, they rode off. 
 
 "What do you say, father," Oswald asked; "shall we circle 
 round and join Glendower? We know that his army is close 
 at hand, and were they to attack to-night they should win an 
 easy victory, for the king's men have suffered well-nigh as 
 sorely as we have." 
 
 " No, Oswald ; we have done enough. We have not been 
 fighting for the Earl of March ; we have been simply following 
 our feudal lord as we were bound to do. He is dead, and we 
 have nought to do with this quarrel. What is it to us whether 
 March or Henry is king? " 
 
 They were not pursued. The greater part of the English 
 cavalry were exhausted by their exertions against Hotspur and 
 Douglas. Their loss was extremely heavy, and those in a 
 condition to pursue took up the comparatively easy work of 
 cutting down the flying footmen. 
 
 The battle had been a disastrous one for both sides. Their 
 losses were about even, the number who fell altogether being 
 put at ten thousand men. With Douglas, the Earl of West- 
 moreland, liaron of Kinderton, Sir Richard Vernon, and other 
 knights were captured. Westmoreland, Kinderton, and Vernon 
 were at once executed on the field of battle as rebels ; but 
 Douglas, as a foreign knight, was simply viewed as a prisoner 
 of war, and was kindly treated. 
 
3<jC coth sides the border 
 
 Glendower took no advantage of the opportunity for strik- 
 ing a blow at the royal army, and instead of attacking it when 
 spent by fatigue and encumbered with wounds, retired at once 
 to Wales. Had he, instead of doing this, marched to meet Sir 
 Edmund Mortimer, who was hurrying forward with a powerful 
 array, the united force would have been fully double the 
 strength of the English army, and a great commander would 
 at once have fought a battle that would probably have altered 
 the whole course of events in England. Glendower's conduct 
 here showed that, although an able partisan leader in an irreg- 
 ular warfare, he had no claim whatever to be considered a 
 great general. 
 
 Travelling rapidly, Oswald and his party crossed the Tyne, 
 and hearing that the earl, now recovered from his illness, was 
 marching down with his army to join his son, they rode to 
 meet him. It was a painful duty that Oswald had to discharge, 
 and the old earl, when he heard of the defeat of the army, the 
 death of the son to whom he was deeply attached, and the 
 capture of his brother, the Earl of Westmoreland, gave way to 
 despair, dismissed his army to their homes at once, and retired 
 completely broken down in body and spirit to his castle at 
 Warkworth. So depressed was he that when royal messengers 
 arrived, summoning him in the king's name to surrender and 
 journey with him to London, he instantly obeyed. When ques- 
 tioned by the king why he had displayed the banner of revolt 
 against him, he said he had done so on the urging of Hotspur ; 
 and the king, who was always inclined to leniency when leni- 
 ency was safe, pardoned him, and permitted him to retain his 
 dignity and estates. 
 
 Oswald speedily recovered from his wounds, but his father 
 suffered much. 
 
 " I have fought my last fight, Oswald," he said, when his 
 son rode over to see him a few days after their return from the 
 
SHREWSBURY 367 
 
 south. " I say not that I am about to die, but only that me- 
 thinks I shall never be able to wield sword manfully again. I 
 have talked the matter over with your mother, and she agrees 
 with me that it were well that I handed over Yardhope to you. 
 I do not mean that I should leave the old place — for genera- 
 tions my fathers have lived and died here, and I would fain do 
 the same — but that I should hand over to you the feu, and 
 you should take oath for it to Northumberland and lead its re- 
 tainers in the field. Were it that there was a chance of another 
 raid by the Bairds, I would still maintain my hold myself, but 
 their power was altogether broken at Homildon. Moreover, 
 the border Scots and we are at peace now as we have not been 
 so long as memories run, seeing that we have fought side by 
 side against the King of England, and have suffered the same 
 misfortune in defeat ; therefore I can hang up my sword. 
 
 " But for you there may be more fighting. From what I 
 know of the old earl I am sure that he will never forgive Hot- 
 spur's death, and although at present he is reinstated in his 
 estates there can be no doubt that the king will strike further 
 blows against the power of the Percys. Northumberland is a 
 valiant soldier, tenacious in his purposes, and lasting in his 
 hatreds. Had it not been that he was utterly broken by the 
 news that we brought him he would assuredly have marched 
 down with his army and tried to join Glendower and Mortimer, 
 and at least have died fighting, the end that he would best 
 like. I doubt not that we shall see his banner raised again 
 ere long." 
 
 " I hope not, father ; the undertaking would be desperate." 
 " However that may be, Oswald, as I can no longer render 
 service for the feu, I wish to hand it over to you. 'T is but a 
 nominal change, but I should like to see the estate yours. I 
 and my fathers have held our own and were content to do so, 
 adding somewhat lo our means by such plunder as we could 
 
3G8 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 carry off from Scotland ; but you have greatly advanced the 
 family, and as a deputy warden of the marches it is as well 
 that Yardhope should be added to your holding. I should be 
 glad too to have you known as Sir Oswald Forster of Yard- 
 hope, and not as Sir Oswald Forster of Stoubes, and in time, 
 if things go well with you, I charge you to build a castle here 
 in place of this hold, which has been good enough for plain 
 men like myself and my father, but which is no fit residence 
 for the estate you now hold. I don't mean to say that I wish 
 you always to live here, for maybe Stoubes is a more pleasant 
 abode, standing in a fair country, and with the climate some- 
 what less hard than this ; but I should like you to come up 
 here at times and to be known as Forster of Yardhope." 
 
 " I will carry out your wishes, father, but it would please 
 me more for things to remain as they have been." 
 
 " My plan is best, lad. I shall be seneschal here for you, 
 and little will be changed save that you will ride at the head 
 of the retainers instead of myself. 'T is not meet that I should 
 hold the feu when I can no longer render due service. Your 
 mother is wholly of opinion that I have done enough of fight- 
 ing for my life, and should trouble myself no longer with 
 raidings and wars. Your mother has shown sound judgment, 
 and her advice has generally been good, though I never fully 
 recognised this till I saw what great good had come of her 
 wishing you to learn to read and write, for it is to that to no 
 small extent that you owe your rapid rise and present dignity." 
 
 Accordingly a few days later Oswald rode with his father to 
 Warkworth, to which castle the earl had returned after his visit 
 to England. At the request of John Forster he received back 
 the feu from him, and appointed his son to it. This done 
 Oswald rode to pay a visit to his cousins while his father 
 returned to Yardhope with two retainers he had brought with 
 him. Oswald had not seen Adam Armstrong since the latter 
 
SHREWSBURY 369 
 
 had come to Yardhope after the rescue of his daughters, and 
 he was received by him with the greatest warmth, as also 
 by Allan, who, although now nearly recovered from his 
 wounds, had, fortunately for himself, not gained sufficient 
 strength to be able to accompany Douglas either to Homildon 
 or in his march into England to join Percy. The girls were 
 out when he rode up, but upon their return both showed the 
 greatest pleasure, Jessie being the most demonstrative in her 
 welcome. 
 
