{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_45543/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_45543","id":"gutenberg_45543","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/45543","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Adventure","Category: British Literature","Category: Historical Novels","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Edwin, King of Northumbria, 585?-633 -- Fiction","Great Britain -- History -- Anglo-Saxon period, 449-1066 -- Fiction"],"text":"THE PALADINS\n                                  OF\n                            EDWIN THE GREAT\n\n[Illustration: Porlor and his Companions Kidnapped by Sea-thieves]\n\n\n\n\n                             THE PALADINS\n                                  OF\n                            EDWIN THE GREAT\n\n\n                                  BY\n\n                    SIR CLEMENTS R. MARKHAM, K.C.B.\n\n\n                              NEW EDITION\n\n                                LONDON\n\n                        ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK\n\n                                 1908\n\n\n\n\n                _First published September 1896._\n       _Reprinted August 1901. New Edition September 1908._\n\n\n\n\n    CONTENTS\n\n\n                                               PAGE\n\n  PREFACE                                         1\n\n\n                             PART I.--HOME\n\n  CHAP.\n\n  1. STILLINGFLEET                               13\n\n  2. ALCA                                        22\n\n  3. ALDBY                                       40\n\n  4. YORK AND THE DEIRAN FRONTIER                54\n\n  5. KIDNAPPED                                   66\n\n  6. MYSTACON                                    77\n\n\n    PART II.--EXILE\n\n  1. FALLEN ROME                                 95\n\n  2. IN BONDAGE AT ROME                         108\n\n  3. THE GLORIES OF THE EAST                    126\n\n  4. A SON OF ALARIC                            141\n\n  5. UJJAYANI                                   157\n\n  6. IRAN                                       181\n\n  7. THE RESCUE OF SIVEL                        194\n\n\n    PART III.--WORK\n\n  1. THE STORY OF AUGUSTINE                     213\n\n  2. HOME AGAIN                                 230\n\n  3. DEATH OF ALCA                              248\n\n  4. EDWIN                                      270\n\n  5. BAPTISM                                    296\n\n  6. THE GREAT BRETWALDA                        315\n\n  7. THE END                                    331\n\n\n  EPILOGUE                                      344\n\n\n\n\n    ILLUSTRATIONS\n\n    BY RALPH PEACOCK\n\n\n  PORLOR AND HIS COMPANIONS KIDNAPPED\n  BY SEA-THIEVES                                     _Frontispiece_\n\n  DANCING ROUND THE SACRED ASH                   _To face page_  14\n\n  PRINCESS ALCA TELLING STORIES TO THE\n  BOYS                                             \"  \"          46\n\n  MYSTACON ATTACKED BY HIS BOY CAPTIVES            \"  \"         104\n\n  COELRED AND PORLOR IN EGYPT                      \"  \"         144\n\n  COELRED AND PORLOR ON THEIR WAY TO\n  THE WELLS                                        \"  \"         158\n\n  DEATH OF MYSTACON                                \"  \"         206\n\n  THE YOUNG WARRIORS PRESENTED TO\n  ETHELFRITH                                       \"  \"         244\n\n  LILLA SAVES THE KING'S LIFE                      \"  \"         304\n\n  KING EDWIN, COELRED, AND PORLOR SLAIN            \"  \"         338\n\n\n\n\n    PREFACE\n\n\nVery little is known for certain of one of the most important events\nin the history of the world, the coming of the Englishmen to England.\nIt took a long time, fully a century, from 450 A.D. to 550 A.D., and\nthey came constantly, in small detachments for the most part, landing\non the coast, in all directions, from the Forth to the Isle of Wight.\nThey came amidst the ruins of the mighty Roman Empire, a new race of\nempire-founders, with all the germs of a still mightier future.\n\nThe new-comers from the older Angeln or England, now called Sleswig,\ncame in the greatest numbers. We know not why, but it certainly was a\nwholesale movement. They kept launching their small fleets of dragon\nships, and crossing the North Sea with their gods, their door-posts,\nand their beautiful golden-haired wives and children, until none were\nleft. They brought with them all the deep religious feeling, all the\nimaginative mythology, all the heroic tales of the old land. They\nfirst disembarked on the coast between the Forth and the Tees, driving\nback the natives into Strathclyde, after a struggle which lasted for\nmany years. Among them came Ida the son of Eoppa, with twelve sons, in\nforty dragon ships full of English warriors. He founded the castle of\nBambrough on the coast, which was at first surrounded with a hedge and\nafterwards with a wall; and in 547 A.D. he became king of the country\nof Bernicia, between the Forth and the Tees. Ida was surnamed the\n\"Flame-bearer.\" He reigned for twelve years in Bernicia, when Ethelric\nhis son succeeded him.\n\nMany more warriors landed on the coast between the Tees and the Humber;\nand in 559 A.D. their Eolderman, named Ella, the son of Iffi, the son\nof Wuscfrea, and twelfth in descent from Woden, became king of the more\nsouthern Northumbrian kingdom of Deira.\n\nWhen they were settled in their kingdom of Deira, with Ella as their\nking, and Elfric his brother as their leader in war, the sea-rovers\nbecame farmers, ready to defend their possessions and to fight for\nthe acquisition of more territory for their countrymen. They were the\nceorls or freemen assembling in communities of families, within a\nboundary or mark, and known by a common name with the addition of the\npatronymic _ing_. The ceorl owned a hide of land, bore arms, had a\nvote, and took part in the _thing_, or general assembly of his mark.\nThe union of marks formed a wapentake (Vopnatak), from the custom of\ntouching the chief's spear in token of fealty. The union of Wapentakes\nformed the Scire or Shire with its Shire-m\u00f3t. The Ceorl was the\nfreeman, while the Eorl was the nobleman or chief in peace and war, and\nthe Eolderman was a prince of the family of the Cyning (from _cyne_,\ngenerous) or king, who wore the _cynehelm_ or circlet of gold.\n\nThe Englishmen came with their immemorial gods, and their grand old\ntraditions. Woden was their All-father and Creator, Thor the mighty\nenemy of giants and trolls, Tyr the god of war. They invoked Balder the\nbright and fair of aspect; Freyr, who presided over rain and sunshine;\nNiord, who ruled the winds; \u00c6gir, god of the ocean; and many more. \"Our\nforefathers derived comfort in affliction, support in difficulty, from\nthe belief that the gods watched over them. They bent in gratitude\nfor the blessings they conferred, and were guided and directed in the\ndaily business of life by the conviction of their responsibility to\nhigher powers than any which they recognised in the world around them.\"\nA religious feeling was the basis of their respect for law--of their\nloyalty, of their free institutions, and of those customs and habits\nof thought which were the foundation-stones of the edifice of English\nliberty. These old warriors brought with them to their new homes all\nthose germs which were fertilised by their virtues, and watered with\nthe life-blood of their valour, until, in the course of centuries,\nthey grew up to form the greatest nation this earth has ever seen, a\nfruitful and beneficent tree, spreading its branches far and wide round\nthe world.\n\nIt was, in all probability, not Ella and Elfric, nor their\nwar-comrades Seomel and Brand, Vidfinn and Guthlaf, who first crossed\nthe sea from Angeln; for it must have taken two or three generations\nto establish the English firmly in Northumbria, and their grandfathers\nwere the original invaders. They found the country desolate, and for\nthe most part waste. The Roman roads traversed the moors and forests,\nand formed causeways over the swamps, but the stations were abandoned\nand ruinous. There was scarcely any cultivation. Vast tracts were\ncovered with forests, the haunts of wild cattle and red-deer, of boars\nand badgers, of wolves and wild-cats. It was in truth the \"_Deira_\" or\nland of wild animals. The ponds and marshes were frequented by myriads\nof wild-fowl, and few had ever penetrated into the hidden recesses of\nthe wildernesses. By very slow degrees, amidst wars and disturbance,\nthe English began to change the whole face of the country. The first\nbeginnings were in the days of Ella and Elfric, when defensible\nhomesteads were built, land was apportioned, and laws began to be\nobeyed.\n\nOn the death of Ella in 588 his son Edwin fled before Ethelric King\nof Bernicia, who conquered Deira, but, after the death of Ethelric,\nEdwin took heart and not only reconquered his own kingdom of Deira but\nBernicia also, and united them both in one great kingdom of Northumbria.\n\nThe history of the early struggles into existence of any of the peoples\nwho, in later centuries, have formed the nations of modern Europe\nis unfortunately so obscure that it can only furnish us with a mere\ngeneral outline of the course of events.\n\nOccasionally, however, the record of a short period is found, like\nan oasis in a desert, which is full of most interesting details. The\nwelcome narrative abruptly begins, and as suddenly ends, pleasing the\nreader with anecdotes, speeches, estimates of character, and other\nprecious materials for history. There is a very remarkable example\nof this in Bede's invaluable work. Nothing can be more tantalising\nthan the extremely meagre character of the accounts that have been\npreserved of the leaders of the people, the makers of England, as Mr.\nGreen called them, during the Heptarchy, the all-important period\nwhen England was made. But there is one striking exception. When the\nvenerable monk of Jarrow reaches the period of Edwin of Northumbria\nhis narrative somehow has fresh life and vigour breathed into it, and\nthe following half-century receives the same welcome treatment. We see\nreal progress being made in the civilisation of the country and the\ncondition of the people, which, though checked, was not put a stop to\neven by the desolating invasions of Penda and Cadwalla.\n\nOne eagerly looks for the causes both of the increased life in Bede's\nnarrative and of this remarkable period of sudden progress. The full\ndetails furnished for Edwin's history are so exceptional that the\ncircumstance was discussed by Dr. Giles, the editor of Bohn's edition\nof Bede. He considers it to be clear that Bede must have had access to\nhighly valuable materials, for his details are too minute in themselves\nand too accurately defined to have been derived by him from tradition\nonly.\n\nThe phenomena of the history of Edwin's reign are, however, far more\ninteresting than any question relating to Bede's materials. We find a\nman who had passed his life in exile, and under every disadvantage,\nsuddenly developing into a most efficient ruler and giving vigour and\ndirection to every branch of his administration. But this is not all.\nHe is found assuming ensigns of sovereignty, adopting measures and\nundertaking expeditions of a character not at all in accordance with\nwhat could possibly be expected from a sovereign of any state in the\nEnglish Heptarchy of that period.\n\nThere is one natural way of accounting for the various problems\nconnected with Edwin's life-story, and especially with his reign. The\npresence of a bigoted and very timid Roman monk, like Paulinus, in\nattendance on his Queen, will in no way explain them. Edwin caused\na chronicle of his labours to be written; he assumed ensigns only\nknown at the court of the Emperor; he provided for the convenience of\ntravellers in a way only practised in the East; he equipped a fleet\nfor the subjugation of distant islands; he established order in a way\nso effectual that no organisation known in the England of the seventh\ncentury could have enforced it.\n\nEdwin was a man of great ability, it must be conceded, but this will\nnot account for the introduction of measures so at variance with the\nideas and habits of the governments of the Heptarchy at that time. One\nexplanation covers all the ground. It is quite possible that, owing to\na very extraordinary combination of circumstances, certain countrymen\nof Edwin may have had rare opportunities of visiting the distant\nregions of the then known world, of studying many things in many\nclimes, and that, after years of absence, they may have returned home.\nSurrounded by such men as his friends and ministers, the history of\nhis reign is made perfectly clear. A hint here and there even enables\nus to guess who some of these great men were. History, in that age,\nusually gives us a mere skeleton. Bede, fortunately, in the case of the\nillustrious Northumbrian Bretwalda and his people, gives us much more,\nbut not nearly enough. Following the venerable historian closely and\nexactly, it is not an unworthy aspiration to fill up the blanks, and\nto present these workers in the making of England as living and moving\nbeings. Even we, at this distance of time, may owe them something. All\nthe seeds that they scattered so perseveringly and so earnestly, and\nwith such loving care for their country and its welfare, cannot have\nfallen among thorns or on rocky ground. It is such considerations which\nhave given rise to this attempt to tell the strange and romantic story\nof the Paladins of King Edwin the Great.\n\n                                                  C. R. M.\n\n\n\n\n    PART I\n\n    HOME\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER I\n\n    STILLINGFLEET\n\n\nThe sacred ash tree spread its wide leafy branches over the court of\nthe Stillingas. On one side of this court was the long hall, built of\ntimber, with quaintly-carved joists and gables, on two others were the\nbarns and cattle-sheds, the whole being surrounded by a stiff quickset\nhedge concealing the view of the open country. This ash was not only\nsacred from its size and antiquity, and as an emblem of the ash tree of\n_Yggdrasil_, but it also had an elf hole through which children could\nbe passed, a peculiarity possessed by no other ash for miles around.\nSix children were dancing joyously round the tree one bright summer\nafternoon 1300 years ago, and making the whole place resound with merry\nlaughter. The eldest was twelve years of age, a sturdy, straight-limbed\nboy named Coelred, the eldest son of Seomel, the warrior chief of the\nStillingas. He had blue eyes and a sunburnt little face, with masses\nof brown hair falling over his shoulders. His brother Porlor, two\nyears his junior, was a bright child with a dreamy, thoughtful look\nin his eyes when at rest, and a strong little frame fit for sustained\nwork even at that early age. Their companion, Hereric, numbering the\nsame years as Porlor, was an inch taller, and his hair was golden and\nglistened as the sun's rays rested on it. He was a young prince, son\nof the warrior Elfric, the brother of Ella the king of Deira. His\nlittle brother Osric was only three years of age. The four boys had\ntwo girls for playfellows--Bergliot, the golden-haired princess, aged\nsix years, and Braga, or Bragaswith, the little sister of Coelred and\nPorlor. Ella, the king, lived at Aldby with his queen and his daughter,\nthe princess Alca, aged sixteen, and the new-born prince Edwin, the\nhope of Deira. Elfric was established at the Aldwark, the remains of\nthe imperial palace within the walls of Eburacum, or Eoforwic (York),\nas the English then called it. But he was a widower, and his children\nwere generally at Stillingfleet, under the care of the gentle wife of\nSeomel, the British lady Volisia. Elfric himself was also a frequent\nvisitor, to consult with Seomel, his friend and companion in arms, over\nthe affairs of the frontier.\n\n[Illustration: Dancing Around the Sacred Ash]\n\nOn that bright summer afternoon the Lady Volisia sat on a bench by the\ncarved door-post of the hall, her baby-girl Nanna asleep by her side.\nShe was tall and slim, with a slightly aquiline nose and soft brown\neyes. She watched the happy group round the ash tree, a gentle smile\nlighting up her face as she bent again over her work. It consisted of\na bright-coloured scarf to which she was attaching tassels. Presently\nthe children left off dancing and began passing each other through the\nelf hole. It was said to bring luck, but it was too rough a game for\nthe little ones, so the lady called the children to come round her, and\ntold them that they should play the chance game for the scarf. This was\none of the most ancient of all Teutonic games. Every child held the\nedge of the scarf with both hands. One was chosen to say a well-known\nspell, touching a hand at each word, and the hand on which the last\nword fell was dropped out. The spell was then repeated as often as\nnecessary, and the owner of the last hand left won the game. Twelve\nsmall hands held the scarf, and the Princess Bergliot said the spell.\n\nThus it ran:\n\n       _Hurli Burli_           _Scipa Hwede_\n       _Blypan Trothorn_       _Gang Feran_\n       _Eastor Gasta_          _Ut_.\n\nThe final \"_ut_\" came to Hereric the Atheling, but he presented the\nscarf, with all the ardour of a lover of ten years old, to his little\nplaymate Braga. At the moment that the happy and smiling child received\nit, a horn was heard in the distance, and all ran at full speed to the\ngateway left in the line of the defensive hedge. Coelred, the eldest,\nwas allowed to rush on, but the rest were called back by Volisia to\nawait the arrivals within the courtyard.\n\nThe view outside the surrounding hedge showed that the home of Seomel,\nthe chief of the Stillingas, stood on the edge of a ridge running\neast and west, with a stream flowing through the valley below. The\nhomesteads of the Stillingas, each with some tillage and pasturage\nround it, were built at intervals on either side of the stream, just\nclear of the highest flood. But beyond the narrow valley the whole\nlandscape consisted of one dense forest. The ridge was chiefly wooded\nwith ash trees, whence the name of Escrick (or Ashridge) for its more\neastern part, and a short steep hill led down from the gateway of the\nStillingfleet to the margin of the brook.\n\nCoelred ran down the hill, and his bare legs and feet carried him\nthrough the water and up the opposite side, just as the cavalcade\nemerged from the forest. It consisted of Elfric the Atheling; Seomel,\nthe chief of the Stillingas; Guthlaf, the chief of the Hemingas; the\nPrincess Alca, a young girl numbering sixteen summers, with her women;\nthe gleeman Coifi; and a following of warriors returning from a short\ncampaign against their northern neighbours of Bernicia. It is not\ncertain whether the ladies rode as is now the fashion. Some people\nmaintain that the Lady Wake, grandmother of the Fair Maid of Kent, was\nthe first Englishwoman who used a side-saddle, 800 years afterwards.\nOthers consider that the question is unsettled. At all events, while\nGuthlaf took his leave and rode on to his more distant home with his\nfollowers, and the Stillinga folk made for their homesteads in the\nvalley, the rest cantered up the hill and dismounted in the courtyard,\nwhere they were warmly greeted by Volisia and the children. Coelred ran\nlike a young deer by his father's horse, and it was his proud privilege\nto assist the Lady Alca to dismount.\n\nElfric and Seomel were men of gigantic proportions, tall, sinewy,\nand well knit, with blonde beards and fair hair flowing over their\nshoulders, and of the same height. They wore over their linen tunics\nleathern shirts with iron scales or rings sewn upon them in rows, over\nwhich were metal collars. Their hose were blue, cross-gartered from\nankle to knee with strips of leather, and their shoes had an opening\ndown the instep tied close with thongs. On their left sides hung long\nsingle-edged iron swords, with hilts wrought of silver and bronze and\nscored with mystic runes, in wooden scabbards tipped and edged with\nbronze. Short daggers, called _seax_, were suspended from their girdles\non the right side. The small round war-boards or shields, with an iron\nboss, were slung over their backs, and in their hands were the long\nashen spears. Their helmets were of leather bound with iron and crested\nwith iron-wrought figures of wild boars with eyes of brass. Over their\narmoured shirts they wore embroidered cloaks of blue cloth, fastened on\ntheir shoulders with a golden and jewelled buckle. Coifi, the gleeman,\nwas in less warlike guise. He wore a garment with tight sleeves and\nembroidered breast, not unlike a smock-frock, with a hood attached, his\nfeet and legs being cross-gartered, while a small harp was suspended\nround his neck and hung at his left side.\n\nThe return from a warlike expedition was usually the occasion for a\nfeast in the hall of the chief. It was so in this instance. As the sun\nwent down Alca and the children retired to rest in the inner rooms,\nwhile the servants prepared the meal. In the centre of the long hall\nwas the hearth-fire, with a hole in the roof for smoke; but now it was\ncovered with green boughs, and on either side of it the boards were\nfixed on trestles. The freemen, or _ceorls_, of the Stillingas and\nof the Atheling almost filled the great room, seated in rows on the\nbenches or settles, while the Prince and Seomel, with his wife, took\ntheir places at the head of the upper board. Our English ancestors were\nvery clean, the use of baths was general, and before the Stillingas sat\ndown to meat water was brought them for hands and feet. The fare was\ngood and plentiful, meat being handed round on spits, while the horns\nwere filled with ale, and the warriors talked in groups over the events\nof the campaign. But it was not until the Lady Volisia had herself\nhanded round the brimming mead-cups to her guests and had retired,\nthat the harp and song were called for. Then all eyes turned to the\nfamous gleeman who had arrived in the Atheling's train from York. No\nman in the kingdom came near him for depth of knowledge of the ancient\nreligion or of the folk-lore of the English. He stood by the chiefs at\nthe upper end of the hall and tuned the harp as the mead-cup circulated.