 " It has always been a sore subject with me, Oswald," 
 Allan said, " that you should have ridden away in that gallant 
 enterprise to rescue my sisters, while I was lying here help- 
 less, and knew indeed nought of it until after you had taken 
 them safely to Yardhope. Ah ! Roger, I am glad to see you 
 again and to thank you too for the share you took in it." 
 
 " In faith, Master Allan, there are no great thanks due ; it 
 was but a poor affair, and I had but one opportunity, and 
 that not worth naming, of striking a hearty blow. It seems to 
 me that these things are never fairly divided. Both in that 
 adventure and at Homildon I scarce struck a blow, while in 
 that affair in Wales and at Shrewsbury there was even more 
 fighting than I cared for. I had to be nursed like a child after 
 the first, and I am still stiff from the wounds that I got in the 
 second. There should be reason in such matters. It vexed 
 me sorely that we had to ride away from the Bairds without 
 striking a few good blows in part payment of their raid here." 
 
 " I am very glad that you did not have to do so," Janet said. 
 " I think there was quite enough excitement in it, and espe- 
 cially as we went down that rope ; though indeed you are so 
 strong that I felt that I was quite safe with you." 
 
 Roger laughed. 
 
 " I could have carried two of you ; and sooth, you did not 
 show your confidence at the time, for you held on so tightly to 
 
 24 
 
370 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 the rope that I began to think that we should never get to the 
 bottom." 
 
 " You told me to hold tight," Janet said indignantly. 
 
 "Yes, yes, that was natural enough. The difficulty was 
 that you would not let go, and at each knot it was as 
 much as I could do to get you to let it slide through your 
 fingers." 
 
 " Very well, Master Roger. Then I shall take care not to 
 let you lower me down a rope again." 
 
 " 1 trust there will never be the need," Roger laughed, 
 " but, indeed, although your weight was as nothing, I felt un- 
 easy myself as we went down, for I feared that I might grip 
 you too tightly, seeing that I am altogether unaccustomed to 
 the handling of girls." 
 
 " Well, I suppose, Roger," Jessie said, " that now the wars 
 are over, you will be marrying and settling down." 
 
 "I don't know how that might be," Roger replied slowly. 
 " I do not say that the matter has never entered my mind, and, 
 seeing that I am now seven-and-thirty, 't is one that should 
 not be much longer delayed. I mean not that I have ever 
 thought as to who should be the woman, but I have thought 
 whether, when the time comes that Sir Oswald takes him a 
 wife, it would not be well that I should do the same. But I 
 know not how I stand. The abbot of Alnwick has, so far, 
 allowed me to go out into the world, to unfrock myself, and 
 to become a man-at-arms instead of a peaceful monk ; but I 
 have not been dispensed from my vows of celibacy, and, were 
 I to marry, the matter might be taken up by the Church, and 
 I might be put to many and sore penances and punishments 
 for the breach of them." 
 
 The others all laughed at the seriousness with which Roger 
 had answered the girl's jesting remark. 
 
 " It is a matter that I have never thought of before, Roger," 
 
SHREWSBURY 371 
 
 Oswald said ; " but assuredly it would, as you say, be fitting 
 and right that when I take a mistress you should do so also — 
 like master like man, you know. Since your thoughts have 
 been turned that way, I will see the abbot next time I go to 
 Alnwick, and lay the case before him. Of a truth you have 
 made a most excellent man-at-arms, and 't is equally certain 
 that you were an exceedingly bad monk. It would doubtless 
 be well that you should obtain a complete absolution from 
 your vows, for although I am sure that the good abbot regards 
 you now as altogether beyond his control, and would take no 
 steps against you were he to hear of your marriage, it might 
 not be so in the case of his successor. He is an old man, and 
 the next abbot may be of a very different character, and look- 
 ing through the books of the convent he might say, ' What has 
 become of Brother Roger? I see no record of his death.' 
 Then, pushing matters further, he might discover your backslid- 
 ing, and might summon you before him, and there is no saying 
 what pains and penalties he might inflict upon you." 
 
 Roger moved uneasily in his seat. " Do not speak of such 
 a thing, I pray you, master — imprisonment in a cell, flagel- 
 lation, nay, even worse might befall me at the hands of a 
 rigorous abbot ; for in truth nought could well be more serious 
 than the offences that I have already committed, and he might 
 hold that even though the present abbot had been backward 
 in taking notice of the matter, this in no way would absolve 
 him from doing his duty. And indeed, as it is, it was to 
 Hotspur that he gave permission for me to go out into the 
 world. Hotspur is dead, and there is nought but my own 
 word in the matter." 
 
 "That, at any rate, I can put right, Roger, by going myself 
 to the abbot and learning from his lips that he did give that 
 permission to Hotspur ; moreover, I received it from Hotspur's 
 own lips. Still, it would be useful for me to obtain from the 
 
372 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 abbot a letter giving full absolution for all offences committed 
 up to the present time." 
 
 " That would be a great thing," Roger said eagerly. " *T is 
 i matter that I have often turned over in my mind when on a 
 long day's ride, and I have thought of what might happen were 
 a new man to become abbot of Alnwick; but such an absolu- 
 tion would assuredly go fur much. No one can doubt, more 
 especially an abbot, that absolution by an abbot is most effec- 
 tual, and that the offences committed before it are wholly 
 wiped out and cannot be revived." 
 
 "It would be best to obtain total absolution from your vows. 
 Can the abbot grant that, Roger?" 
 
 " 'T is a moot question," Roger replied. " Many affirm that 
 he can do so, and assuredly many abbots have exercised that 
 power; others again hold that, although abbots cannot law- 
 fully do so, bishops can ; while a few maintain that even these 
 are incapable, and that nothing short of the absolution by the 
 Holy Father himself is of avail. Still, whatever be the true 
 state of things, I should be well satisfied with an abbot's abso- 
 lution, and still more so by a bishop's ; for though, were a great 
 prince concerned, someone interested might contest the mat- 
 ter, none would be likely to do so in the case of a man-at- 
 arms or an esquire." 
 
 " Very well, Roger. Then I will endeavour to obtain a full 
 absolution from your vows by the abbot, and should he decline 
 to give them I will, when I next see the earl, pray him, in 
 consideration of the good services that you have rendered, to 
 obtain it for you from the bishop." 
 
 " And you have not yourself thought of marrying, Oswald? " 
 Adam Armstrong said. 
 
 " Nay, uncle. I came of age but a few days since, and it 
 will be time to think of taking me a wife four or five years 
 hence. So until these troubles have wholly ceased it were 
 
"DO MM SPEAK OF SUCH A THING, I PRAY YOU, MASTER." 
 
SHREWSBURY 373 
 
 better, methinks, for a knight to remain unwed than to take a 
 wife with the risk of leaving her a young widow." 
 
 " In that case, Oswald, methinks there would be little marry- 
 ing in Northumberland ; for, saving short truces, and these but 
 ill observed, there is ever trouble on the border." 
 