\n\nCoifi sang that thrilling legend which never failed to arouse the\nenthusiasm of his countrymen, and which was peculiarly appropriate\nafter an expedition which had for its object the rescue of a Deiran\ntown from a Bernician invasion. He told how the hero Beowulf came to\nHeorot with a chosen band, to rescue the subjects of King Hrothgar\nfrom the cruelties of their fiendish enemy Grendel; how Beowulf,\nsingle-handed, tore the monster's arm from his shoulder; how he then\novercame Grendel's mother at the bottom of the sea with the aid of the\nsword Hrunting; and how he returned home victorious after this dread\nencounter. The touches of nature in the descriptions of scenery, the\nexciting speeches and challenges, the warlike sentiments, went right\nhome to the hearts of his hearers, and loud and long was the applause\nat the conclusion of each fytte or canto, when the mead-cup passed\nround, and Coifi paused for breath.\n\n      And here the singer for his art\n        Not all in vain may plead:\n      The song that nerves a nation's heart\n        Is in itself a deed.\n\nAt length the long but inspiriting song was ended. Seomel and the\nAtheling retired, the Stillingas went to their homes, while straw was\nshaken down along the hall, behind the mead-benches, as beds for the\nstrangers. An eventful day thus ended, and all was silence in the\ncourts of Seomel.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER II\n\n    ALCA\n\n\nAlca was the most beautiful girl that her countrymen had ever beheld;\nand even then, at the early age of sixteen years, as she tripped out\ninto the crowded court, she appeared to the beholders to be a perfect\ndream of loveliness, lithe and active, yet with the graceful dignity\nof a long-descended princess. Her hair was golden, her eyes a deep\nsapphire blue, with that calm depth of meaning which was then believed\nto be one attribute of an elf-maiden. Alca, from a young child, had\nbeen remarkable for the universality of her love, which was extended\nto all the gods had made. Her wisdom and knowledge were far beyond her\nyears, and seemed to those around her to be miraculous. She saw the\ntrue meanings of beliefs and customs. She alone was able to extract the\nhidden truth from the mysteries of nature, and could understand those\nlongings and aspirations which her companions could only dimly shadow\nforth by their creeds and their superstitions. All loved the Princess,\nbut they looked upon her as one nearer to gods than to men; and only\nchildren dared to love her without awe, and as a being higher and\nwiser, but still one of themselves. For the rest of the world Alca was\nan elf-maiden endowed with special gifts by the gods.\n\nThe Princess had accompanied her uncle to Stillingfleet to see her\ncousins and other young friends, and to visit the Lady Volisia, to whom\nshe was warmly attached. On that summer morning she was to go with her\nfriend to the shrine of a goddess of her people on the other side of\nthe Ouse, attended by the children and by several servants. When they\nreached the bank it was high tide. A large flat-bottomed boat was run\ninto the water, and the party was pulled across by the boys to an old\nRoman fort on the opposite side, called Acaster. It consisted of two\ntowers, like those on the column of Trajan, surrounded by a ditch. It\nwas on the verge of a dense forest, in which some clearings had been\nmade. The whole tract forming the angle between the Ouse and Wharfe was\nforest-clad, except where clearings had been made for planting apple\nand other fruit trees, and where the _ings_ or swampy meadows formed a\nfringe between the forest and the river banks. The pilgrims made their\nway through the thickets by a very narrow path without stopping, for\nthe promised visit to the orchards was to be on their return, after\ntheir devotions had been duly paid to the goddess.\n\nNehalennia, to whose worship the wife of Seomel had remained faithful,\nwas a Celtic goddess, who presided over fertility, and especially\nover fruit trees, and who was also the goddess of chalk pits and the\npatroness of chalk workers. The temple or _haruc_ (_H\u00f6rgr_), as the\nEnglish called it, was unbuilt by human hands. The deity dwelt in a\nshady spot, embowered and shut in by self-grown trees, veiling her form\nin the rustling foliage of the overhanging boughs. Here, just within\nthe forest, but bordering on the bright expanse of _ings_, stood a\nlarge slab of limestone, on which was carved in relief an image of\nNehalennia, with long flowing hair, and baskets full of apples by her\nside. Masses of elecampane (_Inula Helenium_) and of other medicinal\nplants grew round the base of the carved stone, and a solemn silence\nreigned around. A few rays of the mid-day sun found their way through\nthe overhanging branches, and lighted up the bas-relief, carved by some\nwell-trained Roman hand. The Lady Volisia, the Princess Alca, and the\nchildren made their offerings to the shrine, and continued kneeling in\ndevotion for some time. It was the very spot on which the Cistercian\nnunnery of Appleton was erected 600 years afterwards.\n\nThe party made their way through the dense forest from the shrine of\nNehalennia to the orchards of Appleton, which supplied Stillingfleet\nand all the homesteads round York. Here they rested under the apple\ntrees, eating the rosy fruit, while Alca talked to the children. Porlor\nhad asked her why Nehalennia was not also a goddess of the English,\nand she answered in the way which would make the essence of such\nmysteries most clear to her companions. \"The names only are different,\"\nshe said, \"the deity is the same. Your mother and her people pray for\nfertility to Nehalennia, and you and Coelred and your sisters should\ndo likewise, because invocation of the same name is one more tie of\nlove between mother and children. Your father's people invoke Freyr to\nsend them rain and sunshine, and to give them the fruits of the earth\nin due season. But it is the same thing. Both are names to denote the\nbeneficent goodness of the 'All-father,' he whom the English call\nWoden. Remember that whatever god we invoke, we are always praying,\nthrough one of his attributes, to the 'All-father.'\n\n\"Woden has many names,\" she exclaimed in a voice which awed her\ncompanions, and with a rapt look, as if gazing through space and seeing\nwhat was not visible to them. \"He is the God and Father of victory, the\nGiver of gifts, the Almighty and All-knowing, but always the Father\nand Creator of gods and men. Sitting on his throne _hlidskialf_ he can\nsurvey the whole world, and can hear all that goes on among men. His\nspear _g\u00fbnguir_ is in his hand; his ravens, _Huginn_ and _Muninn_, are\non his shoulders; his wolves, _Geri_ and _Freki_, are at his feet; his\nhorse _Sleipnir_ by his side. He too is the Father of the slain, and\nthe Rewarder of the brave and good when this life is ended.\" After a\npause her eyes lost that far-away look, and were full of love as she\nturned to the children, and promised to tell them the meaning of all\nthese things as soon as they were old enough to understand. Coelred,\nwho had been eagerly listening to all the Princess had said, now\nanxiously inquired about the slain, and about the fatherhood of Woden\nin regard to them. \"In three years,\" he said, \"I shall be girded with\na sword, and shall take my place in battle by the side of my father\nSeomel. How soon after that will Woden choose me to be one of the\nslain: are the bravest taken first, or the youngest, or those who are\nof least service? Can the Princess tell me?\" Alca replied, as they\nwended their way home--\"Of that hour it is given to none to tell.\nWoden sends his wish-maidens, called Valkyrie, who fly through the\nair to choose the heroes that are to fall. Often the best and bravest\nare taken, sometimes the very young, sometimes a warrior waits long\nand fights in many battles before his turn comes. No good warrior\nfears the Valkyrie. They are to be loved, not feared. They hover over\nthe conflicting armies, mingle in the ranks, take the slain in their\nembraces, and ride with them on their heavenly horses to Valhalla,\nwhere they attend at the feasts, and hand the drinking-horn to gods and\nheroes. But touching the hour of death nothing can be known, because\nthe selection is made on the spot by the Valkyrie. The time we cannot\nknow.\" Then she turned with a sweet smile, and, looking from one to the\nother, she said to the two boys, \"Yet this I do know, for it is given\nto me to know. When the fulness of time arrives, Coelred and Porlor\nwill fall in battle, fighting bravely in a righteous cause.\"\n\nThe boys were deeply impressed. Their hearts were too full for words,\nand there was silence until they reached the old Roman tower at Acaster\nand had crossed the river. It was broken by Porlor, who asked if the\nValkyrie could be seen. \"No,\" replied Alca, \"they are unseen in battle;\nfor, like Woden and the Valhalla, they are a mystery, which it is given\nto few to understand.\" \"But,\" persisted Porlor, \"cannot they put on\nthe _alptahamir_ (swan shifts), and take the form of birds of augury?\nOur friend Oswith, the son of Guthlaf, told us that he saw three swans\nalight on Derwent bank, put their white swan shifts in the grass, and\nturn into beautiful maidens. They bathed in the river, resumed their\nshifts, and flew away again as swans; and Oswith never lies. Were they\nValkyrie?\" Alca answered that \"it was given to some to behold these\nmysteries, and to understand the truth that lies concealed in them,\nbut to others it was not given.\" They were now approaching the gate\nof Stillingfleet as the sun set, the faithful dog Shuprak bounded out\nto meet them, and the conversation turned to trivial subjects as they\nentered the court.\n\nSome days afterwards the three boys, Hereric, Coelred, and Porlor,\nwith their dog Shuprak, set out for the burg of the Hemingas, to join\ntheir friend Oswith, the son of Guthlaf, on a hunting expedition. They\nwore cross-gartered hose, and belts with metal buckles, from which long\nhunting-knives were suspended; bows and arrows were slung on their\nbacks, and the little fellows also carried short iron-headed spears.\nFor several miles they made their way through the dense forest, until\nthey emerged on Skipwith Common, where the ruins of an abandoned town\nof the Parisi, consisting of circular huts, still showed many traces.\nIt was a weird and desolate place even in bright sunshine, and Porlor\nwhispered to his companions tales of grey old wood-folk clothed in\nmoss, of dwarfs and giants, and of the lubber fiend, as they hurried\nacross the moor, and again plunged into the forest. They went swiftly\nover the ground, and soon reached the clearings and the fortified\nburg of the Hemingas, at the junction of the rivers Ouse and Derwent.\nHere there was a ruined fort built by the Romans, which had been\nrepaired with timber, and was the home of Guthlaf, the chief of the\nHemingas. His son Oswith was the same age as Coelred, straight as a\ndart, broad-chested and lean-flanked--a splendid specimen of a young\nEnglishman. He was a fast friend of the sons of Seomel, and, after\nwarm words of welcome, their first act was to challenge each other to\nfight. A wrestling-match at once commenced on the green, and the lithe\nand sinewy figures of Coelred and Oswith were soon entwined, as they\nstrove, with every muscle at extreme tension, to throw each other to\nthe ground. Each boy won a bout, which made them quite happy, and the\nfour lads, after a merry meal, set out on their search for forest game,\nworking northwards again towards the home of Seomel.\n\n\"Nature was an open book to these lads of the far-distant past. They\nlived in nearer communion than we can do with the world around them.\nTheir frames, not yet clogged and vitiated by the habits of an advanced\ncivilisation, were more alive than ours to the external effects of\nnatural causes. The birds spoke to them, the forest whispered to them,\nthe wind wantoned with their curly locks, they stood before the great\nspirit of nature face to face, and knew him as he revealed himself in\nevery one of his divine forms.\" Loaded with as much game as they could\ncarry, after a very successful and very happy day, they were walking in\nsingle file through the tangled underwood, when Oswith, their leader,\nsaw the eyes of a huge wild-cat glaring at him through the dense\nfoliage. It sprang up a tree, and in an instant he had thrown down his\nburden and was after it, with his long knife in his mouth. When, at\na considerable height, he was swinging himself forward to attack his\nantagonist, which was at bay, the bough broke and he fell heavily to\nthe ground. His comrades found him suffering intense pain, unable to\nstand, and with a very badly sprained ankle. Abandoning the spoils of\nthe chase, Coelred and Porlor began to carry him, but they were still\nseveral miles from Stillingfleet. Hereric ran forward for help, and\nwhen it came the sturdy little fellows had already carried their friend\nupwards of three miles. Oswith was soon lying on a heap of fresh straw\nin Seomel's hall. His hose and shoes were removed, and it was found\nthat the ankle was much swollen, so that there was every prospect of\ndays and even weeks elapsing before he would be able to walk.\n\nAs soon as Coelred had seen that everything that was possible had\nbeen done for his friend, he sought his mother's bower, and throwing\nhimself at the feet of Alca, he besought her to show favour to the son\nof Guthlaf. \"Indeed,\" replied the Princess, \"I will do what I can for\nmy young friend Oswith.\" She went into the hall, patted the boy's head,\nand spoke cheering words to him, with her eyes fixed on his until she\nthought her spell would work. Then she removed the bandage, placed her\nhand very gently on the swelling, and uttered it, as follows:--\n\n             _Ben zi Bena,\n              Bluot zi Bluode,\n              Lid zi Geliden,\n              S\u00f4se gelimida sin.\n              Thu biguolen Wodin,\n              So he wola coude,\n              S\u00f4se ben-renki,\n              S\u00f4se bluot-renki,\n              S\u00f4se lidere-renki._\n\nVolisia stood by her side, ready to administer a sleeping-draught,\nand next morning Oswith was quite healed, and able to walk and run as\nwell as ever. As soon as she saw that the spell was working, Alca went\nout to the ash tree in the courtyard and prayed to the \u00c6sir on her\nknees, several groups of people watching her with awe. When she rose\nand looked round, Coifi came forward with a low obeisance. The gleeman\nwas an adept in the Teutonic religious beliefs, and was versed in all\nthe tales and traditions of the mythology of his people. But he looked\nupon them solely from a practical point of view. He received every\nsupernatural story literally. To him Woden and Thor were the wooden\nimages preserved at Godmundham, and he sought for no further light.\nAlca, even in extreme youth, was visionary in her religious views.\nThe All-father, as she understood him, was everywhere and pervaded\neverything. The gods and goddesses were his attributes, or represented\nhis intentions and designs, as she had explained to the children on the\nday of the pilgrimage to Nehalennia's shrine.\n\n\"The spell will not work, I fear, O daughter of the King,\" said Coifi,\nwho was then a man between thirty and forty, and known in every burg\nand hall as the best gleeman in Deira. \"The spell will work, Coifi,\"\nreplied Alca in a gentle voice. After a pause the gleeman said almost\nin a whisper, \"I know the spell of Balder's horse that you used for\nyoung Oswith. I think I know every spell, but they will not work for\nme. I pray and sacrifice to the gods, but they help me not. Let them\ngive me power and I can believe them. I believe when I see.\" Alca\nlooked at him and said, \"I am too young to teach so learned a man as\nCoifi. But I can say why the spell will work. The boy loved me and\nbelieved. I love the gods and have faith, so the spell will work.\"\nCoifi replied, \"But I cannot believe until I see the spell work. If\nthe spell works I believe.\" \"That is the wrong way, Coifi,\" said the\nPrincess. \"Believe and the spell works; for it works by faith. Wait\nuntil the spell works before you can believe, and it will never work.\"\nPuzzled and angry, Coifi declared that he would serve the gods and\npray to them for his lifetime, and they must answer him and give him\npower; but that to believe before they showed him their mighty works\nwas impossible. Alca shook her head. She said no more, but she saw that\ninsight was not given to Coifi.\n\nAs she stood by the side of the gleeman, with Coelred and Porlor\nwatching her from the hall entrance, and with many people in the\ncourtyard, her aspect suddenly changed. She assumed a listening\nattitude and then looked upwards. \"The Valkyrie pass through the air,\"\nshe cried. \"I neither see nor hear,\" said Coifi; \"it cannot be.\" All\ngazed in amazement for several minutes. \"A great battle is joined.\nThe heroes fall,\" was the next exclamation of the Princess. She stood\nlike one inspired. \"Coelred! Coelred! run to my eame the Atheling and\nto your father; tell them to arm and to assemble all their forces,\nfor the enemy approaches. Coifi, go thou to alarm the people. Bid\nthem to assemble armed and ready to march.\" Coelred was off like an\narrow from a bow. Coifi also obeyed. The alarm-horns were heard in\nthe valley. In half an hour the Stillingas were drawn up fully armed\noutside the hedge. Elfric and Seomel, also fully armed, had entered the\nenclosure and asked eagerly for the cause of the alarm. Alca was still\nstanding under the ash tree. All eyes were turned on her. The setting\nsun threw a glow of light over her form. \"I hear the rapid feet of\nthe messenger,\" she said, raising one arm. \"You will hear him and act\nquickly. He comes--make way for him.\" A lane was formed, and between\nthe two lines of warriors a little boy ran breathless into the court,\nand sank exhausted on the ground. \"It is Forthere, the son of Brand of\nUlfskelf,\" exclaimed Seomel. \"Speak, boy! speak quickly--what are your\ntidings.\"\n\nThe gallant little fellow had swum across the river. As soon as he\nrecovered breath he delivered his message. The settlement at Bilbrough\nhad been suddenly attacked and taken by an overwhelming force of\nBritons from Elmet, led by their king Certicus. After a short fight the\nslaughter began. Vidfinn, the chief of the Billingas, was slain, and\nmost of his people were massacred. Neither age nor sex was spared. A\nyoung woman with little Sivel, the child of Vidfinn, brought the news\nto Ulfskelf. But there was scarcely breathing-time before the enemy\nappeared, their numbers vastly increased; Ulfskelf was surrounded, and\nBrand resolved to defend it to the last gasp. A desperate fight took\nplace outside, but the overwhelming numbers of the enemy soon obliged\nhim to retreat behind his palisades. Forthere had escaped by creeping\nalong the margin of the Wharfe. He then swam across the Ouse, and so\nbrought the tidings to Stillingfleet.\n\nElfric and his leading men assembled under the ash tree and issued\norders. It was a bright moonlight night. A party had already been sent\noff to prepare the boats for crossing the Ouse. Mounted messengers were\ndespatched to Cuthred, chief of the Poclingas beyond the Derwent, to\nSigfrid of the Elfingas, to Guthlaf of the Hemingas, to Ingeld of the\nHeslingas, calling upon them to march with all despatch and meet Elfric\nthe Atheling at Acaster. The first object was to save Ulfskelf, if\nBrand could hold out so long. Elfric was despatching another messenger\nto the King, who was at Aldby, with a similar request. But Alca spoke\nonce more. She advised that King Ella should be asked to cross the\nOuse with his fighting men, above York, advance along the high land by\nthe hill of Severus and the ridge of Askham, and so take the enemy in\nflank; while Elfric with his levies, raised between Ouse and Derwent,\nopposed their further advance.\n\nStillingfleet was no longer safe. It was arranged that next morning\nthe Princess Alca and the Lady Volisia, escorted by Coifi and the boys,\nwith a few attendants, should take refuge at Aldby. Meanwhile Elfric\nand Seomel, with the Stillingas and the Atheling's own followers,\ncrossed the Ouse and began to entrench themselves at Acaster in the\nearly hours of the night. When the reinforcements arrived next day,\nthey would boldly advance to the relief of Ulfskelf.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER III\n\n    ALDBY\n\n\nThe escort of the Princess, of Volisia, and the children left\nStillingfleet next morning. In the van rode the older boys, Oswith,\nCoelred, and Forthere, all three well armed, followed by the two\nladies, the children, and attendants, while Coifi, with the two younger\nboys, Porlor and Hereric, brought up the rear. \"The gleeman is to be\na priest of Woden,\" said Porlor to his friend, \"to whom it is not\npermitted to carry arms. The defence of the rear depends upon us, so we\nmust be on our guard.\" All the lads had arms suited to their size, but\nnone of them were yet old enough to wear swords.