 " I speak not of that," Oswald replied. " Doubtless we 
 shall always be subject to border raids on both sides, and even 
 to serious wars between the two countries ; but I speak not of 
 that, but of troubles in England. 'T is natural to fight when 
 Englishmen and Scotchmen meet arrayed in battle, but when 
 Englishmen meet Englishmen 't is terrible indeed ; and though 
 the slaughter at Shrewsbury was great beyond measure, who 
 yet can say that the fire is extinguished ? As long as one may 
 be called to arms again by the earl, it is in good sooth better 
 to remain single than to have to ride to the wars, leaving the 
 young wife behind." 
 
 " Spoken very wisely and well, Oswald," Adam Armstrong 
 laughed. "'Tis well to argue as to policy; but such argu- 
 ments go for nought as soon as a man's heart is fixed on any 
 particular woman." 
 
 " It may be so, uncle ; but as I have never thought of mar- 
 riage, I am able to look at the matter dispassionately." 
 
 " Ah ! well, the time will come, Oswald, and you will then 
 speedily come to consider that there are other things than the 
 reasonableness of waiting to be considered. By the way, I 
 trust that should England invade Scotland again by the valley 
 of the Esk, you will not forget our debt to the Bairds. 
 Though I lamented the disaster at Homildon, where many of 
 my friends and acquaintances fell, I could not but feel that the 
 death of William Baird and so many of his kin was a relief 
 indeed to me. I have strengthened my hold, as you see, but 
 T should have been ever obliged to remain on guard. The 
 Bairds never forgive nor forget, and the manner in which they 
 
374 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 were tricked out of their captives must have discomposed 
 them sorely and rankled in their minds, and sooner or later 
 they would have tried to wipe out the memory in blood. I 
 wonder that they had not done it before Homildon, but doubt- 
 less they had other matters in hand. Now I can live in peace ; 
 but I too have not forgotten the injuries I have suffered at 
 their hands, and should rejoice greatly did I hear that their 
 stronghold had been levelled to the ground." 
 
 " I hope that it will be long before our kings march against 
 Scotland again. The ill success of all our efforts should have 
 taught them that, do what they will, they will never conquer 
 Scotland, and Henry is not likely to court another failure such 
 as he met with two years since. 'T is not like the wars with 
 the Welsh ; they are a different people, speaking in a different 
 language, while we and the lowland Scots are of one blood 
 and one language — scarce a noble in Scotland who is not of 
 Norman descent — and a quarrel between us seems to me 
 almost as bad as a civil war." 
 
 " I hope that all will come to think so some day, Oswald ; 
 but as long as the two kingdoms stand apart, with various 
 interests and different alliances, it will hardly be likely that 
 there will be a permanent peace between them." 
 
 "That is so," Oswald agreed. " 'Tis the part that Scotland 
 plays by her alliance with France, and the aid she gives her 
 by always choosing the time when we are fighting there to 
 fall upon us, that keeps the trouble afoot. If Scotland would 
 hold herself aloof from France, I see no reason why we should 
 interfere with her in any way." 
 
 " No good has ever come to us from such alliance ; no French 
 army has ever gone to Scotland to aid her when pressed by 
 Englishmen. France uses Scotland but as a cat's-paw with 
 which to annoy and weaken England." 
 
 "That may be so; but you must remember that France 
 
SHREWSBURY 375 
 
 does aid Scotland when she keeps the main army of England 
 busily occupied." 
 
 "Yes; but she does not fight England with that intent. 
 She simply fights to gain back the provinces she has lost, and 
 is ready to make peace when it suits, wholly regardless of the 
 interest of Scotland." 
 
 " France is never to be trusted," Oswald said. " Glendower 
 made a treaty with her a few years ago, and what good has 
 it done to him? Why, when he needed her aid the most she 
 had made a truce with England. Tis whispered that she 
 made a treaty with the Percys, and what good came of it? 
 She is ever ready to make treaties, but never observes them 
 unless it is to her plain interest to do so." 
 
 " I suppose it is with nations as it is with individuals, 
 Oswald, selfishness has a large share in the management of 
 affairs. France, being a powerful country, is glad enough, 
 when pressed by the English, to have diversions made for her, 
 whether in Scotland or Ireland, but she has no idea of putting 
 herself out for the sake of her allies when she desires peace 
 with England." 
 
 France had indeed been quick to take advantage of the 
 trouble caused to Henry by the rising in the north. While 
 he was gathering his army, although there was a truce with 
 England, a French expedition, in which many of the royal 
 princes took part, had invaded Guienne, captured several 
 castles held by the English adherents, made frequent descents 
 on our coast, plundered every ship they met with, captured 
 a whole fleet of merchantmen, taken the islands of Guernsey 
 and Jersey, and, while Henry was fighting at Shrewsbury, 
 landed near Plymouth and plundered the whole country 
 round. On the news reaching them of the result of the 
 battle of Shrewsbury, they at once burned Plymouth to the 
 ground, and then, re-embarking, sailed for France. All re- 
 
376 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 monstrances on the part of Henry were met by declarations 
 that these raids were carried on without the knowledge of 
 the French king, and were greatly against his inclinations, 
 which were wholly for the strictest observance of the truce. 
 Nevertheless, a few months later the Count of St. Pol landed 
 a force in the Isle of Wight ; but the people of the island rose 
 in arms and defeated the invaders, who sailed hastily away. 
 
 Although, having other matters in hand, Henry professed 
 to believe the French king's assurances, the sailors and ship- 
 masters were in no way content to suffer unresistingly, and 
 the men of the seaports of the east coast, and of Plymouth and 
 Fowey, banded themselves together and carried on war on 
 their own account, capturing several fleets of ships loaded 
 with wine and other valuable commodities, burning the coast 
 towns, and making several raids into the interior of France 
 and carrying off much plunder. Enraged at this retaliation, 
 the French incited the Flemings, Dutch, and Hollanders to 
 cruise against the English, and these, sailing in great ships, 
 executed so many atrocities upon English crews and ships 
 that, later, Henry himself sent out a fleet under his second 
 son, who executed his commission, effectually destroying 
 ships, burning towns, and putting the people to the sword 
 without mercy. 
 
 Thus the breaches of the peace by the French recoiled 
 terribly upon themselves, and they suffered vastly greater loss 
 than they had inflicted upon the English. 
 
 From the time when he let slip the opportunities both of 
 joining Hotspur and of falling on the royal army after their 
 victory, Glendower's power declined. For a time he con- 
 tinued to capture castles and to carry out raids across the 
 border, but gradually he was driven back to his mountain 
 strongholds. His followers lost heart, he became a fugitive, 
 and died on the 20th of September, 1415, in the sixty-first 
 
SHREWSBURY 377 
 
 year of his age, at the house of one of his married daughters, 
 whether at Scudamore or Mornington is unknown. 
 