\n\nAfter a mile's ride through the forest, they came to open moorland\nwhere there was an outlying stockaded post of the Stillingas,\nafterwards called Moreby; and here they met the Heslingas, led by the\nveteran Ingeld, to whom the Princess gave fuller information than had\nbeen brought by the messenger, and he pushed rapidly onwards with his\nmen, to join the Atheling. Riding on over moor and through forest,\nthe ladies and their escort, after some hours, reached the banks of\nthe bright river Derwent, where tall ash trees threw shadows over\nits surface, which was skimmed by water-hens, while now and then the\nbrilliant plumage of the kingfisher glistened under the sun's rays\nas it darted to its galleried nest in the bank. Soon the party came\nin sight of Aldby, the royal seat of the kings of Deira, on a slight\neminence above the right bank of the river, the buildings appearing\namongst clumps of tall trees.\n\nThe Roman station of Derventio, on the Derwent, was twelve miles east\nof York. When the English arrived, the buildings had been much injured\nby invaders from the north, and by more than a century of neglect. They\nwere in a ruinous condition, but they were still standing; and they\nreceived the name of Aldby, or the ancient town, from the new-comers.\nThe pr\u00e6torium, repaired in many places with timber, still had a portico\ncomposed of pillars with composite capitals, and formed the guest-hall\nof the King of Deira. A villa, consisting of rooms built round three\nsides of a square, with corridors, and a temple, were also included\nin the Deiran palace. The walls of the guest-hall were adorned with\ntapestry representing mythical beings from the Teutonic mythology, and\nthe floor retained its mosaic pavement. Although the boards or tables\nwere on movable trestles, there were fixed sideboards, with bowls of\nbronze highly gilt and of very elegant forms, metal dishes, and horns,\nwhile a raised dais with a throne at one end gave some appearance of\nregal dignity to the spacious hall.\n\nKing Ella had marched away with a large force, but its place had been\ntaken by warriors from Driffield and from Godmundham, and Aldby still\nhad the busy appearance of a royal abode, with yards and halls crowded\nwith armed men, priests, and servants. The fugitives were cordially\nreceived by Ella's queen, the stepmother of the Princess Alca, whose\nname is not recorded in history. She had recently given birth to a son,\nwho had received the name of Edwin, a child of destiny, round whose\nlife-story the events of this narrative will eventually centre. The\nchildren were all eager to pay their respects to the young Atheling,\nthe hope of the house of Deira, and Alca led them into the presence of\nthe infant prince.\n\nThere was much anxiety for several days, but at last the news came\nthat Elfric had relieved Ulfskelf and defeated the numerous but\nill-disciplined army of Britons. Their chief Certicus and his levies\ncommenced a retreat which the King converted into a rout when he\nfell upon their right flank in the swampy ground between Askham and\nBilbrough. Ella and his brother then formed a junction round the hill,\nnow called Ingrish, and again fell furiously upon the disorganised\nrabble. Certicus, with a small following, escaped into the forests of\nElmet, but there was tremendous slaughter, and the place is called\nHelagh to this day. The English outposts were again extended to the\nold Roman station of Calcaria, on the south side of the river Wharfe,\nfacing the ford of Nehalennia. The King also restored the burg of the\nBillingas, and all due honours were paid to the remains of the chief\nVidfinn, who had been a daring Viking before he established himself at\nBilbrough with his children Hjuk and Bil. Nine votive boats of pure\ngold were deposited in his grave, and a lofty tumulus was raised above\nit, on the slope of the red sandstone hill which rises gradually from\nthe Roman road between York and Tadcaster. Little Sivel, the only\nsurviving child of Vidfinn, was adopted by Brand of Ulfskelf. A nephew\nof Vidfinn, named Saebald, surnamed Fairfax from his silver-white\nhair, was elected to command the Billingas and to defend the restored\nsettlement of Bilbrough.\n\nThese administrative arrangements occupied some time, during which the\nlads at Aldby hunted in the forests between the Derwent and the foot\nof the Wolds, sometimes pursuing their game far into the chalky hills,\nand often ascending Garraby, which rises to a height of nearly 800 feet\nabove Aldby. Their evenings were passed in games with their sisters, or\nin conversations with Alca, varied by listening to the wondrous tales\nof Coifi or to the folk-lore of another race preserved in the memory of\ntheir mother Volisia.\n\nOne day the five boys went with Coifi to Godmundham to visit the\ntemple which contains the sacred images brought from the old home\non the continent. A space was encircled by a quickset hedge, and\nwithin there were three lofty elms, under which the idols were set\nup. Hard by were the ruins of the Roman station of Delgovitia, some\nof the buildings having been roughly repaired to serve as dwellings\nfor priests and servants. Coifi localised his beliefs. According to\nhis creed, Woden and Thor were within this enclosure at Godmundham,\nor at all events he held that this was their favourite home, where\nworshippers must seek their help, and where priests must observe all\nthe ceremonies connected with their cult. He told the boys the history\nof the creation, and all the strange legends which had gathered round\nit; and he narrated the myth of Balder's death and of Freyr's love for\nGerdr. He attended the sacrifices of bullocks, and remained long at\nhis devotions. But he never could derive either power or inspiration\nfrom his prayers to the gods, and he rose from them with an expression\nof discontent and impatience. The boys were glad to return to Aldby,\ndissatisfied also, and eager for some more sympathetic teaching. This\nthey found in the Princess Alca, who to them was the type of perfect\nbeauty and goodness.\n\n[Illustration: Princess Alca Telling Stories to the Boys]\n\nThey had attended her on an excursion to the foot of the Wolds, and\nrested on a rising ground under the spreading branches of a tall ash\ntree, with Aldby in sight beyond the river, and a mass of waving\nfoliage at their feet. The sun was still high, the stillness only\nbroken by the songs of birds. Alca sat on one of the projecting roots.\nThe boys were lying down at her feet, surrounded by leaves and flowers,\nwhich they had been collecting to decorate her bower. Porlor broke the\nsilence by asking the Princess to teach them the story of Balder, and\nits meaning. \"Porlor,\" she said, \"was right to be the spokesman, for\nhis name should make him a student of Balder's lore. But I see by your\neyes,\" she added, \"that you all wish me to talk to you of the Son of\nGod. Listen, then, to one who seeks, though with little help and in\ntwilight, to learn and to show to others the true meaning of hidden\nmysteries. Balder was the son of the All-father, of the Creator of\ngods and men. He was the god of light, and grace, and manly beauty.\nHis brow was white as the chamomile flower. Through him deeds of true\nbravery were done on the earth, the weak were protected, virtue was\npractised, and justice was maintained. But a prophecy that Balder would\nperish afflicted the gods. Then Frigga, the spouse of Woden, took an\noath from all created nature that no individual thing would harm the\npride of Asgard, the beloved of gods and men. But the goddess made a\nfatal omission. She forgot a sprig of mistletoe. Being invulnerable,\nBalder allowed the gods to use him as a target. Now Loki, as you know,\nwas born among the yotuns. He was false and full of wickedness, father\nof the terrible wolf Fenris and of Hela, ruler of the dead. Loki put\nmistletoe into the hands of the blind god Haudr, and with this he slew\nthe best and greatest of Woden's sons, who descended into hell. The\nAll-father himself went down into the dark abode of Hela, to persuade\nher to relinquish her prey. She agreed, if all created nature would\nweep for Balder. All nature did mourn for the loss of the god of\ngoodness and beauty, save one old crone. 'What have the gods done for\nme,' she said, 'that I should weep for Balder? Let Hela keep her dead.'\nThus Balder's fate was sealed, and with it the fate of the world;\nfor justice, mercy, virtue, and true bravery ceased to prevail with\nBalder's death, though they did not entirely cease to exist. I know\nnot why the All-father, in his wisdom, has submitted to this evil. But\nit can only be for a time. The Son of God will rise again in triumph.\nI sometimes think that he has risen, though as yet we know it not.\"\nThen the far-off look came again into Alca's blue eyes, and during the\nrest of her speech she gazed into the heavens. The boys listened almost\nbreathless.\n\n\"I think that God has risen to redeem the world,\" she resumed. \"I am\nimpelled to this belief, though I know not why, or by what guiding\npower. But misfortune and sorrow will not end--not yet. Coelred,\nHereric, Oswith, Forthere, Porlor, I love you as very dear brothers.\nIt is perhaps by reason of my love that insight is given to me. There\nis borne into my mind a feeling that some great calamity is impending\nover you all, and that it will fall upon you together. In this there\nis a ray of comfort.\" She paused, and Coelred said, \"If misfortune\novertakes us, O Princess, we will strive to meet it as Englishmen, as\nsons of our brave fathers, ever victorious in battle!\" \"And,\" said\nOswith, \"in all our troubles we will ever remember the goodness of our\nbeloved Princess.\" Forthere spoke words like those of Coelred, which\nwere echoed by the younger boys.\n\n\"Of that I am certain,\" continued Alca. \"You will quit yourselves like\nmen--above all, like Englishmen. If you are together in your trials,\nCoelred will be your leader. The fearless Oswith will be your support,\nand will help to form your plans. Forthere, too, will be a trusty\nfriend. Porlor will be most shrewd as an adviser, and his rede should\nbe followed; and my sweet cousin Hereric will enlighten counsels by his\nimagination. O my boys! remember that if sorrow comes, Alca is praying\nfor you and thinking of you. Always act as if the Son of God had risen.\nBe brave. Love one another. Love truth. Be just and merciful. If you\nhear that God has truly risen, then remember my words. Be true to\nyourselves, and you will triumph in the end. May the gods watch over\nyou!\"\n\nThere was a long silence. Alca rose and turned homewards, surrounded by\nthe boys with their sweet burdens. Anxious to turn their thoughts from\nthe solemn and depressing theme on which she had been led to dwell for\na time, by a force beyond her control, the Princess sang them a merry\nsong, and talked to them of the return of their victorious fathers,\nwhich was expected on the following day. When the party reached Aldby\nall were chatting and romping, and the boys turned into an inner court\nto exercise themselves in feats of strength.\n\nNext day the King arrived. Ella was a large man, like his brother,\nbut he looked much older, worn with illness, and his expression was\nmelancholy and somewhat stern. Elfric rode by his side, Seomel,\nGuthlaf, Brand, and the other chiefs followed, and there was a goodly\narray of English warriors. They dismounted at the Roman colonnade,\nand were soon surrounded by wives and children. The great feast that\nnight in the old pr\u00e6torium was ordered and arranged like that of\nSeomel, but on a much larger and more regal scale. The Queen herself\ntook round the mead-cup to the guests, and when she retired there were\nsongs of victory, and the harp was passed from one to another. One\nwarrior had recited the events of the campaign, and received great\napplause. Another told of the surprise of the Billingas by the cruel\nand treacherous Certicus. Late in the evening Coifi took the harp, and\nselected for his song the warning of Hrothgar to Beowulf on the frail\ntenure of human life. This choice was resented by some of those present\nas being intended to have reference to the King; but Ella himself\napproved, and the gleeman continued as follows:--\n\n          Soon will it be\n          That sickness or the sword\n          Shall part thee from power;\n          Or clutch of fire,\n          Or wave of flood,\n          Or gripe of sword,\n          Or javelin's flight,\n          Or ugly age,\n          Or glance of eye\n          Shall oppress and darken thee.\n\nThis melancholy dirge concluded the feast, and before another year had\npassed King Ella was in his grave.\n\nThe time of parting came only too soon. The Lady Volisia, with her\ndaughters and the children of Elfric, returned to Stillingfleet. The\nAtheling himself, with Seomel, proceeded to York to make further\npreparations for strengthening the frontier posts, and it was arranged\nthat Seomel should go thence, with supplies of weapons and stores, to\nBilbrough, Calcaria, and Ulfskelf, before returning home. He was to\ntake a large escort of Stillingas, and, to their great joy, the three\nelder boys and Porlor were to accompany him.\n\nThe Atheling and those who were to go with him to York took leave\nof the King and Queen. But when the boys came to say farewell to the\nPrincess Alca their hearts were too full for words, and tears were in\ntheir eyes. They loved and worshipped her, they would all have died for\nher, but not a word could they say. She spoke very gently and calmly,\nrepeating what she had said yesterday. \"Remember my words. Be true to\nyourselves, and may the gods watch over you.\"\n\nAfter the cavalcade started, the boys looked back again and again,\nwaving their caps, until the graceful form under the colonnade was lost\nto sight. When would they see her again? Ah, when!\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER IV\n\n    YORK AND THE DEIRAN FRONTIER\n\n\n_Aberach_, the British mound by the confluence of Ouse and Foss, was\nconverted into the Roman camp of _Eburacum_ by Agricola in A.D. 79,\nand from a camp became an imperial city, and the headquarters of the\n6th Legion for nearly three centuries. The camp was surrounded by a\nditch 9 feet deep and 32 wide, with an _agger_ or rampart fortified by\n_valli_. The sides were 692 yards long, with four gates, and there was\na space of about a hundred yards between the ditch and the river Ouse.\nBut in A.D. 120 the Emperor Hadrian caused the _valli_ to be replaced\nby substantial walls of alternate layers of bricks and masonry, with\ntowers at the angles. The multangular tower at the north-west is still\nstanding. The pr\u00e6torium was converted into an imperial palace, and\nstood on the ground now occupied by gardens on the south-east side of\nGoodramgate, and by Aldwark and Peterna. A temple of Bellona stood on\nthe site of part of St. Mary's Abbey and the manor. Hyeronimianus of\nthe 6th Legion had dedicated a temple to Serapis on the site of Fryar's\nGarden, and there was an artificial cave for the worship of Mithras on\na site in Micklegate, opposite St. Martin's Church. The sites of other\ntemples and theatres, which must have existed, are now unknown. The\ndense forest of Galtres came close up to the Pr\u00e6torian gate, whence a\nroad led to Isurium, and the Decumanian gate was in the centre of the\nopposite wall.\n\nWhen the English arrived the 6th Legion had been gone for upwards of a\ncentury and a half, the place had been frequently pillaged, the walls\nwere broken down in several places, and the beautiful Roman edifices\nwere in ruins. King Ella had repaired the breaches in the walls with\nstrong palisades, and his brother Elfric had made a portion of the\nimperial palace habitable.\n\nSeomel and the four boys were the guests of the Atheling for a few\ndays, while weapons were collected and got ready for the use of the\noutposts beyond the Wharfe. The boys wandered about among the ruins,\nand gazed upon the porticoes and colonnades with awe and admiration.\nIt was then that they first heard of the great emperors of Rome and of\nthe Legions, and they understood dimly that their own people were only\nbeginning to build up a new empire on the ruins of a glorious past. One\nday they had crossed the river Ouse to see the tombs which lined both\nsides of the Roman road leading to the south. Many were broken down,\nbut some were still standing, especially on the higher ground. There\nwas a beautiful monument on the Mount, where a youth and a maiden had\nbeen buried, for their figures were carved in relief on the stone, but\nof course the boys could not read the inscription. Here they rested,\ngazing over the swampy expanse of Knavesmire, and Porlor fancied that\nthe two figures represented lovers who had been cut off in the flower\nof their youth. They were worshippers of Nehalennia; for a deity, like\nthe one at Appleton, was carved in the semicircular space over their\nheads.\n\nIn running down the slope towards the river, the boys stopped at the\nentrance of the cave of Mithras, and entered with feelings of curiosity\nmingled with awe. In the dim light they could see a bull on its knees,\nand a young man plunging a knife into its neck. \"What can it mean? Is\nit a priest sacrificing a bullock to Woden?\" said Oswith. \"That cannot\nbe,\" objected Coelred, \"for the images were not made by our people, nor\ndo we make images of the sacrificers but of the gods, and those only at\nGodmundham.\" Porlor sat long gazing at the fine bas-relief, on which a\nfew rays from the sun cast a dim light. \"The being with a high cap,\" he\nsaid, \"is a god, not a man. I see by his face that he is a good god.\"\nHis companions looked again more closely. \"The god is plunging a knife\ninto the bull, but it is not to do harm but good, for he is a good\ngod.\" He again sat thinking. \"It is a mystery,\" he said at last, \"and\nwe are too ignorant to solve it.\" \"Alca would understand,\" said the\nother boys. They walked down to the river, and, crossing it, returned\nto the \"Aldwark,\" as the ruined palace was then called.\n\nNext day Seomel left York with a number of laden horses, and a\nstrong force as an escort. The four boys were with him. Again they\npassed the mysterious cave of Mithras, and the monument of the two\nlovers on the Mount, as they wended their way southward along the\nRoman road. These Roman roads in Britain were so admirably constructed\nthat, although they had been neglected for more than a century, they\nwere still serviceable. The mode of construction was as follows:--Two\nparallel furrows were dug to mark the width, and all loose earth was\nremoved down to the rock. The first layer for the road was called the\n_pavimentum_. On it was laid a bed of small squared stones called\n_statumen_. The next layer consisted of a mass of small stones broken\nto pieces and mixed with lime, called _rudus_ or _ruderatio_. The\nthird layer, called _nucleus_, was a mixture of lime, chalk, broken\ntiles, all beaten together. On this was laid the _summum dorsum_ or\npavement of stones, sometimes like our paving-stones, but oftener of\nsquare flagstones. At proper intervals there were stations for changing\nhorses, called _mutationes_, supplied with horses and _veredarii_ or\npostilions, and in charge of stationmasters called _statores_. The\n_miliaria_ or milestones were perfect stone cylinders about 3-1/2 feet\nhigh, on bases.\n\nThe arrangements for travelling were out of gear, and most of the\n_mutationes_ were in ruins or had been destroyed when King Ella\nreigned. But the splendid road was so admirably constructed that it\nwas still efficient. Seomel had been delayed, and had not started\nuntil nearly sunset, but he made the best of his way, and reached the\ndwelling of Saebald the Fairfax, chief of the Billingas, long before\ndark. Here the night was to be passed. It was here that Saebald's\npredecessor had dwelt, and here the old warrior had been surprised by\nthe Britons and killed. The place is now called Street Houses. The\nhouse was one of the _mutationes_ of the Roman road, to which some\nwooden buildings had been added. But it was exposed, and it was the\nintention of Saebald to remove his people to a stockaded burg on the\nsummit of what was afterwards called Ingrish Hill, about a mile to the\nwestward of the road. Saebald received his guests with much cordiality,\nand after supper he was quite willing to satisfy the eager curiosity\nof the boys about the life and death of the Viking chief Vidfinn, and\nabout the strange fate of his children, rumours of which had reached\nthem.\n\nThe hall of the Billingas was lighted with torches, and after some\nconversation with Seomel touching the defences and the supply of\nweapons, the good-natured Saebald turned to the boys and began his\ntale. \"Vidfinn,\" he said, \"was a mighty sea-rover, and like Brand, his\nbrother, a stanch follower of the Eolderman Iffi, father of our king.\nWhen the English first advanced beyond the Ouse they were led by Brand\nand Vidfinn, and Vidfinn eventually formed this frontier station beyond\nthe road, where he and his followers settled. He brought two children,\na boy and a girl, with him, named Hjuk and Bil, to whom he was devoted.\nHe called his burg after the girl, Bilbrough, and his people hence were\ncalled _Billingas_. It so happened that the spring beside his dwelling\non the road was fouled by cattle, and for a time they had to use the\nwater from a well called _Byrgir_, about half a mile up the hill. One\nday Hjuk and Bil went up the hill to fetch a pail of water. They took\na pole named _Simul_, on which they slung the bucket _Saeg_, and away\nthey went, Bil in front and Hjuk behind, talking and laughing so that\nthe people heard them and thought no harm. But they never returned.\"\nThe boys had listened eagerly, and Oswith now asked if search was made\nfor the lost children. \"Yes, indeed,\" answered Saebald. \"The pole\n_Simul_ and the bucket _Saeg_ were found lying near the well _Byrgir_\nin such a position as to make people think that Hjuk must have fallen\ndown, and that Bil must have come tumbling after. But they were both\ngone. Search was made in all directions and continued long, but with no\nresult. Vidfinn was wild with grief. At length, in gazing at Mani, who,\nas you know, is seen on the face of the moon and directs its course,\nVidfinn thought he saw two children behind him, and he became convinced\nthat Mani had taken Hjuk and Bil up from the earth as they were coming\nfrom the well. They help Mani by presiding over the tides of the ocean,\nit is thought: Hjuk looks after the flow, while Bil directs the ebb,\nand both together send the long high wave up the rivers, which you boys\nmust often have seen, and which is named after the god \u00c6gir.