 Mortimer died in Harlech Castle during the time it was 
 besieged by the English. It is said that his death was caused 
 by depression and grief at the misfortunes that had befallen 
 him. The Earl of Northumberland, as John Forster had 
 anticipated, raised the standard of revolt in 1405, in concert 
 with the Archbishop of York and some other nobles; but 
 before he could join these with his forces they had been forced 
 to surrender to the king, who had marched north with a great 
 army. The archbishop and some of his associates were exe- 
 cuted, and the earl, finding himself unable to oppose so great a 
 force, fled into Scotland. Alnwick surrendered without resis- 
 tance, and Warkworth after a siege of eight days. Berwick 
 was captured, and its governor and several knights executed 
 
 Escaping from Scotland, where he feared that he might be 
 seized and surrendered to England, the earl sailed to Wales, 
 and for some little time stayed with Glendower; then he 
 crossed to the Continent, and in 1408 landed in Yorkshire 
 and again raised his standard. The sheriff of the county 
 called out the levies and attacked him at Branham Moor, 
 where the old earl was killed and his followers defeated. In 
 14 15, the king, being on the eve of war with France, and 
 anxious to obtain the good-will and support of the Northum- 
 brians, restored Hotspur's son, who had been for years a fugi- 
 tive in Scotland, to the estates and honours of his father and 
 grandfather. 
 
 Fortunate it was for Oswald that the capture of his fellow- 
 conspirators caused the earl to retreat, in 1405, without giving 
 battle. The young knight had, at his summons, called out 
 his tenants, and with them and his retainers had joined Percy. 
 As soon as the latter decided to fly to Scotland, his force 
 scattered, and Oswald returned home with his following. He 
 
378 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER 
 
 took no part in the final rising. Before this took place he had 
 married his cousin Janet. His father lived to be present at 
 the wedding, but died the following year ; and, in accordance 
 with his wishes, Oswald took up his abode at Yardhope, which 
 he largely added to and strongly fortified. Here his mother 
 lived with him until her death ten years later. Oswald offered 
 to Roger the command of his castle at Stoubes, but the burly 
 squire preferred staying at Yardhope with his master. He 
 himself had taken a wife, the daughter of one of the principal 
 tenants on the estate, on the same day that Oswald married 
 Janet. His uncle, after the surrender of Alnwick, lived at 
 Yardhope until, at the return of Hotspur's son as Earl of 
 Northumberland, he resumed his old position as captain of 
 the garrison, and maintained it until his death. 
 
 THE END 
 
"Wherever English is spoken one imagines that Mr. Henty's 
 name is known. One cannot enter a schoolroom or look at a 
 boy's bookshelf without seeing half-a-dozen of his familiar 
 volumes. Mr. Henty is no doubt the most successful writer 
 for boys, and the one to whose new volumes they look forward 
 every Christmas with most pleasure." — Review of Reviews. 
 
 »■ 
 
 A LIST OF BOOKS 
 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 By 
 
 G, A. HENTY, 
 
 KIRK MUNROE, JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY. 
 ERNEST THOMPSON SETON, and Others 
 
 Published by 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 
 
 J 53 to 157 Fifth Avenue 
 New York 
 
Other Volumes of the 
 Henty Books 
 
 Uniform with This Popular Edition 
 
 IN FREEDOM'S CAUSE 
 
 WITH LEE IN 
 
 VIRGINIA 
 
 WITH WOLFE IN 
 
 CANADA 
 
 THE LION OF ST. MARK 
 
 IN THE REIGN OF 
 
 TERROR 
 
 NO SURRENDER 
 
 UNDER WELLING- 
 TON'S COMMAND 
 
 WITH FREDERICK 
 
 THE GREAT 
 
 AT ABOUKIR AND 
 
 ACRE 
 
 BOTH SIDES THE 
 
 BORDER 
 
 A MARCH ON LONDON 
 
 WITH MOORE AT 
 
 CORUNNA 
 
 AT AGINCOURT 
 
 COCHRANE THE 
 
 DAUNTLESS 
 
 ON THE IRRAWADDY 
 
 THROUGH RUSSIAN 
 
 SNOWS 
 
 A KNIGHT OF THE 
 
 WHITE CROSS 
 
 THE TIGER OF 
 
 MYSORE 
 
 IN THE HEART OF 
 
 THE ROCKIES 
 
 WHEN LONDON 
 
 BURNED 
 
 WULF THE SAXON 
 
 ST. BARTHOLOMEW'S 
 EVE 
 
 THROUGH THE SIKH 
 WAR 
 
 A JACOBITE EXILE 
 
 CONDEMNED AS A 
 
 NIHILIST 
 
 BERIC THE BRITON 
 
 IN GREEK WATERS 
 
 THE DASH FOR 
 
 KHARTOUM 
 
 REDSKIN AND COW- 
 BOY 
 
 HELD FAST FOR 
 
 ENGLAND 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 By G. A. HENTY 
 
 " Among -miters of stories of adventures for boys Mr. Henty stands 
 in the very first rank." — Academy (London). 
 
 THE TREASURE OF THE INCAS 
 
 A Tale of Adventure in Peru. With 8 full-page Illustrations 
 by WaIi Paget, and Map. §1.20 net. 
 
 Peru and the hidden treasures of her ancient kings offer Mr. Henty a 
 most fertile field for a stirring story of adventure in his most engaging 
 style. In an effort to win the girl of his heart, the hero penetrates into 
 the wilds of the land of the Incas. Boys who have learned to look for 
 Mr. Henty's books will follow his new hero in his adventurous and 
 romantic expedition with absorbing interest. It is one of the most cap- 
 tivating tales Mr. Henty has yet written. 
 
 WITH KITCHENER IN THE SOUDAN 
 
 A Story of Atbara and Omdurman. With 10 full-page Illus- 
 trations. §1.20 net. 
 
 Mr. Henty has never combined history and thrilling adventure more 
 skillfully than in this extremely interesting story. It is not in boy nat- 
 ure to la}' it aside unfinished, once begun ; and finished, the reader finds 
 himself in possession, not only of the facts and the true atmosphere of 
 Kitchener's famous Soudan campaign, but of the Gordon tragedy which 
 preceded it by so many years and of which it was the outcome. 
 
 WITH THE BRITISH LEGION 
 
 A Story of the Carlist Uprising of 1836. Illustrated. §1.20 
 net. 
 
 Arthur Hallet, a young English boy, finds himself in difficulty at 
 home, through certain harmless school escapades, and enlists in the 
 famous " British Legion," which was then embarking for Spain to take 
 part in the campaign to repress the Carlist uprising of 1S3G. Arthur 
 shows his mettle in the first fight, distinguishes himself by daring work 
 in carrying an important dispatch to Madrid, makes a dashing and 
 thrilling rescue of the sister of his patron, and is rapidly promoted to the 
 rank of captain. In following the adventures of the hero the reader ob- 
 tains, as is usual with Mr. Henty's stories, a most accurate and interest- 
 ing history of a picturesque campaign. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 STORIES BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 "His books have at once the solidity of history and the charm of 
 romance. ''''-Journal of Education. 
 
 TO HERAT AND CABUL 
 
 A Story of the First Afghan War. By G. A. Henty. With 
 Illustrations. 12mo, $1.20 net. 
 
 The greatest defeat ever experienced by the British Army was that 
 in the Mountain Passes of Afghanistan. Angus Cameron, the hero of 
 this hook, having been captured by the friendly Afghans, was com- 
 pelled to be a witness of the calamity. His whole story is an intensely 
 interesting one, from his boyhood in Persia; his employment underthe 
 Government at Herat; through the defense of that town against the 
 Persians; to Cabul, where he shared in all the events which ended in 
 the awful march through the Passes from which but one man escaped. 
 Angus is always at the point of danger, and whether in battle or in 
 hazardous expeditions shows how much a brave youth, full of 
 resources, can do, even with so treacherous a foe. His dangers and 
 adventures are thrilling, and his escapes marvellous. 
 
 WITH ROBERTS TO PRETORIA 
 
 A Tale of the South African War. By G. A Kenty. With 12 
 Illustrations. $1.20 net. 
 
 The Boer War gives Mr. Henty an unexcelled opportunity for a 
 thrilling story of present-day interest which the author could not fail to 
 take advantage of. Every boy reader will find this account of the ad- 
 ventures of the young hero most exciting, and, at the same time a 
 wonderfully accurate description of Lord Roberts's campaign to Preto- 
 ria. Boys have found history in the dress Mr. Henty gives it anything 
 but dull, and the present book is no exception to the rule. 
 
 AT THE POINT OF THE BAYONET 
 
 A Tale of the Mahratta War. By G. A. Henty. Illustrated. 
 12mo, $1.20 net. 
 
 One hundred years ago the rule of the British in India was only partly 
 established. The powerful Mahrattas were unsubdued, and with their 
 skill in intrigue, and great military power, they were exceedingly dan- 
 gerous. The 6tory of "At the Point of the Bayonet" begins with 
 the attempt to conquer this powerful people. Harry Lindsay, an 
 infant when bis father and mother were killed, was saved by his 
 Mahratta ayah, who carried him to her own people and brought him 
 rip as a native. She taught him as best she could, and, having told him 
 hi6 parentage, sent him to Bombay to be educated. At sixteen he ob- 
 tained a commission in the English Army, and his knowledge of the 
 Mahratta tongue combined with his ability and bravery enabled him to 
 render great service in the Mahratta War, and carried him, through 
 many frightful perils by land and sea, to high rank. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 "Mr. Henty might with entire propriety be called the boys' Sir 
 Walter Scott " — Philadelphia Press. 
 
 IN THE IRISH BRIGADE 
 
 A Tale of "War in Flanders and Spain. With 12 Illustrations by 
 Charles M. Sheldon. 12rno, $1.50. 
 
 Desmond Kennedy is a young Irish lad who left Ireland to join the 
 Irish Brigade in the service of Louis XIV. of France. In Paris he in- 
 curred the deadly hatred of a powerful courtier from whom he had 
 rescued a young girl who had been kidnapped, aDd his perils are of ab- 
 sorbing interest. Captured in an attempted Jacobite invasion of Scot- 
 land, he escaped in a most extraordinary manner. As aid-de-camp 
 to the Duke of Berwick he experienced thrilling adventures in Flan- 
 ders. Transferred to the Army in Spain, he was nearly assassinated, but 
 escaped to return, when peace was declared, to his native land, having 
 received pardon and having recovered his estates. The story is filled 
 with adventure, and the interest never abates. 
 
 OUT WITH GARIBALDI 
 
 A Story of the Liberation of Italy. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 Illustrations by W. Raeney, R.I. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 Garibaldi himself is the central figure of this brilliant story, and the 
 little-known history of the struggle for Italian freedom is told here in 
 the most thrilling way. From the time the hero, a young lad, son of 
 an English father and an Italian mother, joins Garibaldi's band of 
 1,000 men in the first descent upon Sicily, which was garrisoned by one 
 of the large Neapolitan armies, until the end, when all those armies 
 are beaten, and the two Sicilys are conquered, we follow with the 
 keenest interest the exciting adventures of the lad in 6couting, in 
 battle, and iu freeing those in prison for liberty's sake. 
 
 WITH BULLER IN NATAL 
 
 Or, A Born Leader. By G. A. Henty. With 10 Illustrations 
 by W. RArNEY. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The breaking out of the Boer War compelled Chris King, the hero 
 of the story, to flee with his mother from Johannesburg to the sea 
 coast. They were with many other Uitlanders, and all suffered much 
 from the Boers. Reaching a place of safety for their families, Chris 
 and twenty of his friends formed an independent company of scouts. In 
 this service they were with Gen. Yule at Glencoe, then in Ladvsmith, 
 then with Buller. In each place they had many thrilling adventures. 
 They were in great battles and in lonely rights on the Veldt ; were 
 taken prisoners and escaped; and they rendered most valuable service 
 to the English forces. The story is a most interesting picture of the 
 War iu South Africa, 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG FEOTLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 " Surely Mr. Henty should understand boys' tastes better than any 
 man living." — The Times. 
 
 WON BY THE SWORD 
 
 A Tale of the Thirty Years' War. With 12 Illustrations by 
 Charles M. Sheldon, and four Plans. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The scene of this story is iaid in France, during the time of Richelieu, 
 of Mazarin and Anne of Austria. The hero, Hector Campbell, is the 
 orphaned son of a Scotch officer in the French Army. How he at- 
 tracted the notice of Marshal Turenne and of the Prince of Conde ; 
 how he rose to the rank of Colonel ; how he finally had to leave France, 
 pursued by the deadly hatred of the Due de Beaufort — all these and 
 much more the story tells with the most absorbing interest. 
 
 A ROVING COMMISSION 
 
 Or, Through the Black Insurrection at Hayti. With 12 Illus- 
 trations by William Rainey. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 This is one of the most brilliant of Mr. Henty's books. A story of 
 the sea, with all its life and action, it is also full of thrilling adven- 
 tures on land. So it holds the keenest interest until the end. The 
 scene is a new one to Mr. Henty's readers, being laid at the time of the 
 Great Revolt of the Blacks, by which Hayti became independent. 
 Toussaint l'Overture appears, and an admirable picture is given of him 
 and of his power. 
 
 NO SURRENDER 
 
 The Story of the Revolt in La Vendee. With 8 Illustrations 
 by Stanley L. Wood. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The revolt of La Vendue against the French Republic at the time of 
 the Revolution forms the groundwork of this absorbing story. Leigh. 
 Stansfield, a young English lad, is drawn into the thickest of the con- 
 flict. Forming a company of boys as scouts for the Vendean Army, 
 he greatly aids the peasants. He rescues his sister from the guillotine, 
 and finally, after many thrilling experiences, when the cause of La 
 Vendee is lost, he escapes to England. 
 
 UNDER WELLINGTON'S COMMAND 
 
 A Tale of the Peninsular War. With 12 Illustrations by Wax, 
 
 Paget. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The dashing hero of this book, Terence O'Connor, was the hero of 
 Mr. Henty's previous book, " With Moore at Corunna," to which this 
 is really a sequel. He is still at the head of the " Minho " Portuguese 
 regiment. Being detached on independent and guerilla duty with his 
 regiment, he renders invaluable service iu gaining information and in 
 harassing the French. His command, being constantly on the edge of 
 the army, is engaged in frequent skirmishes and some most important 
 battles. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 u Mr. Henty is the king of story-tellers for boys." — Sword and TroweL 
 
 AT ABOUKIR AND ACRE 
 
 A Story of Napoleon's Invasion of Egypt. With 8 full-page 
 Illustrations by William Rainey, and 3 Plans. 12mo, 
 $1.50. 
 