\"\n\nWhen Saebald paused, the boys ran out into the road and gazed at\nthe moon. They then saw, what they had never before observed, that\nthere really were two children behind Mani. Astonished and intensely\ninterested, they returned and entreated Saebald to tell them the rest\nof the story of Vidfinn. The fair-haired chief of the Billingas said\nthat little remained to tell, and before beginning he showed the boys\nthe pole _Simul_ and the bucket _Saeg_, which hung on the carved\ndoor-post of the hall, and had escaped attention from the Britons.\n\"When Vidfinn had satisfied himself that his beloved children were safe\nin the hands of Mani,\" resumed Saebald, \"he was consoled, and ten years\nago he took another wife, a daughter of one of the Billingas, and had a\nson named Sivel, but the mother died. Peace had continued so long that\nthe old Viking was off his guard and completely taken by surprise when\nhis burg was attacked at the dead of night by the army of the Britons.\nHe sent little Sivel away with a girl, and they escaped to Ulfskelf.\nVidfinn then defended his home desperately, with his Billingas, and\nat length he fell amidst a heap of slain. He was amply avenged by the\nKing and his brave warriors, and a worthy tumulus has been raised to\nthe memory of the founder of Bilbrough. My father was Beorn, another\nof his brothers,\" concluded the Fairfax, \"and as his successor, in the\nminority of Sivel, I am proud to be the host of the valiant Seomel and\nhis knights\" (_cnihts_ or boys). By this time the eyes of the four boys\nwere heavy, and they no sooner threw themselves on their heaps of fresh\nstraw in the hall than they were all fast asleep.\n\nAt dawn the two chiefs, Seomel and Saebald, went up to the Ingrish\nHill to inspect the progress of the stockade and to serve out weapons\nto the Billingas, and on the way the boys were shown the tumulus of\nVidfinn, and, a little farther on, the deep well _Byrgir_. The tumulus\nhad been raised on the very spot where the bucket _Saeg_ and the pole\n_Simul_ were found in the grass, so that it is a monument both to the\nViking father and to the children kidnapped by Mani.\n\nTaking their leave of the hospitable lord of Bilbrough, Seomel and\nthe boys rode down the Roman road and came to the great battle-field\nof Helagh. Seomel showed them the place where the enemy's slain were\nburied, which is called \"Hell Hole\" to this day. They then went on\nto the river Wharfe, and crossed by the ford of Nehalennia to the\nold Roman station of Calcaria, where a strong English outpost was\nestablished. Seomel went a mile or two down the river, and fixed upon\na hill called Kele-bor for another military station, to guard against\nsudden incursions from Elmet; while the boys wandered up the stream\nto a limestone crag. Here the water was deliciously cool and clear,\nso different from the muddy floods of Wharfe and Ouse, lower down.\nThey stripped and plunged into it, and after their bath they went to\nthe famous shrine of their mother's goddess Nehalennia at Calcaria.\nHere, in the midst of the white limestone country, the guardian deity\nof chalk workers and of fruit trees received highest honour. Here\ntoo, among her favourite white rocks, she lavished her favours most\nabundantly among the fruit orchards, and even now the real wine-sour\nplum will only grow on the Brotherton lime, and in the Sherburn\ndistrict. Crossing the ford once more, and riding along the banks of\nthe Wharfe, the little party was very hospitably welcomed at Ulfskelf\nby the grand old warrior Brand and his wife Verbeia, a sister of the\nLady Volisia. Here Coelred and Porlor made the acquaintance of the\nlittle Sivel, a bright intelligent child, in whom the strange story\ntold them by Saebald had made them feel a deep interest. Taking leave\nof their cousin Forthere and of Sivel at Ulfskelf next morning, and of\nOswith, who rode on to Hemingborough, Seomel and his two sons arrived\nat their home. Here they found the Lady Volisia with the children of\nElfric--Hereric, Bergliot, and Osric--her own daughters Braga and\nNanna, and the dog Shuprak. Thus once more was the happy and united\nfamily assembled in the hall of Stillingfleet, with peace fully\nrestored, and all fear of danger vanished. How fortunate it is that it\nis not given to any of us to know, and to few of us to foreshadow, what\na week or a month may bring forth.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER V\n\n    KIDNAPPED\n\n\n\"I feel the Berserker rage flowing through me, and arousing the\ndesire to fight and to kill.\" It was Hereric who spoke, and he ended\nhis strange words with a wild shout. \"You, Hereric!\" exclaimed Porlor;\n\"why, you are the gentlest of us all, though no niddring. How strange\nthat you should be so taken! Yet I have heard Coifi say that the hour\nwhen the sacred rage inflames us no man knows, but that it should never\nbe resisted. When it comes, he told me, we must kill and kill.\" He\nraised another shout, which was echoed by Hereric and Coelred. \"Lead\nus to the attack of savage beasts ten times our size,\" said Porlor to\nCoelred, whose eyes were also sparkling with excitement. \"That will I,\"\nshouted the elder boy; \"I will fight any one ten times my size,\" and he\nthrew his arms over his head. The three boys had just been having their\nmorning bath, and were sitting and lying on the grass, with their feet\nin the water of the brook, which rippled over the stones.\n\nIt was early morning, and they were to take Bergliot with them into\nthe woods. When they ran home to get their arms, the young princess\nwas waiting at the gate. In a few minutes they joined her, with hosen\ncross-girt, knives at their sides, and spears in their hands. \"We are\nfull of Berserker rage,\" they told her. \"You are full of naughtiness\"\n(the word she used was _hinderscype_), she answered, \"and will be\nwhipped.\" Yet their excitement was contagious, for she ran back into\nthe hall and returned with a short spear and Shuprak at her heels.\nAll four then ran wildly down the hill and over the brook, shouting\nand brandishing their spears, with the dog running and barking in\nfront. Startled by the noise, the Lady Volisia came to the gate, and\nwatched them, with anxious eyes, until they were hidden by the trees.\nThen tears trickled down her cheeks. She never saw the boys again.\nThe wild young creatures made a great circuit in the forest, hurling\ntheir spears at everything, and running at speed until they came to the\nwillow thicket where the Stillingfleet brook empties itself into the\nriver Ouse. Here they paused to regain their breath.\n\nPresently Bergliot, in looking through the leafy branches of the\nwillows at the surface of the water, saw, sitting on a tree trunk on\nthe edge of the bank, what she thought was a nixy or water sprite. It\nwas singing, she fancied, but the sound was scarcely audible. \"There\nis a nixy,\" she said in a whisper to the rest, pointing to where it\nsat. \"Let us kill it,\" said Hereric. They all ran forward; the boys\npushed the little creature into the rushing stream with the butt ends\nof their spears, while the girl threw a needle at it, which is supposed\nto be fatal to such sprites. Then they all sang the cruel spell and ran\naway:--\n\n          Nix, Nix--needle in water,\n          Virgin casteth steel in water\n          Thou sink and we flee.\n\nAs they ran they could hear a long wailing cry, and when they stopped\nout of breath it appeared to all of them to form itself into these\nominous words:--\n\n          Dreadful your doom,\n          Slaves shall ye be,\n          Kindred and home\n          Never to see.\n\nThey looked at each other half-frightened, and Bergliot began to\ncry. She said she wanted to go home. The boys embraced her tenderly\nand kissed her, and Coelred told Shuprak to see her safe back. As she\nturned away she asked them to tell Oswith, if they saw him, that she\nhoped he would come to visit her very soon. She waved a farewell to\nthem with her hand. Reluctantly, and after casting many longing glances\nat his young masters, the dog went home with the little girl. \"Let us\ndefy the omen,\" said Coelred: \"let us go further afield to satiate our\nBerserker rage,\" and all three again plunged into the forest. They\nran for hours, hurling their spears at every creature that came in\nsight. At length, on emerging from the forest into the heathy expanse\nof Skipwith Common, they paused for a moment to look round. Close by\nthere was a huge wild bull of a dun colour, with spreading horns, and\nthree cows. Coelred uttered a triumphant cry and hurled his spear at\nthe bull's shoulder. In a moment the ferocious creature was upon him,\nthrew him down amongst the heather, and would have gored and crushed\nhim, if Porlor had not diverted its attention by driving his spear into\nits flank. It turned round foaming with rage just as Porlor sprang\nbehind a tree and Hereric faced it on one knee with his spear pointed.\nWild with rage, it dashed in his direction, then halted with its head\nup, its eyes glaring, and foam dropping from its mouth. Coelred had\nbeen stunned for a minute. He now ran up and attacked the bull in the\nflank, prodding it with his spear. Daunted by the vigour of the attack,\nthe bull now galloped across the common, followed by the cows. The\nboys gave chase, shouting and brandishing their weapons, coming up\nwith their antagonist amidst dense underwood, where they succeeded in\nkilling it with their spears. As the noble creature fell there was a\ndownpour of rain and a loud clap of thunder, and amidst the peals the\nboys thought they again heard the ominous curse of the nixy:--\n\n          Dreadful your doom,\n          Slaves shall ye be,\n          Kindred and home\n          Never to see.\n\nThey dashed wildly on, they knew not whither. Porlor started a\nwild-cat, which sprang up a tree. He followed with marvellous agility.\nThe chase turned fiercely at bay, and Coelred climbed up the tree to\nhelp. There was a desperate fight among the branches, and the boys got\nsome nasty scratches, but at last one of them plunged a knife into\nthe cat, it lost its hold, and fell to the ground. Meanwhile Hereric\nhad roused a badger from its hole and kept it at bay with his spear.\nIts mouth was open and its rows of sharp teeth glistened. It would\nhave gone hard with the Atheling if Coelred had not sprung upon it\nfrom behind and plunged his knife into a vital part. Once more the\nthree boys resumed their wild career, with the ominous words of the\nnixy ringing in their ears. The sun was low when they emerged from the\nforest and came out on the banks of the muddy Ouse just at the point\nwhere the Wharfe joins it. They were now exhausted and hungry, so tired\nindeed that they could run no more without rest. They were unhappy too,\nand frightened at the sounds which seemed to form themselves into such\ndreadful words. The three boys threw themselves on the grass, and in a\nminute they were fast asleep.\n\nThey had not seen a long black boat, like some foul snake, creeping\nstealthily down the Wharfe to its confluence. It was flat-bottomed\nand of unusual beam, but low in the water. The crew consisted of\nhalf a dozen villainous-looking ruffians, sent by a vessel anchored\nat the mouth of the Humber to Calcaria on pretence of selling some\ncloths, and the return cargo was to be stolen. They were sea-thieves\nand cut-throats. As they descended the Wharfe they saw Forthere and\nSivel fishing on the bank and suspecting no evil. Four of them sprang\non shore, and in a minute the lads were bound hand and foot, gagged,\nand thrown into the bottom of the boat. A few minutes afterwards they\ncame in sight of the confluence, just in time to see Coelred, Porlor,\nand Hereric throw themselves on the grass by the opposite shore. Very\nstealthily the boat was brought under the bank. Coelred and Hereric\nwere overpowered and bound before they were half awake. Porlor,\nhowever, was aroused by the footsteps. He had time to draw his knife\nand make a desperate resistance, gashing the arm of one ruffian and\nstabbing another in the hand. But he was quickly overpowered. His two\ncompanions were thrown into the bottom of the boat, where, to their\nhorror and astonishment, they found Forthere and little Sivel in like\nplight. Porlor was put across a thwart and given an unmerciful beating\nwith a thong of leather, which, in the dialect of the cut-throats,\nwas called a _lorum_. His young friends were nearly mad with impotent\nrage as they heard the ferocious blows being showered on the child's\nbody. At last he was thrown, bruised and bleeding, among the rest; but,\nbound as they were, they could do nothing to console or help him. It\nall seemed like a horrible dream; they scarcely knew where they were,\nand could do nothing but sob as they were roused at intervals from a\nhalf-dozing state.\n\nMeanwhile the boat went swiftly down the Ouse with an ebb-tide. The\nvillains kept a sharp look-out on either bank, and, when half a mile\nabove Hemingborough, they saw a boy bathing, and swimming out boldly\nas the tide had slackened. Thinking no harm, he caught hold of one of\nthe boat's oars to rest. In an instant his wrists were seized, he was\nbound hand and foot, and thrown into the bottom of the boat with the\nothers. It was Oswith. He was quite naked, and one of the crew threw a\ncoarse cloth over him. The grief of the rest of the kidnapped children\nwas redoubled at the sight of their beloved friend, the fearless son of\nGuthlaf. He was as little able to understand what had really happened\nas they were, yet he tried to console them. He whispered that he would\nlook out for chances of escape, and reminded them that at least they\nhad the consolation of being together.\n\nAll through the night the boat kept her course down the Humber, with\nthe tide against them during the first watch, but with a fair wind. Off\nthe mouth of the Trent the sea-thieves stopped and made fast, until\nthey were joined by another smaller boat coming down that river, which\nwent alongside and passed another boy on board. In spite of their\nmisery and discomfort, the kidnapped children were fast asleep while\nthe boat was waiting in the mud, and they were aroused by another\nlittle boy being thrown amongst them. He said that he was Godric the\nson of Ulchel, a thegn of the Gainas. He seemed to be as small as\nSivel. After a time the seven forlorn children went fast asleep as the\nboat was rowed down the Humber, and finally came alongside the vessel\nwhose leader had sent the thieves on their kidnapping errand.\n\nThis vessel was small, but suited for sea-voyages, and with much\nmore beam than was allowed for an ordinary fighting ship. Her lines\nwere indeed very unlike those of a dragon ship of the Vikings. For she\nwas built primarily for trading, and in the second place for piracy,\nwhenever the opportunity offered, and she had a capacious hold, now\nhalf full of merchandise. She was lying off Ravenspur, the site of the\nRoman station of Pr\u00e6torium, under the shelter of Y-kill, the Ocellum\nPromontorium, now Spurn Head. The seven boys were bundled out of the\nboat and into the ship's hold like so many bales of goods, and the\nboats were turned adrift. They had been stolen. The vessel then got\nunder weigh and hoisted her single sail, shaping a southerly course,\nwith a strong breeze which soon freshened into a gale. The stolen\nchildren nestled together and slept long, for they were quite worn\nout with anxiety and grief, to which three of them had added a day of\nintense excitement and fatigue. They awoke quite famished and were\ngiven some food, but throughout the voyage the poor children were\ntreated with vile inhumanity, half-starved, and exposed to the seas\nwhich washed into the vessel during the gale. They could not have\nsurvived many more days of such treatment. Fortunately the wind was\nfair, and the voyage had been a short though a stormy one, when the\npiratical thieves anchored in the port of Amfleet. It is not known\nwhence they came nor what land was disgraced by having bred them, nor\ndoes it matter. They were paid and employed by a trader with more\nhumanity but as little conscience as themselves.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER VI\n\n    MYSTACON\n\n\nMystacon was the principal trader between Gaul and the northern\ncountries on the one hand, and Italy and the East on the other, during\nthe latter part of the sixth century. He was a Greek, a native of\nCrete, brought up by a merchant at Massilia, and his life had been\ndevoted to mercantile pursuits, in which his cunning, ability, and\nabsence of all scruples had enabled him to amass wealth, which he\nsought by every means to increase. In those days Brunehaud, a Gothic\nprincess from Spain, was Regent of the eastern part of France, called\nAustrasia, her husband, King Sigebert, having been assassinated in 575.\nNeustria, which included northern and central France, was governed by\nQueen Fredegonda as Regent to her little son Clotaire II. A handsome\nwoman of low extraction, she had waded through murders and other evil\ndeeds to her lofty position, in which she maintained herself by her\nstrong will. Capable of any crime to gain her objects, courageous and\nunscrupulous, she must have possessed great ability and astuteness to\nhave been successful in maintaining her power so long in that turbulent\nage. Her husband, Chilperic I., died by poison administered by his wife\nin 584, and Fredegonda was Regent from that year until 596. Gontran,\nthe brother of Sigebert and Chilperic, was King of Burgundy. A fourth\nbrother, Charibert, King of Paris, who was father of Bertha, the wife\nof Ethelbert, King of Kent, died without male issue in 570. These four\nbrothers were the grandsons of Clovis.\n\nThe Greek trader, when he found that the fierce nation of the Franks\nwas ruled over by the Queen-Regents, Brunehaud and Fredegonda, hastened\nto propitiate them by presents, and to secure their patronage. As\nregards Fredegonda he had been successful. He consulted her wishes, and\nbrought her the luxuries she required both from the north and south,\nalways as free offerings. In return he was under her protection, his\ngoods were to pass unmolested through her dominions, and he was to be\nassisted by her officers. He had been granted similar privileges by\nKing Gontran of Burgundy, whose country included the shores of the\nRhone from Lyons to the sea.\n\nIn his northern trade Mystacon employed agents to bring him valuable\nfurs and amber, and even unicorns' horns, from the countries bordering\non the Baltic, tin from Cornwall, and occasionally he paid sea-thieves\nto kidnap young children from the north, who fetched high prices in the\nmarkets of Rome and Constantinople. He had a shed at Ambleteuse where\nhe received his northern merchandise, preferring that little port to\nthe neighbouring harbour of Gessoriacum (Boulogne), because a Frankish\nofficer, from whom his gifts had secured him favour and protection, was\nstationed there with a strong body of disciplined followers.\n\nMystacon had been several days at Ambleteuse, his merchandise was\nstored in the shed, and his servants had pack-horses ready to convey\nit southward along the old Roman road, when the vessel from the Humber\nanchored off the port and landed its cargo. The crew was composed of\nsuch dangerous villains that the merchant induced the Queen-Regent's\nofficer to post armed men behind his shed, before he ventured to confer\nwith them. Besides a pile of beaver skins and other commodities,\nseven boys were put on shore. They stood on the sandy beach close\ntogether, the little ones clinging to the three bigger lads. All were\nwet through, and looked half-starved and miserable. Porlor and little\nGodric were clinging to Coelred. Sivel had his arms round Forthere, and\nHereric nestled under the sheltering arm of the son of Guthlaf. Oswith\nthe fearless, who was nearly naked, with only a bit of sackcloth round\nhis loins, alone maintained a defiant look. There was no longer any\nsign or token of Berserker rage among the rest.\n\nThe wily Greek came forward to look at them. He saw their great\nbeauty and their value, but he also saw from their appearance that they\nhad been cruelly treated. The sea-thieves demanded the payment he had\npromised, so much for each. \"But they are not in good condition,\" he\nremonstrated; \"the price must be reduced.\" A livid mark on Porlor's\nneck caught his quick, searching eye. He pulled down the boy's shirt,\nand saw that his back was covered with weals, the effect of the cruel\nflogging he had received. \"Damaged goods,\" he said. Then, turning to\nhis servants, he told them to take the boys into the shed, and to\nclothe and feed them. \"I will only pay half-price for damaged goods,\"\nhe repeated, turning to the spokesman of the sea-thieves. \"That little\nwild-cat used his knife on one of us,\" the man answered, \"and the\nflogging served him right.\" \"What is that to me, my friend?\" rejoined\nMystacon, in a low but irritating voice. \"You can please yourselves\nabout damaging your goods, that is your business, but you cannot expect\nto get the same price as if they were not damaged. If a heavy bale was\nto fall and hurt one of you, of course it is open to you to cut and\nslash it if you please, and it may serve the bale right. That I do not\ndispute. But you must not expect the same price in the market as if the\nbale had not been cut and slashed. I can only pay you half-price for\nthe boys.