 The hero, having saved the life of the son of an Arab chief, is taken 
 Into the tribe, has a part in the battle of the Pyramids and the revolt 
 at Cairo. He is an eye-witness of the famous naval battle of Aboukir, 
 and later is in the hardest of the defense of Acre. 
 
 BOTH SIDES THE BORDER ^ 
 
 A Tale of Hotspur and Glendower. With 13 full-page Illu>- 
 trations by Ralph Peacock. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 This is a brilliant story of the stirring times of the beginning of the 
 "Wars of the Roses, when the Scotch, under Douglas, and the Welsh, 
 under Owen Glendower, were attacking the English. The hero of the 
 book lived near the Scotch border, and saw many a hard fight there. 
 Entering the service of Lord Percy, he was 6ent to Wales, where he 
 was knighted, and where he was captured. Being released, he returned 
 home, and shared in the fatal battle of Shrewsbury. 
 
 WITH FREDERICK THE GREAT 
 
 A Tale of the Seven Years' War. With 12 full-page Illustra- 
 tions. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The hero of this story while still a youth entered the service of 
 Frederick the Great, and by a succession of fortunate circumstances 
 and perilous adventures, rose to the rank of colonel. Attached to the 
 stall of the king, he rendered distinguished services in many battles, in 
 one of which he saved the king's life. Twice captured and imprisoned, 
 he both times escaped from the Austrian fortresses. 
 
 A MARCH ON LONDON 
 
 A Story of Wat Tyler's Rising. With 8 full-page Illustra- 
 tions by W. II. Margetson. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 The story of Wat Tyler's Rebellion is but little known, but the hero 
 of this story passes through that perilous time and takes part in the 
 civil war in Flanders which followed soon after. Although young he 
 is thrown into many exciting and dangerous adventures, through which 
 he passes with great coolness and much credit. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 " No country nor epoch of history is there which Mr. Henty does not 
 know, and what is really remarkable is that he always writes well and 
 interestingly." — New York Times. 
 
 WITH MOORE AT CORUNNA 
 
 A Story of the Peninsular War. With 12 full-page Illustra- 
 tions by Wal Paget. 12mo, $1.50. 
 
 Terence O'Connor i3 living with his widowed father, Captain O'Con- 
 nor of the Mayo Fusiliers, with the regiment at the time when the 
 Peninsular war began. Upon the regiment being ordered to Spain, 
 Terence gets appointed as aid to one of the generals of a division. By 
 his bravery and great usefulness throughout the war, he is rewarded 
 by a commission as colonel in the Portuguese army and there rendered 
 great service. 
 
 AT AGINCOURT 
 
 A Tale of the White Hoods of Paris. With 12 full-page 
 Illustrations by Walter Paget. Crown 8vo, olivine 
 edges, $1.50. 
 
 The story begins in a grim feudal castle in Normandie. The times 
 were troublous, and soon the king compelled Lady Margaret de Villeroy 
 with her children to go to Paris as hostages. Guy Ayimer went with 
 her. Paris was turbulent. Soon the guild of the butchers, adopting 
 white hoods as their uniform, seized the city, and besieged the house 
 where our hero and his charges lived. After desperate fighting, the 
 white hoods were beaten and our hero and his charges escaped from 
 the city, and from France. 
 
 WITH COCHRANE THE DAUNTLESS 
 
 A Tale of the Exploits of Lord Cochrane in South American 
 Waters. With 12 full-page Illustrations by W. EL 
 Margetson. Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero of this story accompanies Cochrane as midshipman, and 
 serves in the war between Chili and Peru. He has many exciting 
 adventures in battles by sea and land, is taken prisoner and condemned 
 to death by the Inquisition, but escapes by a long and thrilling flight 
 across South America and down the Amazon. 
 
 ON THE IRRAWADDY V 
 
 A Story of the First Burmese War. With 8 full page Illus- 
 trations by W. H. Overend. Crown 8vo, olivine edges, 
 $1.50. 
 
 The hero, having an uncle, a trader on the Indian and Burmese 
 rivers, goes out to join him. Soon after, war is declared by Burmah 
 against England and he is drawn into it. He has many experiences 
 and narrow escapes in battles and in scouting. With half-a-dozen 
 men he rescues his cousin who had been taken prisoner, and in the 
 flight they are besieged in an old, ruined temple. 
 
BOOKS FOR TO UNO PEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 " Boys like stirring adventures, and Mr. Henty is a master of this 
 method of composition." — New York Times. 
 
 THROUGH RUSSIAN SNOWS 
 
 A Story of Napoleon's Retreat from Moscow. With 8 full- 
 page Illustrations by W. H. Overend and 3 Maps. Crown 
 
 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero, Julian Wyatt, after several adventures with smugglers, by 
 whom he is handed over a prisoner to the French, regains his freedom 
 and joins Napoleon's army in the Russian campaign. When the terrible 
 retreat begins, Julian finds himself in the rearguard of the French army, 
 fighting desperately. Ultimately he escapes out of the general disaster, 
 and returns to England. 
 
 A KNIGHT OF THE WHITE CROSS 
 
 A Tale of the Siege of Rhodes. With 12 full -page Illustra- 
 tions by Ralph Peacock, and a Plan. Crown 8vo, olivine 
 edges, $1.50. 
 
 Gervaise Tresham, the hero of this story, joins the Order of the 
 Knights of St. John, and proceeds to the stronghold of Rhodes. Sub- 
 sequently he is appointed commander of a war-galley, and in his first 
 voyage destroys a fleet of Moorish corsairs. During one of his cruises 
 the young knight is attacked on shore, captured after a desperate 
 struggle, and sold into slavery in Tripoli. He succeeds in escaping, and 
 returns to Rhodes in time to take part in the defense of that fortress. 
 
 THE TIGER OF MYSORE 
 
 A Story of the War with Tippoo Saib. With 12 full-page 
 Illustrations by W. H. Mahgetson, and a Map. Crown 
 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 Dick Holland, whose father is supposed to be a captive of Tippoo 
 Saib, goes to India to help him to escape. He joins the army under 
 Lord Cornwallis, and takes part in the campaign againt Tippoo. 
 Afterwards he assumes a disguise, enters Seringapatam, and at last 
 he discovers his father in the great stronghold of Savandroog. The 
 hazardous rescue is at length accomplished, and the young fellow's 
 dangerous mission is done. 
 
 IN THE HEART OF THE ROCKIES 
 
 A Story of Adventure in Colorado. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 full-page Illustrations by Q. C. Hindley. Crown 8vo, 
 olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero, Tom Wade, goes to seek his uncle In Colorado, who is a 
 hunter and gold-digger, and he is discovered, after many dangers, out 
 on the Plains with some comrades. Going in quest of a gold mine, the 
 little band is spied by Indians, chased across the Bad Lands, and 
 overwhelmed by a snowstorm iu the mountains. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG TEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 "Mr. Henty is one of the best story-tellers for young people." 
 
 — Spectator. 
 
 WHEN LONDON BURNED 
 
 A Story of the Plague and the Fire. By G. A. Henty. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by J. FiNNEMORE. Crown 8vo, 
 olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero of this story was the son of a nobleman who had lost his 
 estates durftig the troublous times of the Commonwealth. During the 
 Great Plague and the Great Fire, Cyril was prominent among those 
 who brought help to the panic-stricken inhabitants. 
 
 WULF THE SAXON 
 
 A Story of the Norman Conquest. By G. A. Henty. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by Ralph Peacock. Crown 
 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero is a young thane who wins the favor of Earl Harold and 
 becomes one of his retinue. When Harold becomes King of England 
 Wulf assists in the Welsh wars, and takes part against the Norsemen 
 at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. When William of Normandy in- 
 vades England, Wulf is with the English host at Hastings, and 6tands 
 by his king to the last in the mighty struggle. 
 
 ST. BARTHOLOMEW'S EVE \/ 
 
 A Tale of the Huguenot Wars. By G. A. Hentt. With 12 
 full-page Illustrations by H. J. Drapek, and a Map. 
 Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero, Philip Fletcher, has a French connection on his mother's 
 side. This induces him to cross the Channel in order to take a share 
 in the Huguenot wars. Naturally he sides with the Protestants, dis- 
 tinguishes himself in various battles, and receives rapid promotion for 
 the zeal and daring with which he carries out several secret missions. 
 
 THROUGH THE SIKH WAR 
 
 A Tale of the Conquest of the Punjaub. By G. A. Henty. 
 With 12 fuil-p:ige illustrations by Hal Hurst, and a 
 Map. Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 Percy Groves, a spirited English lad, joins his uncle in the Punjaub, 
 where the natives are in a state of revolt. Percy joins the British 
 force as a volunteer, and takes a distinguished share in the famous 
 battles of the Punjaub. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUZG PEOPLE 
 
 BY Q. A. HENTY 
 
 " The brightest of the living writers whose office it is to enchant the 
 boys. — Christian Leader. 
 
 A JACOBITE EXILE 
 
 Being the Adventures of a Young Englishman in the Service 
 
 of Charles XII. of Sweden. By G. A. Henty. With 8 
 
 full-page Illustrations by Paul Hardy, and a Map. Crown 
 
 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 Sir Marmaduke Carstairs, a Jacobite, is the]victim of a conspiracy, and 
 he is denounced as a plotter against the life of King William. He flies 
 to Sweden, accompanied by his son Charlie. This youth joins the 
 foreign legion under Charles XII., and takes a distinguished part in 
 several famous campaigns against the Russians and Poles. 
 
 CONDEMNED AS A NIHILIST 
 
 A Story of Escape from Siberia. By G. A. Henty. With 8 
 full-page Illustrations. Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The hero of this story is an English boy resident in St. Petersburg. 
 Through two student friends he becomes innocently involved in 
 various political plots, resulting in his seizure by the Russian police 
 and his exile to Siberia. He ultimately escapes, and, after many ex- 
 citing adventures, he reaches Norway, and thence home, after a 
 perilous journey which lasts nearly two years. 
 
 BERIC THE BRITON 
 
 A Story of the Roman Invasion. By G. A. Henty. With 
 12 full-page Illustrations by W. Parkinson. Crown 8vo, 
 olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 This story deals with the invasion of Britain by the Roman legionaries. 
 Beric, who is a boy-chief of a British tribe, takes a prominent part in 
 the insurrection under Boadicea ; and after the defeat of that heroic 
 queen (in A. D. 62) he continues the struggle in the fen-country. 
 Ultimately Beric is defeated and carried captive to Rome, where he is 
 trained in the exercise of arms in a school of gladiators. At length he 
 returus to Britain, where he becomes ruler of his own people. 
 
 IN GREEK WATERS 
 
 A Story of the Grecian War of Independence (1821-1827). By 
 
 G. A. Henty. With 12 full-page Illustrations by W. S. 
 
 Stacey, and a Map. Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 Deals with the revolt of the Greeks in 1821 against Turkish oppres- 
 sion. Mr. Beveridi^e and his son Horace lit out a privateer, load it 
 with military stores, and 6et sail for Greece. They rescue the Chris- 
 tians, relieve the captive Greeks, and light the Turkish war vessels. 
 
BOOKS FOR TO UNO PEOPLE 
 
 BY G. A. HENTY 
 
 " No living writer of books for boys writes to better purpose than 
 Mr. G. A. Henty." — Philadelphia Press. 
 
 THE DASH FOR KHARTOUM 
 
 A Tale of the Nile Expedition. By G. A. Henty. With 10 
 full-page Illustrations by John Schonberg and J. Nash. 
 Crown 8vo, olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 In the record of recent British history there is no more captivating 
 page for boys than the story of the Nile campaign, and the attempt to 
 rescue General Gordon. For, in the difficulties which the expedition 
 encountered, in the perils which it overpassed, and in its final tragic 
 disappointments, are found all the excitements of romance, as well as 
 the fascination which belongs to real events. 
 
 REDSKIN AND COW-BOY 
 
 A Tale of the Western Plains. By G. A. Henty. With 12 
 full-page Illustrations by Alfred Pearse. Crown 8vo, 
 olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 The central interest of this story is found in the many adventures of 
 an English lad, who seeks employment as a cow-boy on a cattle ranch. 
 His experiences during a " round-up " present in picturesque form the 
 toilsome, exciting, adventurous life of a cow-boy ; while the perils of a 
 * r ontier settlement are vividly set forth in an Indian raid. 
 
 HELD FAST FOR ENGLAND 
 
 A Tale of the Siege of Gibraltar. By G. A. Henty. With 
 8 full-page Illustrations by Gordon Browne. Crown 8vo, 
 olivine edges, $1.50. 
 
 This story deals with one of the most memorable sieges in history — 
 the siege of Gibraltar in 1779-83 by the united forces of France and 
 Spain. With land forces, fleets, and floating batteries, the combined 
 resources of two great nations, this grim fortress was vainly besieged 
 and bombarded. The hero of the tale, an English lad resident in 
 Gibraltar, takes a brave and worthy part in the long defence, and it is 
 through his varied experiences that we learn with what bravery, re- 
 source, and tenacity the Rock was held for England. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 A List of Books by- 
 Kirk Munroe 
 
 A SON OF SATSUMA 
 
 Or, with Perry in Japan. By Kirk Munroe. With 12 illus- 
 trations by Harry C. Edwards. $1.00 net. 
 
 This absorbing story for boys deals with one of the most interesting 
 episodes in our National history. From the beginning Japan has been a 
 land of mystery. Foreigners were permitted to land only at certain 
 points on her shores, and nothing whatever was known of her civilization 
 and history, her romance and magnificence, her wealth and art. It was 
 Commodore Perry who opened her gates to the world, thus solving the 
 mystery of the ages, and, in this thrilling story of an American boy in 
 Japan at that period, the spirit as well as the history of this great 
 achievement is ably set forth. 
 