\" The kidnappers could not follow the subtle argument of the\nGreek, but they began to look dangerous. The merchant retreated back\na few paces. \"Pay us what you promised, thou cursed cheat, or we will\nkill thee and the boys too.\" He retreated rapidly back and cried out\nfor help, as the villains drew their long knives and rushed towards\nhim. In another minute they were all overpowered and thrown on the\nground by the Frankish guard. The officer came forward and suggested\ncapital punishment, offering to hang them in a row. \"It is the just\nand proper treatment,\" said Mystacon, \"of those who try to extort\nfull price for damaged goods from unwary traders. As soon as your\nlaudable proposal has been carried into effect, I shall have pleasure\nin requesting your lordship to accept the large sum which the criminals\nrefused.\" Another hour had not passed before twenty bodies were hanging\nfrom the branches of the stunted pines round Ambleteuse, and before the\nFrankish officer had an additional reason for extending his protection\nto the wily merchant.\n\nMystacon set out with his train of laden horses and attendants early\nnext morning, following the old Roman road by Amiens, Soissons, and\nAutun to Lyons. The boys had been warmly clothed and fed, and had\nslept well, nor were they prevented from having a morning bath in the\nsea. Two pack-horses were allowed them, so that they could ride by\nturns, while the rest trotted along on the road-side. They found that\nthey could understand much that was said to them by the servants, and\nwhen Mystacon spoke the Frank dialect slowly and clearly, they could\ncomprehend the meaning of nearly every word. For in those days there\nwas little difference between the Frankish and other Teutonic dialects.\n\nThe journey across Picardy restored the health and strength, and\nrevived the spirits, of the English lads. This limestone tract, with\nits keen fresh air, arable surface, and well-watered meadows, reminded\nthem of the country round Calcaria. At Samarobriva, or Amiens, they\nrested, and Mystacon was allowed to store his goods against the wall\nof the town, and to encamp there by the Roman gate of the Twins,\nwhereon was carved Romulus and Remus suckled by the wolf. This was the\nfirst opportunity the boys had found of collecting their thoughts,\nand holding a serious consultation. Even now they scarcely understood\nwhat had happened or where they were. Their first words, as they sat\namong the bales, were words of grief at the sorrow and anxiety of their\nrelations, who would search high and low through the woods, until at\nlast they gave them up as dead. \"Alca will give them hope and courage,\"\nsaid Coelred. \"She will know that we are together, and she knows that\nwe shall return. For we are to die in battle fighting for a righteous\ncause, and that cannot be anywhere but in England. She is praying now\nthat the gods will watch over us, and her prayers are ever answered.\"\nThese words, spoken with an air of conviction, comforted the rest. \"We\nmust suffer,\" said Oswith, \"but that does not signify when we have such\ngood reason for hope. Porlor has already suffered more than the rest\nof us.\" \"At that I rejoice,\" said Porlor, whose little head had been\nteeming with ideas suggested by Mithras and the bull, ever since he had\ngazed on the sculpture at York. \"Through suffering we shall all win the\nrewards prepared for the true and brave; and the thong those niddring\nthieves called _lorum_ is no word of bane to me, but of good luck.\"\n\"Nay, then,\" said Hereric, smiling, \"we must fasten it to thy name and\ncall thee Porlorlorum.\" \"Let it be so,\" answered the imaginative child;\n\"it will remind me, and all of us, in the happy years that will surely\ncome when this darkness has been turned to light, that we had to pass\nthrough suffering to happiness and home.\"\n\nThey then began to wonder what their position really was, and whither\nMystacon was taking them. They had already discovered that he was a\ncunning liar, and they believed nothing he told them, although he had\nuniformly treated them with kindness. Forthere proposed to run away,\nand both Coelred and Oswith were inclined to some plan of making their\nway across country to the coast, and seizing a boat. But they would not\nattempt it unarmed. Alca had told them that little Porlor should give\nthem counsel, and they all turned to him. \"My rede is that we wait to\nlearn more, and to see what will happen,\" he said. \"I do not fear the\ndistance this man is taking us from home, if we have knowledge. A short\ndistance with ignorance means disaster, perhaps death. A very great\ndistance is easy to go over with knowledge of all the obstacles, and of\nthe way to overcome or avoid them. The wisdom of Alca and her insight\nwill bring comfort to our parents. It is for us to remember her words,\nto follow them, to wait and watch until the time comes for us to go\nhome. I know the time will come, and the gods will watch over us.\" \"We\nwill wait and watch,\" they all said. It was now dark. They laid their\nweary heads down side by side, and passed into a happy sleep. Their\ndreams were of home and kindred.\n\nThe boys had their morning bath in one of the numerous bright little\ntrout streams, bordered by aspen and willow, which flow down to the\nsands of St. Valery. Later in the morning, as they sat talking near the\nGate of the Twins, a monk came out in a long dark-coloured cassock,\nwith a rope round his waist. He was a young man, with a patient look\nin his grey eyes, and a circlet of thick fair hair round his tonsure.\nWhen he saw the lads, he stopped to improve the occasion. He asked them\nif they knew what had happened at that Gate of the Twins, and he told\nthem the story of St. Martin. \"Out of this gate,\" he said, \"long, long\nago, a brave and virtuous Roman soldier named Martin rode, on a very\nfrosty winter's day. He had a cloak wrapped closely round him, and as\nhe passed along the causeway he saw a poor man shivering with cold.\nMartin drew his sword and, cutting his cloak in two, he gave half to\nthe beggar. This was charity, the greatest of all virtues, which covers\na multitude of sins. Martin was afterwards baptized in the half cloak,\nand became a Christian and a Saint.\" After a pause he asked, \"Are you\nChristians?\" Coelred answered that they did not so much as know that\nthere were such people as Christians. \"But,\" he added, \"we know very\nwell that it is good to give to those who are in need; for the Princess\nAlca has taught us.\" \"We know it,\" said Hereric, \"and we try to\nremember to act as she has taught us, but we are not always able to do\nright.\" The hearts of all the boys were warming towards the young monk.\n\nThere was a longer pause, and then the monk told them that they must\nbe baptized into the fold of Christ. He raised his voice. \"The Son of\nGod went down into hell, but now He has risen from the dead.\" The boys\nstarted to their feet with looks of astonishment and deep interest.\nThese were almost the very words spoken by the Princess Alca, under\nthe ash tree at the foot of Garraby Hill. \"Then Alca is right!\" they\nexclaimed. \"She is always right. The Son of God has risen.\" Porlor\nwent on to ask about baptism, when Mystacon came forward. He had been\nlistening to the latter part of the conversation, and did not like it.\nConcealing his displeasure by a forced smile, he invented a lie on\nthe spur of the moment. \"By the order of the Bishop of Noviodunum,\"\nhe said, addressing the monk, \"these Pagan youths are being conducted\nto his city to be duly instructed and baptized. I thank you for the\ninterest you have taken in them, but your help is not needed.\" There\nwas nothing more to be said. The good monk gave his blessing to the\nboys, and went on his way, while Mystacon issued hurried orders for the\npack-horses to be loaded, and in another hour he and his merchandise\nwere again journeying southward; but he kept well clear of the city of\nNoviodunum (Soissons).\n\nThe most anxious part of the journey for the merchant was\napproaching. He was bound to visit the Queen, wherever she might be,\nboth on the way north and south, and she took whatever she fancied\nwithout paying. Even this heavy and uncertain tax generally left a\nwide margin of profit, but it was a source of anxiety, and he now\nfeared that she might take a fancy to the beautiful English boys.\nFortune, however, favoured him. Fredegonda was, he had ascertained, at\nthe manor of Braine-sur-la-Vesle, between Soissons and Rheims, but he\nhad also learned that she was on the point of departure. He cunningly\ntimed his arrival on the day that she was to begin her journey, in the\nhope that she would accept a present, and, in the hurry of starting,\nforgo her usual practice of rummaging through the whole contents of\nhis caravan. Late on the third evening after leaving Amiens, Mystacon\nencamped outside the gates of Braine-sur-la-Vesle. This Merovingian\npalace was an immense farm, with large unfortified wooden houses,\nstables, barns, and cow-sheds. In the morning the Franks in attendance\non the royal family began to march out of the great enclosure. They\nhad a fierce air, with large and vigorous bodies, inured to cold and\nhunger. Their favourite weapon, the battle-axe with a short handle,\nrested on their shoulders, and they wore their long hair tied up over\ntheir foreheads, forming a kind of aigrette, then falling behind like\na horse's tail. The long line of the escort of warriors was followed\nby several waggons drawn by oxen. In the first sat Fredegonda, with\nthe little King Clotaire, then only four years of age. She was a most\nformidable-looking woman, with a fierce, cruel glance in her large\nblack eyes, and a haughty bearing. Mystacon advanced in a cringing\nattitude, offering a valuable present, which she accepted, as he had\nhoped, without stopping, ordering it to be put into one of the waggons.\nAs the royal train passed out of sight, the merchant gave orders to\ncontinue the journey to Lyons, by way of Bibracte or Augustodunum\n(Autun). The boys had seen the warriors, and the great lady in her\nwaggon. But they had been told nothing. If Porlor had known that it\nwas the Queen of the Franks, his rede would probably have been to rush\nforward, tell her that Hereric was an Atheling of Deira, and claim her\nprotection. But they knew nothing, were kept behind, and were only\nallowed to peep between the bales.\n\nAt Lyons the merchant embarked his goods in a large boat, went down\nthe Rhone to its mouth, and then sailed in a vessel from Massilia to\nthe mouth of the Tiber. Before embarking, the boys again had a long and\nanxious talk over their position. Mystacon had told them lie after lie\nabout their destination, and they were in great perplexity. He said\nthat he had saved them from death at the hands of the sea-thieves, that\nhe was their saviour and benefactor, and that the journey was for their\ngood. They had thought of telling their captor that Hereric was an\nAtheling, but on the whole it seemed to them that the knowledge might\nincrease the danger, if it existed, and that their wisest course was\nto keep silence about themselves. They had enjoyed the journey through\nFrance. The sight of a strange country and of many things that were new\nto them had amused and interested them, and they now looked as bright\nand fresh as on the morning when the Berserker rage so unfortunately\nseized upon gentle Hereric, and led to such an unlooked-for\ncatastrophe. Their fate was now sealed. After their embarkation in the\nboat on the river Rhone, it would not be many days before they would\nenter the imperial city and become the victims of Mystacon's greed.\n\n\n\n\n    PART II\n\n    EXILE\n\n\n  Go forth, bright youths, nor any danger shun,\n    Go forth to brave whatever may betide;\n  Your country needs your knowledge hardly won,\n    Your heads to counsel and your hearts to guide.\n\n  But let fond memory turn again to home,\n    Come back enriched with stores of foreign lore,\n  Return to gladden hearts that long bemoan\n    Loved kinsmen's absence from their native shore.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER I\n\n    FALLEN ROME\n\n\nIn the end of the sixth century the old Rome, the lingering remnant of\nthe imperial city, had nearly disappeared. Language, literature, art,\nscience were being crushed out, not so much by inroads of barbarians\nas by the bigotry of bishops and monks. When the Goths, under Alaric,\nentered Rome by the Salarian gate in 410 and revelled in pillage\nfor six days, they did little or no damage to buildings or works of\nart. Half a century afterwards, when Genseric sacked the city for\nfourteen days, he only carried off the gilt-bronze tiles on the roof\nof the Capitoline temple of Jupiter and the spoils from the temple of\nJerusalem; and during the sack of Ricimer little injury was done to\nbuildings. Rome suffered more from Totila in 546 than from any former\nsack, half the walls being destroyed and many houses being burnt.\n\nTheodoric the Goth established his capital at Ravenna. He took steps\nto protect the monuments of Rome, and his reign from 493 to 526 may\nbe considered to have been the period which saw the last of the true\nRomans. Cassiodorus strove to preserve the rapidly failing taste for\nthe models of classical antiquity. Boethius, the last of the Romans\nwhom Cato or Cicero would have acknowledged as their countryman,\nthrew a flickering ray over the fallen empire. But both Boethius and\nhis learned friend Symmachus were murdered by Theodoric in 526. Long\nbefore this the last joyous festivals of old Rome, the Lupercalia, had\nbeen abolished through the bigotry of Pope Gelasius, and with them\ndisappeared all living vestiges of the old life. The buildings were\nimperishable. The shell was there amidst dirt and desolation; the life\nwas gone. Monks pulled down or defaced the edifices and statues raised\nby genius, and the beautiful temple of Apollo gave place to the cells\nof Benedict on the summit of Monte Cassino.\n\nBelisarius and Narses recovered Italy for the emperors of the East\nin 536, and Justinian fixed the capital of his _exarch_ or governor\nat Ravenna, not at Rome. But the walls of Rome were repaired, and\npartially rebuilt. Only thirty years afterwards Alboin, with an\narmy of Lombards, conquered Northern Italy without encountering any\nopposition, established an oppressive aristocracy in the subjugated\nprovinces, and extended his inroads to the gates of Rome. This was\nthe condition of affairs when Mystacon arrived at the mouth of the\nTiber with his merchandise. Maurice Tiberius, the best of the Eastern\nemperors, had ascended the throne at Constantinople in 582. His exarch\nRomanus ruled at Ravenna. Young Autharis had succeeded Alboin as king\nof the Lombards in 586, and his armies kept Rome in perpetual fear. The\nsuburbs were constantly devastated. The city was vacant and solitary:\nthe depopulation had been rapid. Famine was frequent, the edifices were\nexposed to ruin, and the chief person in the city was the Bishop, who\nexulted over the desolation of idolatry. His name was Pelagius II.,\nbut the ecclesiastic who possessed the greatest influence over the\nmiserable remnant of the inhabitants was the Deacon Gregory. He was a\nnative of the city, born in 544, and his parents, Gordian and Sylvia,\nwere of senatorial rank. He was also wealthy, and he had founded a\nmonastery on the Caelian Hill, dedicated to St. Andrew. He was learned\nin the Scriptures and in the works of the early fathers of the Church,\nand was a voluminous writer both of letters and of commentaries. While\nacting as the Pope's nuncio at Constantinople, he had occupied himself\nin a violent controversy with the Eutychians on the question whether,\nafter the resurrection, the bodies of the faithful would be impalpable\nlike air, or palpable though subtle and sublimed. The former view\nwas the heresy which Gregory, with the important aid of the Emperor,\neffectually suppressed. He then returned to Rome, and maintained his\ninfluence by relieving distress through his great wealth and his\norganising ability, and also by the power of his pathetic but rude\neloquence. But he was a narrow-minded bigot. He hated the monuments of\nclassic genius, destroyed the magnificent baths and theatres, and did\nmore harm to the buildings of Rome than all the barbarians, from Alaric\nto Totila, put together. The decided progress made by the ancients\nin astronomy and geography was declared to be contrary to scriptural\ntruth, sculpture was condemned as an ally of paganism, and both science\nand art disappeared. The belief of Gregory that the end of the world\nwas close at hand also had a mischievous tendency. As a young man he\nwas often tormented with pains in the bowels, and was continually\nsuffering from low fever, and these ailments probably had their effect\non his temperament. His zeal for the spread of Christianity perhaps\natones for his shortcomings in other respects, and at all events\nGregory was the leading figure in the Rome of the end of the sixth\ncentury.\n\nThe son of the Senator Gordian was not the only wealthy man in Rome,\nor it would have been no place for Mystacon and his wares. Patricians,\nwith incomes from estates in Campania and Sicily, still lived in some\nof the ruins of departed greatness on the Caelian Hill. We meet with\nthe names of Decius, Basilius, Olybrius, Orestes, Maximus, Symmachus,\nand Pamphronius. But the sons and daughters of others were reduced to\npenury, and many descendants of consuls and senators were begging their\nbread in the streets.\n\nPamphronius was one of those who, by flight on some occasions and\nprompt submission on others, had succeeded in preserving sufficient of\nthis world's goods to enable him to live in a partially-rebuilt villa,\nand to show signs of comparative wealth. He had a few clients round\nhim, and was a customer of Mystacon.\n\nSymmachus Boethius was another survivor of an ancient and renowned\nfamily. His maternal ancestor had been a bright model of learning\nand virtue in the days of Constantine and his immediate successors.\nScholar, statesman, and orator, he gave new life and vigour to the\nliterature of Rome, and he was zealous for the ancient faith. He\nremonstrated with the Emperor Gratian on the removal of the altar of\nvictory from the Senate in 384. His letters are extant, and that in\nfavour of the altar of victory is, we are told, infinitely superior to\nthe verbose, abusive, and dishonest reply of St. Ambrose. Proconsul in\nAchaia and Africa, he had great wealth, estates in Campania, Sicily,\nand Mauritania, and a mansion on the Caelian Hill. His descendants for\nfour generations were all distinguished. The fifth in descent, named\nQuintus Aurelius Memmius Symmachus, had an only daughter Rusticiana.\nShe was happily married to Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, whose\nfather was consul in 487. Boethius was famous for his learning and for\nhis charities. He was accused of a wish to free Rome from the Goths,\nwas condemned unheard, and put to death, with his son, by order of\nTheodoric. His _Consolatio Philosophi\u00e6_, written in prison, shows that\nhe was not a Christian. Rusticiana was reduced to poverty until her\nproperty was restored by Theodoric's daughter Amalasontha. At the sack\nof Rome in 541 she was again reduced to beggary, and was only saved\nfrom death by the intervention of Totila.\n\nAnicius Severinus Boethius, the son of the great Boethius and of\nRusticiana, was consul in 522, and died, soon after his mother, in\n570. He had succeeded in recovering his Sicilian estates, and in\nraising the fortunes of his family sufficiently to be able to reside\nin the fine old mansion of the Symmachus family on the Caelian. His\nson Symmachus Boethius continued to prosper, and, at the time of which\nwe speak, he was one of the few wealthy patricians of Rome. His wife\nwas a virtuous lady named Otacilia. His villa made some pretensions\nto its ancient splendour, and its owner, now a man between fifty and\nsixty, outwardly conformed to the Christian religion, as all who valued\ntheir peace and safety were bound to do in those days. The religion of\nAmbrose and of Gregory became a persecuting religion as soon as its\nhierarchy had the power to persecute. In this and in other essentials\nit differed widely from the religion of Christ. By ready conformity\nthe patricians Pamphronius and Symmachus Boethius maintained friendly\nrelations with the Deacon Gregory and his monks of St. Andrew, who\nwere their neighbours on the Caelian Hill. They were consulted on the\naffairs of the city, especially on the absorbing questions relating\nto food-supply, but all real power was in the hands of the Bishop\nand clergy, whose preaching swayed the mob. Gregory was, indeed, a\nremarkable personality. His character presented a singular mixture of\nsense and superstition, pride and humility, simplicity and cunning; and\nthrough all there was that touch of sympathy which secured the support\nof the multitude, and that burning and impulsive zeal which seemed to\ncarry all before it, and which was mainly directed to the propagation\nof his faith. His worst trait was his unprincipled time-serving. When\nthe good Emperor Maurice was murdered, whom he knew well, and from whom\nhe had received much kindness, he wrote a flattering letter to his\nmurderer Phocas, one of the most infamous wretches that ever disgraced\nthe purple, which is worded in a way that is simply revolting. It needs\nmuch zeal to atone for such baseness.\n\nThese were the leaders of Rome, but not of living Rome. They were\nlike small crabs in a great dead shell. It is difficult to realise the\neffect on the mind of any one then coming to Rome for the first time,\nand gazing upon the superb baths and theatres, the splendid temples and\nhalls in long vistas, all desolate and abandoned, with here and there\na priceless work of art thrown down and broken. Everywhere silence and\ndesolation, except where some monk might be seen preaching to a squalid\ngroup, or where half-starved crowds assembled at church doors for doles\nof food. The population had dwindled from millions to thousands, and\nclergy had taken the place of soldiery and well-to-do citizens of the\nempire, but in much smaller numbers. Still there were a few wealthy\npeople, sufficient to induce traders to expose valuable goods for sale.\n\n[Illustration: Mystacon Attacked by his Boy Captives]\n\nMystacon, when he arrived in his vessel, found the port of Ostia\nquite empty, and there was ample space at his disposal in the long\nrow of dilapidated emporia facing the Tiber, at the foot of Mount\nAventine. Here his goods were warehoused until the day of the market,\nwhich was then held in the beautiful Forum of Trajan. He now had to\ndisclose his real intention to the English boys. He had safely housed\nthem in a large room, with plenty of his own hirelings always more or\nless on guard outside. He opened his communication by dwelling upon\nhis kindness and liberality, on having saved their lives when the\nsea-thieves would have killed them, and on the gratitude they owed\nhim. At last the truth came out. He would be obliged to sell them in\nthe market, owing to the great expense they had been to him, and if a\nsufficient sum could not be obtained, he would have to take them to\nRavenna or to Constantinople. He was unprepared for the outburst of\nrage and fury with which his base scheme was received by the little\nboys. They told him that Hereric was an atheling, and that all were the\nsons of thegns, better born than any one in Rome. Their eyes flamed\nwith Berserker madness as they cried out that they would kill him as\nthey would kill a wild-cat or a badger, and Forthere actually flew at\nhis throat. The coward was taken by surprise. He cried out for help,\nand could not collect his ideas and decide upon the course to take\nuntil the lads were all tied hand and foot. He was in great perplexity.\nA violent scene at the market was out of the question. His wish was\nto flog them within an inch of their lives; but, as he had told his\ndeceased accomplices, damaged goods only fetch half-price. He must\ndisplay them with whole skins. At last he determined to starve them\ninto submission. He told them that they would have no food until they\nconsented to go quietly to the Forum, and left them with the door well\nbarred. For more than thirty-six hours they resolutely held out, but\nthe bigger boys could not bear to hear little Godric and Sivel crying\nfor food. They turned to Porlor for his counsel. None of them had been\nmore furious, none of them now felt a stronger desire to kill the\ntreacherous villain who had employed the kidnappers, as they now fully\nbelieved. He said that the shame was almost more than they could bear,\nbut that it would at least be a great gain to be free from Mystacon. No\nmaster could be worse, and when they were older and stronger they could\ndefy any master to detain them. \"But the shame! the shame!\" moaned\nCoelred and Oswith, as they lay with their heads in their hands prone\nto the ground. It had to be done. The next time Mystacon came, Porlor\ntold him to bring food, and that they would go without resistance. The\nboys had few words and could not scold. But the villain was told that\nthey knew him as he was, far viler and baser than the sea-thieves, a\nniddring and a liar, and that some day they would kill him. He sent\nthem plenty of food, and his sickly smile betokened malice not unmixed\nwith fear. His mind was, however, relieved: he would get his price.\n\n\"To be sold as slaves!\" In all their thoughts of possible danger and\nsuffering, they had never anticipated anything so bad as this. They\ncalled to mind the words that the sounds in the forest seemed to form\nthemselves into, and shuddered. But after hours of despondency the\nbrave little fellows took heart. Coelred was the leader who now urged\nhis companions to remember the words of the Princess. They talked long\nand anxiously, but before they laid down their heads to sleep, they\nhad, with one accord, all raised their right hands and cried--\"Come\nwhat may, we will quit ourselves like men--above all, like Englishmen!\"\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER II\n\n    IN BONDAGE AT ROME\n\n\nThe Forum of Trajan was as yet uninjured. The noble rows of\nbuildings with colonnades, including the once well-stored library,\nstill surrounded the large paved court, and in the centre stood the\nbeautiful column with its elaborate representation in bronze of the\nevents of the Dacian war. Here important markets were held, and on\none autumn morning of the year 588 several merchants, who had lately\narrived, exposed many things for sale. Abundance of people resorted\nthither to buy. Mystacon had his wares arranged under a colonnade. He\ninvited attention in a cringing attitude, seeking for purchasers. The\nEnglish boys stood in a group quite naked, their eyes full of tears of\nshame and rage. Among the first people who stopped in front of them\nwas a thin and emaciated ecclesiastic, accompanied by another, who\nwas younger and of stouter build. The older man had an aquiline nose\nand hollow cheeks, bright piercing eyes, which had assumed a gentle\nexpression, and a somewhat commanding air. It was Gregory himself,\nthen aged forty-four, and his secretary Peter. Mystacon bowed low\nbefore them. Gregory looked at the boys with admiration, and turning\nto the merchant, he remarked that their bodies were white, their\ncountenances beautiful, and their hair very fine. Mystacon bowed still\nlower. \"From what country or nation were they brought?\" he asked. The\nreply was that they came from the island of Britain, whose inhabitants\nare of that personal appearance. \"Are these islanders Christians,\nor are they still involved in the errors of Paganism?\" was the next\ninquiry. He was told that they were Pagans. Fetching a deep sigh, he\nexclaimed--\"Alas! what pity that the author of darkness is possessed\nof men of such fair countenances, and that, being remarkable for such\ngraceful aspects, their minds should be void of inward grace. What,\"\nhe demanded, \"is the name of that nation?\" The kidnapper replied that\nthey were called Angles. \"Right,\" said Gregory, \"for they have angelic\nfaces, and it becomes such to be co-heirs with the angels in heaven.\nWhat is the name,\" he proceeded, \"of the province from which they\nare brought?\" The reply was that the name of the province was Deira.\n\"Truly are they _De ir\u00e2_,\" said he, \"withdrawn from wrath and called\nto the mercy of Christ. How is the king of that province called?\"\nMystacon said that his name was Ella; and Gregory, alluding to it as\nhe walked on, observed to Peter that Hallelujah, the praise of God the\nCreator, must be sung in those parts. Gregory was on his way to have an\ninterview with the Pope, and on coming into his presence, he proposed\nthat ministers should be sent to the English, by whom they might be\nconverted to Christ; and, in his impulsive way, he declared that he\nwas ready to undertake that work himself, by the assistance of God.\nPelagius replied that he was willing to grant his request, but that the\npeople would never consent to his departure. Gregory then entrusted to\nPeter the business of purchasing some of these \"Angles,\" and sent him\nback to the market.\n\nThe boys did not understand a word of the remarks made by Gregory and\nby other passers-by who stopped to question Mystacon. Presently two\npatricians, advanced in years, followed by clients and attendants,\nwalked into the Forum and stopped at the colonnade where the lads were\nstill exposed. After gazing upon them, Symmachus Boethius observed to\nhis companion Pamphronius that he had never seen such perfect symmetry\nand beauty except in ancient sculpture. \"The works of Praxiteles are\nlooked upon with disapproval by our good friends the priests, so I\nwould fain ornament my villa with living forms that would be worthy\nof the chisel of the most gifted sculptor of antiquity.\" Pamphronius\nexpressed his concurrence, and his desire to possess at least two of\nthe young slaves. Calling Mystacon aside, they made various inquiries,\nand concluded bargains by which Symmachus Boethius became the owner\nof Coelred and Porlor, while Oswith and Sivel fell to Pamphronius.\nTheir clients were instructed to complete the arrangement and pay the\npurchase-money, and the great men passed on. No sooner were they out\nof sight, than Peter arrived breathless to carry out the instructions\nof his master. Mystacon was delighted, for his troubles and anxieties\nwere fully repaid. Peter agreed to his terms, and the Atheling Hereric,\nForthere, and Godric became the property of the Deacon Gregory.\n\nThe boys were thus relieved from their shameful and degrading position,\nwhich they had looked forward to with such horror and dismay. Their\nclothes were restored to them, and they were told by signs to accompany\nthe servants of the patricians and Peter, the road of all being the\nsame, namely, that leading to the Caelian Hill. Casting looks of\nvindictive hatred at Mystacon, they gladly accompanied their new\nacquaintances.\n\nOf all the seven hills of Rome, the Caelian was the most favoured by\nthe wealthier classes during the latter days of the empire, and their\nvillas were scattered over it, half-hidden by groves of cypress trees.\nBut the troublous times had wrought destruction, and most of them were\nnow in ruins. Facing the Palatine, where the imperial palace stood\ndesolate and abandoned, was the monastery of St. Andrew, the villas of\nSymmachus and Pamphronius, and the deserted temple of Divus Claudius,\nwhile just below ran the Appian Way. In rear stood the Sacellum Dian\u00e6,\nthe arch of Dolabella, and the chapel containing little votive ships\nof marble, reminding the boys of the votive boats in the tumulus of\nVidfinn at Bilbrough. The aqueduct of Nero entered Rome at the back\nof the Caelian Hill, and was one of the few which still brought water\nto the city; and to the south were the Lateran Palace and the famous\nAsinarian Gate, by which Totila and his army entered in 546, through\nthe treachery of some Isaurian sentries.\n\nThe villa of Symmachus was the best and most perfect that remained\nin the Rome of Gregory. The atrium and adjacent halls were of noble\nproportions; there was a large garden in the rear, full of myrtles\nand other shrubs; and beyond were the stables, near which Coelred and\nPorlor were provided with a _cubiculum_ to themselves. Symmachus only\nrequired the lads to attend him on certain occasions, and to perform\noutdoor work, to which they felt no objection. He was a man of a kindly\nand somewhat timid disposition, fond of a certain amount of display,\nand with cultivated tastes. His amiable wife Otacilia was very kind to\nthe lads. They had liberty to wander over the city, and Porlor was full\nof eager curiosity.\n\nPamphronius was less wealthy; his villa was of smaller proportions\nand in a more ruinous condition, and he himself was a man of a more\nexacting disposition, and with less natural kindliness than his\nneighbour. Yet Oswith and little Sivel were well treated, and they were\nvery fortunate in the companionship of a son of one of the freedmen\nof Pamphronius named Bassus, who was some years older than Oswith.\nThis youth was of mixed Roman and Gothic descent, tall for his age and\nhandsome, and well educated, being able to speak the Greek language,\nas well as the debased Latin then talked at Rome, and having picked\nup much of the ancient lore, in addition to what he had been taught\nof Christianity. Bassus from the first conceived an ardent boyish\nattachment for Oswith and a warm friendship for all the English lads,\nand he continued to be a valued and faithful companion to the end of\ntheir lives. He was destined to survive them all but one.\n\nWith their life in the monastery of St. Andrew the three others,\nor at least two of them, were not so well pleased. The prior, named\nAugustine, was a disciplinarian, inclined to be harsh and imperious\nto those under him, and his humility was of that kind which is nearly\nrelated to pride. Times had to be observed, rules must be respected;\nyet the lads enjoyed a certain share of liberty. The gentle and\nself-respecting Hereric fell more easily into the regular ways of\nthe monks. He considered it to be more dignified to obey, and he was\ndeeply interested in the new ideas and conceptions conveyed in the\nlittle he could understand of the teaching of Peter, who was appointed\nto instruct them before baptism. But Forthere hated the confinement\nand the whole life, longing for the sports and adventures of the\nforests to which he had been accustomed. Little Godric followed the\nlead of Forthere, who was rebellious from the first. The monks found\nit necessary to correct him before he had been an inmate more than a\nfew days, and they would have proceeded to more severe measures if he\nhad persisted in his disobedience. The loyal devotion of Forthere to\nhis companion as an atheling, and his sincere affection for Hereric\nhimself, were the motives which probably saved him. For Hereric's sake\nhe would submit when he would have been cut to pieces before he would\nhave obeyed a monk; and, in fact, the authorities ruled him through\nthe influence of the Atheling. The fierce young Englishman was a true\nson of Brand of Ulfskelf, the mighty warrior and most loyal of all the\nfollowers of King Ella. Like his father, young Forthere could brook no\ntyranny, but, like his father, he would die for any atheling of the\nhouse of Deira.\n\nA monk named Laurentius was appointed to instruct the four boys\noutside the monastery. They understood very little that he told them,\nand that through the help of Bassus, for as yet they could only\nexchange thoughts by means of a few signs and words established between\nthemselves and their new friend. Nevertheless, Gregory caused all the\nseven English lads to be baptized without further delay, deciding that\nthe instruction of Peter and Laurentius had been sufficient. In a\nvery few months Bassus taught them the language then in use at Rome,\na dialect of Latin in process of conversion into Italian, and they\nwere able to understand all that was said to them, as well as to hold\nconversations. He then began to teach them Greek, the language of the\nimperial court and of commerce, and the boys in the villas of the two\npatricians worked hard to acquire it, Bassus having impressed upon them\nthat it alone would enable them to comprehend fully the many strange\nthings they would see and hear, and would give them the knowledge which\nwas power.\n\nCoelred, Oswith, and Porlor, with Bassus as their guide, had\nwandered through the almost deserted streets of Rome, and gazed\nwith wonder and admiration on the magnificent edifices, which were\nthen neglected and dilapidated, but not actually in ruins. They had\nespecially examined the fine temple to the Sun erected by the Emperor\nAurelian on the Quirinal, and while they rested under its ornate\nportico, Bassus had explained the true import of Mithras stabbing\nthe bull. This opened a whole world of imaginative speculation in\nthe mind of Porlor, who had never forgotten his wonder at the sight\nof the bas-relief in the cave at York. On another day they crossed\nthe Tiber and visited Constantine's basilica dedicated to St. Peter,\nwhich presented a sorry appearance when compared with the monuments\nof antiquity. The sides were of plain unplastered brick, with arched\nopenings for windows, and in front there were figures and emblems\npainted in fresco, in a very debased style of art. Even a child must\nhave been impressed with the superiority of the ancient edifices. The\nEnglish boys called to mind the impression they had received from\nbeholding the ruins of Roman temples at York; and how it had been borne\nin upon their minds that a mighty empire had passed away, and that it\nwas for their countrymen to build something greater on its ruins. These\nideas now recurred to them with immeasurably greater force as they sat\ntogether under the portico of the desecrated temple of Jupiter on the\nCapitol, and commanded a view of the graceful temples round the Forum,\nof the palace rising above them on the Palatine, and of the long vista\nof edifices terminating with the Colosseum. The warm sun and deep blue\nsky gave a brilliance to the scene, which contrasted with the signs of\ndecay that could be detected by the eye, in places where broken statues\nand pavements and heaps of fallen tiles denoted the desolation of the\npresent time. Bassus told them how the Forum used to be crowded with\ncitizens, he showed them the place whence great senators and orators\nused to make speeches to the people, and he described the processions\nof the lupercalia and of the milites. All had passed away. Their young\nthoughts were not depressed. They reflected on what was to follow, on\nanother great people arising to replace the dead Roman Empire. But\nthey did not think that it was to be found here among the monks and\nthe debased rabble of Gregory's Rome. Their aspirations turned to the\nNorth, to the homes of Deira, and to the stalwart English, irresistible\nin war and open to new ideas and fresh knowledge. It was becoming\nsomething more than a dream amongst them, that it was ordained that\nthey should bring back to their kindred these new ideas and this fresh\nknowledge. They would diligently learn all that could be useful to\ntheir people in the lands of the ancient civilisation, until they were\nold enough to wear swords and take their places as men in the battle\narray; and then they would return, if need be fighting their way home.\nThis was the result of many discussions and conversations, held among\nthe cypress groves of the Caelian Hill, after exploring excursions\nthrough the desolate city.\n\nThe boys from the two villas usually took their morning bath in a\ntank near the _navicula_, which was shaded by trees and supplied with\nwater from Nero's aqueduct. Here, too, the Atheling, with their cousin\nForthere and little Godric, often joined them, and they talked over\ntheir prospects, and discussed all the wondrous things they had seen\nand heard. The Christian religion had been more clearly explained to\nthem when they acquired the use of the language then talked at Rome.\nThey understood that the Son of God had died for all mankind, and\nthat He had risen from the dead. They knew that they must pray to Him\nfor guidance and to keep them from sin, and they all did so. But they\nthought that the teaching of Laurentius and Peter was the same as the\nfar more impressive and beautiful teaching of the Princess Alca. In\ntheir conception Christ was another name for Balder. But they kept\nthese opinions to themselves, and gave the name of Christ to the Son of\nGod they worshipped.\n\nOften taking counsel together, they formed a small _Gem\u00f3t_, as they\ncalled it, of seven little boys, with the world of Rome against them,\nall except Bassus, whom they had made one of themselves. Hereric\ninvented a watchword to warn them of the approach of strangers who\nmight disturb their meetings in the cool cypress groves. It consisted\nof the two words _Bylr_, a tempest, and _Grima_, a thing helmeted or\nveiled. The meaning was that the unknown or veiled one might betoken a\nstorm for them. For they conversed respecting all the affairs of Rome,\nspeculated on the hidden meanings of all they heard, and talked over\nthe time for rising against their oppressors and fighting their way\nhome. There were two or three people whom Forthere intended to kill\nfirst, including Mystacon.\n\nSo time passed on, and after two years Gregory succeeded to the\nPontificate. He had not forgotten his project of sending a mission\nto the Angles, and was mindful of the advantage of having youthful\ninterpreters ready on the Caelian. But for a long time the miserable\ncondition of Rome absorbed his attention. The state of affairs had\nbecome perilous. The corn ships failed to arrive time after time,\nand these failures caused misery among the people. It was a common\noccurrence to see crowds clamouring for food at the doors of St.\nPeter's and at the Lateran. A total cessation of the Egyptian corn\ntrade was threatened, while the supply from Sicily was becoming more\nand more precarious. Even greater danger threatened Rome from the\nnorth. The Lombards made constant incursions, riding over the Campagna,\ndevastating the suburbs, and insulting the sentries guarding the gates\nof the city.\n\nPope Gregory appealed to the exarch at Ravenna for help, but that\nofficial was unable to do more than maintain his own position, which\nwas also threatened. There were frequent consultations between the Pope\nand his clerical advisers and the leading patricians. The outlook was\nmost serious. At last it was determined that an embassy should be sent\nto Constantinople to represent to the Emperor Maurice the absolute\nnecessity for making efficient arrangements to supply Rome with\ncorn, and to entreat him to send an army to drive back the Lombards\nand put a stop to their incessant inroads, which were desolating\nSouthern Italy. Symmachus Boethius and Pamphronius were requested to\nbe the ambassadors, and after some pressure from the Pope they rather\nunwillingly consented, for it would be an expensive and probably a\nthankless service. They resolved to take several attendants, including\nthe four English boys and young Bassus.\n\nThis startling and important news came as a great surprise to the\nlittle society. As yet they had never been separated. Oswith consulted\nBassus, and told him that they must bind each other always to be\nsteadfast friends, in the most solemn manner possible. Their compact\nmust include a firm resolution that when they returned home none should\nbe left behind. He asked Bassus how this could be done with the most\nbinding solemnity. \"It must be an oath to God,\" advised his friend,\n\"which in the Hebrew tongue is Lilla. The most solemn thing that you\ncan do,\" added Bassus, \"is to change your name from Oswith to Lilla, as\na memorial and a testimony. This will make the deepest impression on\nthe rest.