 IN PIRATE WATERS 
 
 A Tale of the American Xavy. Illustrated by I. W. Taber. 
 12rno, 81-25. 
 
 The hero of the story becomes a midshipman in the navy just at the 
 time of the war with Tripoli. His own wild adventures among the 
 Turks and his love romance are thoroughly interwoven with the stirring 
 historv of that time. 
 
 WITH CROCKETT AND BOWIE 
 
 Or, Fighting for the Lone Star Flag. A Tale of Texas. By 
 Kikic Munroe. With 8 full-page Illustrations by Victor 
 Pkuakd. Crown 8vo. $1.25. 
 
 The story is of the Texas revolution in 18-"5, when American Texans 
 under Sam Houston, Howie, Crockett, and Travis fought for relief from 
 the intolerable tyranny of the Mexican Santa Ana. The hero, Rex 
 Hardin, son of a Texan ranchman and graduate of an American military 
 school, takes a prominent part in the heroic defense of the Alamo, and 
 the final triumj>h at San Jacinto. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 By KIRK MUNROE 
 
 THROUGH SWAMP AND GLADE 
 
 A Tale of the Seminole War. By Kirk Munroe. With 8 
 full -page Illustration? by V. Perard. Crown 8vo, .$1.25. 
 
 Coacoochee, the hero of the story, is the son of Philip, the chieftain of 
 the Seminoles. He grows up to lead his tribe in the long struggle which, 
 resulted in the Indians being driven from the north of Florida down to 
 the distant southern wilderness. 
 
 AT WAR WITH PONTIAC 
 
 Or, the Totem of the Bear. A Tale of Bedcoat and Bedskin. 
 By Kirk Munroe. With 8 full-page illustrations by J. 
 Finnemore. Crown 8vo, $1.25. 
 
 A story when the shores of Lake Erie were held by hostile Indians. 
 The hero, Donald Hester, goes in search of his sister Edith, who has 
 been captured by the Indians. Strange and terrible are his experiences ; 
 for he is wounded, taken prisoner, condemned to be burned, but contrives 
 to escape. In the end all things terminate happily. 
 
 THE WHITE CONQUERORS 
 
 A Tale of Toltec and Aztec. By Kirk Mtjnroe. With 8 full- 
 
 page Illustrations. Crown 8vo, $1.25. 
 
 This story deals with the conquest of Mexico by Cortez and his Span- 
 iards, the " White Conquerors," who, after many deeds of valor, pushed 
 their way into the great Aztec kingdom and established their power in 
 the wondrous city where Montezuma reigned in splendor. 
 
 MIDSHIPMAN STUART 
 
 Or, the Last Cruise of the Essex. A Tale of the War of 
 1812. Illustrated. 12mo, $1.25. 
 
 This is an absorbing story of life in the American Navy during the 
 stirring times of our war of 1S12. The very spirit of the period is in ita 
 pages, and many of the adventures of the Essex are studied from history. 
 
BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 By ERNEST THOMPSON SETON 
 
 LIVES OF THE HUNTED 
 
 Being a true account of the doings of four quadrupeds and 
 three birds. With 200 Illustrations. §1.75 net. (Post- 
 age, 15 cents. J 
 
 '■Should be put with Kipling and Hans Christian Andersen as a 
 classic." — The Athenaeum (London). 
 
 WILD ANIMALS I HAVE KNOWN 
 With 200 Illustrations. $2.00. 
 
 Mr. Ernest Thompson Seton's first and most famous book. More than 
 100,000 have been sold so far. 
 
 By JAMES WH1TCOMB RILEY 
 
 THE BOOK OF JOYOUS CHILDREN 
 
 Profusely Illustrated. 
 
 The sweetness, the grace, the laughter, and the tenderness of Mr. 
 Riley's best verse are found to the full in this book of delightful poems 
 for and about chddren. The illustrations have been made under the 
 author's supervision, and portray the scenes and the little heroes and 
 heroines of the poems with artistic fidelity. 
 
 By CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY 
 
 IN THE WASP'S NET 
 
 The Story of a Sea Waif. Illustrated. $1.50 net. (Postage, 
 16 cents.) 
 
 A vigorous story of the war of 1812. The hero, a midshipman, serves 
 gallantly aboard two famous American ships, each bearing the name of 
 Wasp, having many adventures of storm, battle, and capture. 
 
 By THOMAS NELSON PACE 
 A CAPTURED SANTA CLAUS 
 
 Illustrated in Colors. 
 
 This exquisite story of childhood is one of the most delicate that even 
 Mr. Page has written. It is an episode of the Oivil War in which chil- 
 dren are the little heroes. The period is the Christmas time, and tht> 
 scene is between the lines of the Union and Confederate Armies. 
 
BOOKS FOR TO UNO PEOPLE 
 
 JEB HUTTON, A GEORGIA BOY 
 
 By James B. Connolly. Illustrated. $1.20 net. (Postage, 
 13 cents.) 
 
 A thoroughly interesting and breezy tale of boy-life along the 
 Savannah River by a writer who kuows boys, and who has succeeded 
 in making of the adventures of Jeb and his friends a story that will 
 keep his young readers absorbed to the last page. 
 
 KING MOMBO 
 
 By Paul Du Chaillu. Author of "The "World of the Great 
 Forest," etc. "With 24 illustrations. $1.50 net. (Postage, 
 16 cents.) 
 
 The scene is the great African forest. It is a book of interesting 
 experiences with native tribes, and thrilling and perilous adventures in 
 hunting elephants, crocodiles, gorillas and other fierce creatures 
 among which this famous explorer lived 60 long. 
 
 A NEW BOOK FOR GIRLS 
 
 By Lin a Beard and Adelia B. Beard. Authors of " The 
 American Girl's Handy Book." Profusely Illustrated. 
 
 An admirable collection of entirely new and original indoor and out- 
 door pastimes for American girls, each fully and interestingly de- 
 scribed and explained, and all designed to stimulate the taste and 
 ingenuity at the same time that they Entertain. 
 
 SEA FIGHTERS FROM DRAKE TO 
 FARRAGUT 
 
 By Jessie Peabody Frothingham. Illustrations by Reuter- 
 dahl. $1.20 net. (Postage, 14 cents.) 
 
 Drake, Tromp, De Reuter, Tourville, Suffren, Paul Jones, Nelson 
 and Farragut are the naval heroes here pictured, and each is shown in 
 some great episode which illustrates his personality and heroism. The 
 book is full of the very spirit of daring and adventurous achievement. 
 
 BOB AND HIS GUN 
 
 By William Alexander Linn. With 8 Illustrations. 
 
 The adventures of a boy with a gun under the instruction of his 
 cousin, an accomplished sportsman. The book's aim is to interest 
 boys in hunting in the spirit of true sport and to instruct in the ways 
 of game birds and animals. 
 
This book is due at the WALTER R. DAVIS LIBRARY on 
 the last date stamped under "Date Due." If not on hold it 
 may be renewed by bringing it to the library. 
 
 DATE 
 
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