\"\n\nFor the last time before the separation all the boys assembled\nunder the shady trees by the tank of the _navicula_. Much sorrow\nwas expressed at parting, but all anticipated wonderful things, and\nprobably much good, from the visit to Constantinople. They all took\nthe oath of constant friendship, and that no one should be left behind\nwhen they fought their way home. \"It is the oath of God,\" said Oswith,\n\"and to impress it on our hearts, from henceforth my name shall be\nLilla.\" \"We declare,\" they all answered, \"that we will call you Lilla\nfor evermore as a testimony of our compact.\" They embraced each other.\nLittle Sivel parted from his adopted brother Forthere with bitter\ntears. All took tender farewells of Hereric the Atheling, whom they\nfondly loved, of Forthere, and of Godric. It was a sad parting, but\nthey looked forward to meeting again at the same place.\n\nA few days afterwards the two patricians embarked at Brundusium for\nConstantinople, accompanied by Lilla, Coelred, Porlor, Sivel, Bassus,\nand other attendants.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER III\n\n    THE GLORIES OF THE EAST\n\n\nAt Rome everything reminded a visitor of past greatness.\nConstantinople, on the other hand, was the new Rome, the grandest\nand most magnificent city in the world. For nearly three centuries\nthe revenues of the empire had been lavished upon her edifices, all\nthe treasures of art had been brought from far and near to adorn her\npalaces and theatres, and her churches were decorated with marble and\ngold and every precious material the earth could yield. Her unrivalled\nposition on the shores of the Propontis, her harbour of Chrysoceras (or\nthe \"Golden Horn\"), and the beautiful wooded shores of the Bosphorus\nsurrounded her with every charm and every luxury, and combined to make\nthe city of Constantinople the most splendid capital ever raised by\ngenius commanding unlimited resources.\n\nAfter their arrival the Roman patricians had to wait some days for\nan audience with the Emperor. They had visited the capital before,\nbut no one could ever tire of gazing on that unequalled architectural\ndisplay. Boethius and Pamphronius walked through the city followed by\ntheir attendants; and the English boys, confused at the magnificence\naround them, were half dazed with wonder and admiration. They stood in\nthe elliptically-shaped forum of Constantine, with triumphal arches at\nthe two opposite entrances, and colonnades all round, filled with the\nstatues of the gods, with shrines dedicated to Cybele and to Fortune,\nand a lofty pillar in the centre. This specially attracted their\nattention. It was 120 feet high, of marble and porphyry, surmounted by\na statue of the Emperor Theodosius. Next they were taken to another\nforum, which was square and also surrounded by porticoes, with an\nelevated arcade adorned with statues, and the golden miliarium in\nthe centre. The Hippodrome also filled them with astonishment, 300\npaces long, and the space between the two goals filled with statues\nand obelisks. They saw the wreathed column of bronze which bore the\ngolden tripod of Delphi, and the Emperor's throne, with the winding\nstaircase called _Cochlea_ descending to the palace. They encountered\npalaces, churches, and baths at every turn; and were taken to see the\nunderground cistern, or rather lake, with an arched roof supported on\n336 marble pillars. Even more surprising to them were the baths of\nZeuxippus, the most beautiful in the world, adorned with the greatest\ntriumphs of Grecian art, the Muses of Helicon, the Athene of Lyndus,\nand the Amphitrite of Rhodes. It all seemed like a gorgeous dream which\nmight suddenly melt away. When their eyes met, their looks told each\nother of their amazement, but they were too much astonished to express\nthemselves in words. It was, however, the life and movement which\nmade these scenes so striking and so vivid. Horsemen, foot passengers\nhurrying to and fro, troops marching, bright colours everywhere in\nmotion, gave animation and interest to the marvellous buildings, so\ndifferent from poor deserted Rome. They strolled on to the Golden\nGate, and back to the Augusteum, where a colossal equestrian statue of\nJustinian in an attitude of defiance absorbed their attention for a few\nmoments, and then their eyes glanced beyond it to the crowning glory of\nhis architectural work.\n\nThey had scarcely room for more wonder when they came before the\ngreat church dedicated to Divine Wisdom. Yet the interior, as they\nentered, almost took their breath away. St. Sophia had been restored\nand rededicated by Justinian about a quarter of a century before, in\n563. The beautiful columns of green marble from Ephesus, of porphyry\nfrom Aurelian's Sun Temple at Rome, the ornaments and figures in\ncarved stone, the decorations in gold and marbles of the most precious\nkinds, the walls encrusted with mosaics, the richly-carved capitals,\nand the exquisite proportions of the aerial dome, all combined to form\nthe most perfect and beautiful church that had ever been erected. The\ngorgeous services, with long processions of richly-dressed priests and\ntheir attendants, solemn music and singing, and the delicious scent of\nincense, completed their wonder and awe. The boys remained in a sort of\ndream of astonishment for several days, until the time arrived for the\naudience. The patricians were richly dressed, and their attendants, in\nsuitably handsome attire, were to accompany them to the palace.\n\nThe Emperor Maurice Tiberius had ascended the throne in the year\n582. Descended from an ancient Roman family settled in Asia Minor,\nhe was born at Arabissus in Cappadocia, spent his youth at the court\nof Justin II., and afterwards served with distinction in the Persian\nwar. His accession was due to the best of all reasons, his loyalty to\nhis predecessor Tiberius Augustus, whose daughter he married. Maurice\nwas forty-three years of age when he became emperor, and he was an\nexcellent ruler, promoting the happiness of his people with sense and\ncourage. He was a rigid economist, and his demeanour was cold and\nreserved. Soon after his accession another war with Persia broke out,\nand when the embassy came from Rome, the general Heraclius had just\nreturned from Mesopotamia after gaining a great victory.\n\nRigid etiquette and a display of pomp and magnificence at court\nceremonials had been introduced by Diocletian and had been increased\nby successive emperors. The palace was a vast building on the shores\nof the Propontis between the Hippodrome and the church of St. Sophia.\nWhen the embassy from Rome arrived at the appointed time it was met\nby the Master of the Offices and his attendants, and the patricians,\nbeing of consular rank, were accosted with the title of \"illustrious.\"\nAfter an interval they were ushered into the presence. The Emperor was\nin the great audience-hall called _Chalce_ (from its brazen doors),\nwhich consisted of a dome supported by massy pillars, walls encrusted\nwith mosaics representing African and Italian triumphs, and a pavement\nof many-coloured marbles. The imperial throne was surrounded by the\ngreat officers of state, and by favoured courtiers, all gorgeously\ndressed. There stood the Praepositus or Prefect of the Bedchamber with\nattendant Counts, the Quaestor or Chancellor, the Count of the Sacred\nLargesses, the Count of the Privy Purse, the Commanders of the Guards,\nthe victorious generals Heraclius, Comentiolus, Narses, and Priscus,\nand several bishops. There also were Athanagild, a tall and handsome\nyoung Gothic Prince, the philosopher Metrodorus, the famous physician\nAlexander, the lawyer-poet Agathias, and many others.\n\nThere were numerous presentations, and when the turn of Boethius and\nPamphronius came, those illustrious patricians made low obeisance, and\nstated the case set forth in their instructions from the Holy Father\nGregory, touching the sore need of prompt assistance in which the city\nof the seven hills then stood. They were told that they would receive\ntheir answer on a future day. Many eyes were turned on the handsome\nyouths, whose good looks were enhanced by their rich and well-fitting\nclothes, and the patricians soon had reason to regret that they had\ntaken those means of increasing their own importance by the brilliance\nof their suite. In leaving the palace the boys made way for Priscus\nthe general, and they were struck by the revolting appearance of the\nsoldier who held his horse. He was a short man with red hair and shaggy\neyebrows, and his face was disfigured by a great scar. He looked a\nsavage and malicious barbarian; yet this man was Phocas, the successor\nof Maurice as Emperor of the East! whose monument, a tall column with\nan inscription, is still standing in the Forum at Rome.\n\nDuring the following days the patricians received many visits. Narses,\nthen one of the most trusted of the Emperor's generals, paid his\nrespects, and took special notice of Lilla and Bassus. Stephanos, the\nCount of the Sacred Largesses, also came, and was very much attracted\nby the intelligent appearance of little Sivel. The Gothic Prince\nAthanagild was another visitor. He was a young scion of the royal\nhouse of Spain, who had taken refuge at the court of Maurice from the\npersecution of King Recared. Athanagild was also a grandson, through\nhis mother, of Queen Brunehaud of Austrasia. During his exile he had\nformed a friendship with the physician Alexander, through whom he had\nheard of the Indian voyages of Cosmas. Fond of adventure, he was now\nkeen to follow in the course of the old navigator, and was looking out\nfor trusty followers. His eyes fell upon Coelred and Porlor, and he at\nonce conceived a strong desire to secure their services.\n\nIt was too late for the patricians to regret their imprudence in\ndisplaying their precious human property so openly; and just at this\ntime Symmachus Boethius fell dangerously ill. The physician Alexander\nattended him, but his charms and amulets were of no avail. A few days\nafter the death of his colleague, Pamphronius was summoned to receive\nhis answer, and he was served with an order, through the Count of the\nDomestics, to bring the five youths with him who had been in the suite\nof the embassy at the former reception. The Emperor gave him audience\nat the lovely summer residence of Heroeum, a villa with gardens\nextending down to the sea, on the Asiatic side of the Propontis, near\nChalcedon. Maurice was not encouraging. He said that he had ordered\nsome ships laden with grain to be sent to the Tiber; but that he could\ngive no military aid, owing to the disturbed state of affairs in\nPersia. The Emperor, indeed, told Pamphronius that he was himself on\nhis way to Antioch with all the forces he could collect. His advice was\nthat King Childebert of Austrasia should be bribed to invade Northern\nItaly and give employment to the Lombards. He also promised to instruct\nthe Exarch of Ravenna to co-operate with Childebert.\n\nPamphronius then had to take his leave; but before he embarked to\nreturn to the city he was informed by the Praepositus that the five\nyouths were required for the public service, and would be detained at\nHeroeum. He protested strongly, but was merely told that he could, if\nhe chose, recover them by process of law when their services were no\nlonger under requisition by the State. Pamphronius returned to Rome\nwith little but good advice as the result of his embassy, having lost\nhis colleague by death, and his two slaves, for whom he had paid high\nprices to Mystacon, by an arbitrary act which, from his point of view,\namounted to plunder. He felt very indignant.\n\nGreat preparations were, in fact, being made for a Mesopotamian\ncampaign, rendered probable by the disturbances in Persia. The army was\nalready on the march to Antioch by way of the Cilician Gates. Ships\nwere assembled at Chalcedon and other ports, and the Emperor Maurice\nhimself, with some of his principal officers and generals, was about to\nembark for the coast of Syria.\n\nThe boys had been lodged, with the attendants of the Emperor's\nhousehold, in buildings near the gardens of Heroeum. They were able,\nthanks to their friend Bassus, to converse in Greek, and to understand\nwhat had taken place. They welcomed the chances that were now opening\nto them of taking part in some warlike adventure, and of emulating the\ndeeds of their Viking ancestors, before again returning to Rome. Next\nday Lilla and Bassus were appointed to posts in the army, as pages\nin attendance on Narses. Little Sivel was taken into the household\nof the Treasurer Stephanos, who intended to employ the quick-witted\nand intelligent boy in one of the State departments under his charge,\nprobably in the mint at Antioch.\n\nAthanagild was of an enterprising and roving disposition, and on the\ndeath of his father Hermenegild at Toledo in 586, his uncle Recared\nsucceeded, and he fled to the court of his grandmother at Metz. But a\nviolent quarrel with his uncle Childebert led to his banishment, and\nhe found safety with the Emperor Maurice. Having been nursed through\nan illness by the physician Alexander, a close friendship was formed\nbetween them, and he thus heard of the voyages to India by the aged\nmonk Cosmas, who was intimate with the physician. He had also been\ntold of the great military exploits of Gollas, King of the White Huns,\nin those parts, and he resolved to find his way to that distant and\nunknown land, and to offer his sword to the conqueror. He had vague\ndreams of sovereignty and dominion for himself. His great object now\nwas to find a pilot and a trusty crew to take him to India by the route\nof Cosmas. Alexander gave him friendly help and advice, and obtained\nfor him a pilot in the shape of Monas, an old companion of Cosmas, who\nwould find a vessel if supplied with funds. The Gothic Prince was now\nlooking for two or three followers who would work under Monas, and whom\nhe could thoroughly trust. He had taken a fancy for Coelred and Porlor\nat first sight. He admired their stalwart young limbs, and their faces\nwith an expression open as the day, where no lie could find a place. He\nfelt sure that, if once gained over, they would be loyal and true.\n\nAthanagild was a tall, handsome young man, with a winning manner, and\nwhen he told the boys that he was a Geata, whose deeds they had heard\nof in the song of Beowulf, he won their hearts. They remembered how\noften Coifi had sung of the Geatas and their exploits; and as they\nthought of the old hall at home, where the gleeman was wont to recite\nhis tales, their eyes filled with tears. They were walking with the\nPrince in the beautiful gardens of Heroeum near the sea-shore, as he\nexplained his plans to them. There was much that was wonderful, much\nthat they could not understand. But they saw that it was an exploit\nworthy of the Vikings, and they joyfully consented to take part in it,\non the understanding that they were to return with Monas. The two boys\nwere handed over to the Gothic Prince with the sanction of the Prefect\nof the Imperial Bedchamber.\n\nIn less than a month the Emperor and his court were at Antioch, with\na powerful and efficient army encamped outside the town. Coelred and\nLilla agreed together that, if they returned from their expeditions,\nthey would wait for each other at Antioch before starting for Rome.\nSivel was already employed in the mint, receiving practical instruction\nin the art of coining the debased money which bore the name and effigy\nof Maurice, and they thought that they could safely calculate on his\nbeing still there when they returned.\n\nOne evening the boys were sitting together under the shade of some\ndate-palms outside the city gate, discussing all the wondrous sights\nthey had beheld, and their new experiences, when a great cloud of\ndust was seen on the road. Soon afterwards a brilliant cavalcade\ncame in sight. It literally glittered under the rays of the setting\nsun, seeming to be one sparkling mass of bright weapons and gorgeous\ndresses. At its head rode a man in a long robe of cloth-of-gold, with\nflowing locks, and a huge globe of some light wicker-work gilded,\nsurmounting his silver-gilt helmet. After a short parley he was\nadmitted with his followers, and conducted to quarters near the palace.\nIt was Khosro Parviz, the King of Persia, who had been driven from his\ndominions, and came to seek aid from the Emperor.\n\nThe reception of this King of Kings by Maurice was magnificent; and he\nconsented to employ his army for the restoration of Khosro. For several\ndays active preparations were being made, and then there was a second\nseparation of the English boys. As the army began its march under the\ncommand of Narses, Coelred, Porlor, and Sivel bade an affectionate\nfarewell to Lilla and Bassus, who were well mounted and followed in the\ngeneral's train.\n\nNext day Athanagild took leave of the Emperor Maurice, and made sail\nfor Alexandria with his young English followers, and half a dozen\nGothic soldiers who had been the loyal and attached followers of his\nfather. They were to travel from Alexandria to Myos Hormos on the Red\nSea, where Monas had promised to meet them with a vessel prepared for\nthe long voyage. When the Prince fled from Toledo, he had taken with\nhim a large amount of gold and jewels sewn up in belts, which he had\ncarefully kept by causing his servants to wear them, and which would\nnow enable him to equip his expedition. He and his young friends were\nin high spirits when the long line of white buildings, the tall Pharos\nrising above them, and the rows of palm trees announced that Alexandria\nwas in sight.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER IV\n\n    A SON OF ALARIC\n\n\nThe sun was pouring down its dazzling rays on rocks and sand, and on\nthe expanse of intensely blue sea. There was nothing to relieve the eye\nexcept a line of white huts, and at some distance a grove of date-palms\nsurrounding a well. One small vessel was at anchor. This was Myos\nHormos on the Red Sea. Coelred and Porlor reclined in a shed roofed\nwith palm leaves, near the well, while Athanagild and the Goths, drowsy\nwith the heat, were lying about under the trees. Mounted on camels, and\nguided by a servant of Monas, they had crossed the desert during the\nnights, and had arrived on the seventh day at dawn. They now waited\nfor the coming of Monas from the town. The boys were much changed in\nappearance. Their faces were bronzed by the sun, their hair close cut,\nand large white turbans were wound round their heads. They were dressed\nin white, and were armed with swords, daggers, and spears. A chatty of\nfresh water and a little heap of parched corn on a cloth were between\nthem.\n\nCoelred's eyes were closed. He opened them drowsily and said, \"With\nmy eyes shut, and the sun making the darkness almost light, I fancy\nthat I am lying on the grass, by the brook at Stillingfleet, and\nalmost hear the voices of Bergliot and Braga, and the barking of dear\nold Shuprak at the top of the hill.\" Porlor looked at his brother,\nwhose eyes were filling with tears, and lovingly stroked his cheek.\n\"My thoughts and dreams are ever with our loved ones, like yours,\ndear Coelred. But we must keep wide awake for the next few days,\" and\nhe shook his brother by the shoulder. \"We have seen enough of our\ncompanions to make that quite clear.\" In a very low voice Coelred said,\n\"What think you of Athanagild?\" \"The Gothic Prince,\" replied Porlor, in\na whisper, \"is a brave and true warrior, and will keep his word with\nus, I am sure. But he is not gifted with patience or judgment, and he\nhas embarked on an enterprise which requires both. He acts on sudden\nimpulses, strikes before hearing a word, and his Goths follow and obey\nblindly. There is much to arrange now that needs forethought and care,\nand I feel that, although we are so many years younger, the success of\nthis voyage will depend upon our conduct, and upon the character of\nthe captain and pilot of whom we know nothing. In truth we have had\nseveral affrays since we landed in Egypt, and have escaped death or\nimprisonment mainly by good fortune, and all have been due to the quick\ntemper of our chief.\" \"We cannot always guide our own thoughts and\nactions,\" mused Coelred, \"how much less those of our companions. So we\nmust often leave all to chance; yet there are those who take all these\nthings into account, weigh them, and give each its just value, and who\ncan then offer sage counsel; and you are one, my Porlor.\" \"I do try\nhard to think out the points on which our lives and fortunes depend,\"\nsaid the younger boy; \"and truly I do so because one who is dearer to\nme than my own life shares my fate.\" They both sat up and wound their\narms round each other in a brotherly embrace. As they did so they\nbecame aware of people approaching the palm grove, whose figures stood\nout clear against the sky. The party consisted of an erect old man with\na white beard, and some black servants. \"If I mistake not, this is the\npilot and guide of whom we know nothing, and concerning whom it imports\nus much to know a great deal,\" said Porlor. At the same moment Coelred\ncried out--\"Prince Athanagild, a visitor approaches.\"\n\n[Illustration: Coelred and Porlor in Egypt]\n\nThe Prince and his Goths sprang to their feet as the old man came\nunder the shade of the trees and made a low obeisance. He introduced\nhimself as the pilot and master who had undertaken to supply the\nvessel, load her with a suitable cargo, and convey the Prince to India.\nFunds had been duly received through the Imperial physician Alexander,\nand such merchandise had been purchased as there would be a demand for\nat the Indian port, and had been conveyed across the desert. The vessel\nwas built at Adulis, and was owned by Monas. \"Good,\" said the Prince;\n\"we will sail to-day.\" \"That cannot be,\" objected the old man, \"for the\nship is not ready and the cargo is not on board.\" \"How long will be the\ndelay?\" \"A week at least,\" was the answer, \"and I have a long report to\nmake.\" \"I cannot rest here, and I cannot listen, old man. I must be at\nwork. Action, not words, for me. I and my followers will hunt out these\nArabs of the desert of whom I hear, and try their mettle while you make\nthe ship ready.\" Monas protested, and explained the extreme danger of\nsuch a proceeding. \"In ordinary times,\" he said, \"there is nothing to\nplunder at Myos Hormos. But if the news gets abroad that a ship is\nloading or unloading, then indeed are the vultures gathered together.\nClouds of Arabs cover the sands, and pounce down if the merchants have\nnot sufficient force to resist them. I believe that our secret is well\nkept, yet the sight of you and your followers careering over the desert\nwill at once bring the marauders about our ears.\" But the Prince would\nnot listen to reason. He caused his led horses to be saddled, and his\ncamels to be loaded with food and water, and set out with his Goths\nin the afternoon in search of adventures. His last words to Monas\nwere--\"These Counts\" (_Comites_), pointing to Coelred and Porlor, \"are\nmy lieutenants, and will act for me. Their wishes are my wishes, their\norders my orders.\" So saying, this knight-errant rode away.\n\nMonas held up his hands with astonishment at such madness. He turned\nround to look at the lieutenants, and saw a boy of fifteen and another\nof thirteen; well grown and intelligent, no doubt, and one struck him\nas possessing sagacity above his years, but both very young. \"Counts!\"\nhe said aloud; but to himself, \"Lieutenants! The Holy Saints protect\nus!\" and he again held up his hands, with a half-despairing gesture.\n\nThis conversation had been carried on in Greek. The boys came forward,\nand Porlor requested the old man to make his report, and enable them to\nenter upon the duties with which their friend Athanagild had entrusted\nthem. They did this with such a quiet assumption of command, and with\nsuch combined dignity and courtesy, that Monas almost ceased to feel\nthe incongruity of such very juvenile Counts taking the command of the\nenterprise, and at once entered upon his explanations and reports, with\nwhich he had come for submission to Athanagild.\n\nMonas, in early life, had been a companion of the better-known\nmerchant and monk Cosmas in his daring voyages. A native of Egypt, of\nGreek descent, his quick wit and readiness of resource had enabled him\nto establish commercial intercourse between ports of the Red Sea and\nof the west coast of India, after his master Cosmas had retired into\nmonkish seclusion. He had acted as interpreter, when quite a young\nman, to the Indian embassy which brought a present of an elephant to\nthe Emperor Justinian in 552, and he had since made several voyages\nto India. When the imperial physician applied to his ancient friend\nCosmas, on the subject of the wish of the Gothic Prince to make a\nvoyage to India, and forwarded a supply of money, the matter was placed\nin the hands of Monas. For Cosmas had quite retired from worldly\nconcerns, though the famous geographer still survived, in a cell\nsituated in a secluded oasis near Myos Hormos. Although the disciple\nwas also contemplating a retirement to a monastic cell in imitation of\nhis master, he consented to undertake one more voyage. He owned more\nthan one vessel at Adulis, and the most seaworthy was brought up to\nMyos Hormos, while the articles well known to Monas as finding a ready\nsale in the Indian ports were purchased in the markets of Alexandria,\nsent up the Nile to Thebes, and conveyed across the desert with as\nlittle delay as possible, in the hope that the Arab marauders would not\nhear that a ship was being loaded at the deserted port of Myos Hormos.\n\nWhen Coelred and Porlor walked down to the beach, they found the ruins\nof a considerable town, and three or four sheds consisting of stone\nwalls with roofs of palm leaves. The small cargo was stored in them,\nand the crew of tall blacks was loading a boat with bales. The boys,\naccompanied by Monas, went on board the vessel with the first load, and\nfound her to be a craft the like of which they had never before seen.\nShe had a half-deck and a small cabin. Her build was like that of the\n_pathamars_ on the Malabar coast, the planks being neatly secured to\neach other with knotted ropes, and she had two masts with lateen sails.\nWater was stored in large chatties carefully lashed to the ship's side,\nand the food, all bread and vegetables, was in sacks. The boys inquired\nwhether there was any danger of an attack from Arabs, and Monas said\nthat he hoped the wild young Prince would return the next evening at\nlatest, in which case he was not likely to have encountered Arabs, and\nthe risk would be averted.\n\nMonas further said that it was necessary that the young Counts, as he\ncalled the boys, should visit the great navigator and geographer in\nhis seclusion; and it was agreed that they should travel during the\nnight. A short refreshing sleep was followed by a bathe in the sea\nwhen the sun set. Coelred, Porlor, and Monas then mounted their camels\nand proceeded over the desert in a south-westerly direction. After\ntravelling for several hours, at dawn they came to a small grove of\ndate-palms, where a stone cell of some size had been built, with a few\nsheds round it. This was the place to which Cosmas had retired to end\nhis days.\n\nOn entering the grove, the visitors found a man in extreme old age,\nseated outside his cell almost in a state of coma. He had a long white\nbeard, and must have been upwards of ninety years old. When Monas told\nhim that his visitors were the adventurers who wished to undertake a\nvoyage to India, he aroused himself. \"They must consult me first,\" he\nsaid in a feeble but clear voice. \"They must rest here and listen to\nwhat I can tell them. I am Cosmas,\" he continued, addressing the boys,\n\"and my title is _Indicopleustes_, for I sailed to India. Give them\nfood, and let them sit and listen to my words.\" Dates were set before\nthem by a servant, and the garrulous old man continued to relate the\nstory of his life. \"I have been, in the years long gone by, a merchant\nwho navigated the Erythraean Sea, and reached the distant ports of\nIndia. I knew the seasons, and taught Monas when the winds blew which\nwould take us to India, and when he must spread his sails to return.\nIt is said that Hippalus, in the days of Claudius the Emperor, first\ndiscovered the constancy of the winds in their seasons. It is true. But\nthe credit is mine of making this knowledge useful to the world. Now\nthe rich products of India are sold in markets within the dominions of\nour Emperor. This is due to me. I know all the emporia and how to reach\nthem. I was impelled by the desire of knowledge more than by gain,\nthough there was gain. I discovered the royal seat of white marble\nat Adulis. It is consecrated to Ares. There are images of Heracles\nand Hermes sculptured on it, and Greek letters are written on every\nside. Monas helped me to copy the inscription, which was caused to be\nput there by the great King Ptolemy Euergetes. It is all in my second\nbook. You have read my great work?\" he asked. The boys answered that\nthey could not read. \"You must learn,\" he went on. \"It is necessary\nthat you should read my great work. It is in twelve books, and is\nentitled _Christian Topography_. When my career was finished as a\nmerchant going to and fro, I devoted myself to God and became a monk.\nThen I wrote my great book. In it I have confuted Ptolemy and all the\nPagans. I have proved that the earth is a flat surface. It is an oblong\nplain twice as long from east to west as from north to south, and the\nholy city of Jerusalem is in the centre. The whole is enclosed by an\nocean. I have proved it by arguments from Scripture, from the Fathers,\nfrom testimony, and from reason. There are many copies of my great\nwork in the monasteries, in libraries, and in palaces. The Pagans are\nconfuted.\" Porlor said that he would be glad if the holy monk would\ntell them about the voyage to India. \"I am waiting for God to call me\nto begin a longer voyage,\" was the answer. \"Monas knows all. I taught\nhim.\" Cosmas had tired himself, and began to doze. The old man was not\nlong for this world. He had done his work, which was to throw back\nscience for centuries. The interview with old Cosmas Indicopleustes\nthen came to an end, and the boys took their leave. They reached Myos\nHormos a little after sunset, and were disappointed to hear that there\nwas no news of Athanagild.\n\nDuring the next few days the loading continued, but there was no sign\nof the Prince. At last he appeared alone, and wounded. He had had\nhis wish. He had come upon a large party of Arabs near a well in the\ndesert, and at once attacked them. All his Goths were killed, and he\nreceived a spear-thrust, but the Arabs had not known the extent of the\nlosses they had inflicted, and retreated under cover of the night. He\nthought, however, that he had been followed by one or two horsemen,\nperhaps more, and he knew not whither he was going, but his horse had\nbrought him back to the port. He was faint from loss of blood. Monas\ndeclared that they would be attacked before morning, and he took the\nPrince on board the vessel to examine his wound.\n\nCoelred and Porlor, after a consultation, made the black sailors\nbuild a sort of sconce or small fort with some of the remaining bales\nand other materials, with an angle pointing landwards, and the two\nends resting on the sea when it was high tide. They also dug a trench\noutside in the sand, into which the water flowed. The remaining\nmerchandise was brought inside this extemporary intrenchment, and the\nloading proceeded through the night. It was calm and the moon was up.\nA little before dawn Coelred, who was on the watch, thought he saw\ndark figures cautiously creeping round the huts. The boat happened to\nbe alongside the vessel, and there were only a few men and Porlor on\nshore. Coelred aroused them, and they all stood to their arms, when a\nsudden rush was made by a number of Arabs. The two boys stood side by\nside at the angle, with the sailors supporting them. Luckily it was\nhigh tide. There was a desperate struggle for the fort. The foremost\nassailants were hurled back by the young Englishmen with their spears.\nThe brothers then drew their swords and began an unequal fight,\nsupported by their men, who behaved well. More of the enemy came to\nthe attack from behind the huts, and began to scale the enclosure. All\nwould have been lost if, at that moment, the boat had not touched the\nsand. The boys retreated fighting, and were seized by their own people\nas the boat was shoved off. The marauders secured a small portion of\nthe cargo, with the loss of several of their number. Two of the crew\nwere also killed. As soon as Coelred and Porlor were on board, Monas\nweighed and made sail before a light northerly breeze.\n\nThe Prince's wound proved to be mortal. The loss of blood had been\ngreat, there was much exhaustion, and inflammation set in. The boys\nnursed him tenderly. On the third day he felt that his end was near.\nPorlor was supporting him, while Coelred held a cool bandage on his\nforehead. Monas had some skill, but the case was beyond human aid. He\nstood looking down on the little scene, amazed at the madness which\nhad led to such consequences. \"Farewell, my friends,\" said the Prince;\n\"my folly nearly ended your lives as well as my own. You have become\ndear to me. I hoped that you would have been my companions in arms, and\nthat we might have carved out an empire together. I saw that you were\ntrue and brave, worthy to be the comrades of one who is of the blood\nof Alaric.\" He paused, and his voice became weaker. He finished what\nhe wished to say with difficulty. \"I was driven from my country. Like\nyou, I desired to return. One pleasure is left me. I can give you the\nmeans of going home.\" He looked at Coelred, whose cool hand, damped\nwith water from a chatty, was on his forehead. \"Take off my belt,\" he\nsaid. The boy hesitated. \"Take it. I would see it round your waist.\"\nCoelred gently unfastened the embroidered leathern belt, which was\nheavy, and did with it as the dying man had told him. Athanagild smiled\nas if contented. \"Old man,\" he said, with difficulty turning to Monas,\n\"thou art my witness that I leave all I possess to my young Counts. I\ncharge thee to safeguard them.\" He closed his eyes as Monas bowed low\nbefore him in token of assent. After a long pause the Prince touched\nthe belt and said, in his corrupt Greek, \"I there place the treasure\nclose packed in secrecy. Farewell.\" (_Ufaireo dia malki tote._) These\nwere his last words. The boys never forgot them, and ever afterwards\nused the first word, which they pronounced \"_uvaru_\" for a secret\nhiding-place. Athanagild did not speak again, and passed away during\nthe night.\n\nThe moon was shining brightly, and bathing the calm expanse of water\nwith a silvery light, when the old man and the two young boys, with\ntears in their eyes, committed the remains of this impulsive and\ngenerous son of Alaric to the deep.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER V\n\n    UJJAYANI\n\n\nThe sea was like molten silver. The burning sun blazed pitilessly\ndown on the little vessel, which was motionless. The northerly breeze\nreckoned upon by Monas had failed him. They had been becalmed for days,\nand the water was running short. All day the boys were stretched out\nunder a rough awning of palm leaves, panting for breath. The sky was\nlike a dome of burnished steel. One night Porlor watched the northern\nhorizon, and saw a bank of clouds rising, which he pointed out to the\nold pilot and to his brother. Soon cat's-paws were seen along the\nsurface of the sea. Monas said there would be a breeze in the morning.\nBut their water would not last them, unless they replenished at some\nwell on the Arabian coast; yet this was a very perilous proceeding,\nfor the eastern side of the Red Sea was infested by savage robbers.\nThere was, however, no alternative, and as soon as the breeze filled\nhis sails, Monas steered for a port called Jidda, 320 miles south of\nMyos Hormos. They came to off a grove of palm trees, which denoted the\npresence of wells, on a bright moonlight night. A short distance to\nthe south there were a few scattered huts. When dawn broke they could\nsee that the wells were in possession of armed men. Monas feared to\nland, but the boys declared they would die fighting rather than die\nof thirst. Well armed, and accompanied by half a dozen of the crew,\nCoelred and Porlor took the boat, landed, and boldly advanced towards\nthe wells. They were met half-way by a solitary Arab, who stood in\nthe path uttering the word \"Bismillah.\" He was a powerful young man,\nabout five years older than Coelred, in a long camel's-hair cloth,\nwith the hood secured round his head by a green band. His complexion\nwas bronzed, nose aquiline, lips rather thick, and he had piercing\nblack eyes. He held a long spear in his right hand. Coelred said in\nGreek that they must have water. The young Arab replied in the same\nlanguage that the wells were in his possession. He said that he was\nMuhammad, the son of Abdallah, servant of Abu Taleb, one of the chiefs\nof the Koraish of Mekka. He was commanding an expedition against the\nrobbers who attacked the caravans of Mekka, and had defeated them and\ndriven them from the wells of Jidda. They should have water if they\npaid for it--let the master of the ship come to him. Coelred sent the\nboat back for old Monas, and the English lads stood facing the Arab\nyouth, all leaning on their spears. Few more words passed between them.\nThe Arab gazed at the young Englishmen with unconcealed admiration,\nand the lads scanned the features of the strange being before them\nwith feelings of curiosity and interest which they could not have\nexplained. Monas was very agreeably surprised to find a law-maintaining\nforce at the wells, instead of the cut-throats he expected. It was\nsoon arranged that the vessel should be watered and replenished with\nsome provisions, in exchange for six bales of cloth. This occupied\nthe rest of the day. Young Muhammad and the English lads rested under\nthe shade. The Arab's knowledge of Greek merely enabled him to strike\nbargains, and he could not converse, so that the time was passed, for\nthe most part, in friendly silence. The undefinable feeling of interest\nwhich took possession of the boys when they first encountered this\nextraordinary man was increased as they sat near him. The expression\nof his countenance changed frequently, but was always remarkable. His\neyes were bright and eager while he bargained with Monas; they had a\nsoft and gentle look when they rested on the truthful faces of his\ncompanions; then again they once or twice flashed a look of fierce\nanger, apparently without cause. But what the boys noticed with most\ninterest was that far-away, abstracted look which came into the Arab's\neyes as he rested under the trees, as if he saw things invisible to\nall besides himself; and when this strange look came it lasted long.\nThey had seen something like it in the Princess Alca, and once or\ntwice in old Monas. But there was something in the Arab's look which\nwas peculiar to himself: it was as if madness mingled in his strange\nabstraction; and when he shook it off, it was with a glance of fury.\nThe boys were quite absorbed by their companion, and when Monas called\nthem away the sun was already on the horizon. They took leave of each\nother with solemn courtesy, and an hour afterwards the vessel was under\nweigh and sailing down the Red Sea with a fresh northerly breeze. The\nboys talked long over their encounter with this strange being, and\nnever forgot it. The makers of England and the false prophet had this\nwonderful meeting before the serious work of their lives was begun.\nIt taught the English boys to recognise a man with deep convictions,\nand to distinguish between real fanaticism and fraud. It elevated the\nfanciful conceptions of the Arab, and when he dreamt of angels he saw\nthe faces of Coelred and of Porlor.\n\n[Illustration: Coelred and Porlor on their Way to the Wells]\n\nThe breeze continued, the air was cooler, and Monas said that they\nwould soon reach their next stopping-place, the emporium of Ocelis.\nBy this time he knew the whole history of his young companions. They\nhad never thought for a moment of turning back after the death of the\nGothic Prince, but were quite resolved to complete their adventure\nbefore returning to Antioch; and the old man, without any tie of his\nown, had become warmly attached to them. He would give them the use of\nhis knowledge and experience, see them safe again on their way home,\nand then follow his master Cosmas into monastic seclusion.\n\nMany a long conversation was held between the boys and their aged\nfriend during the long starlight nights, when the little vessel made\nher way over the smooth sea to Ocelis. One night they talked of the\nyoung Arab and his look of abstraction. \"It is the look,\" said Monas,\n\"which betokens fitness for a life of seclusion, of devotion to prayer,\nand thoughts of eternity. The monks often have it, and the generation\nin which I live is one much given to a monkish life. It is only in such\na life that we can find rest, safety from hell fire, and that religious\ntruth without which there is no safety. In Egypt alone there are now\nsix hundred monasteries, all maintaining the truth against the errors\nof Rome.\" \"And what is the truth?\" asked Porlor. \"The truth is,\" said\nMonas, \"that Christ existed _of_ two natures, and whosoever denies\nit shall for ever be accursed. The Synod of Chalcedon, when Marcian\nwas emperor, declared that Christ existed _in_ two natures, and this\nwicked heresy is still held by the priests of Rome, and sends many\nsouls to hell. Dangers and pitfalls of false doctrine surround us,\nand the only safety from them is in monastic seclusion. Young and old\nshould fly to the desert.\" \"That will I never do,\" cried Coelred. \"My\nlife shall be active and earnest. I devote it to brave deeds and to\nthe service of my countrymen.\" Old Monas shook his head, but he could\nnot help admiring, and even approving, the very different direction\nto which the hopes and aspirations of his young friends were turned.\nThey understood his words, but their minds were not trained to receive\nsuch subtleties. \"Does Muhammad hold the truth,\" asked Porlor, \"or is\nhe, like us, ignorant of the true nature of the Son of God? We are\nignorant because what you say is beyond our comprehension. How is it\nwith that Arab warrior with the changing eyes?\" \"The Arab,\" said Monas,\n\"is a very young man, and he is a heathen. But he has been in Christian\ncities with merchants of his tribe, and knows something of the truth.\nI talked with him in the shade while you slept.\" \"We were not asleep,\"\nprotested the boys. \"Fast asleep,\" repeated Monas, \"while I sounded the\ndepths of the young Arab's mind. He is no ordinary man. He will either\nreceive the truth and convert Arabia into a land of saints, or he will\nbe the mightiest heresiarch with which the world has ever been cursed,\nspreading desolation and moral death over what once was Christendom.\nBut not in my time,\" drowsily continued the old man. Coelred rose to\ntake the helm, and Porlor followed Monas to the land of dreams.\n\nIt was not often that Monas kept the boys awake with such serious\ndiscourse. He generally related the stirring events in his voyages\nwith Cosmas, taught them the rules of steering by the stars, and told\nof the famous book written in the time of the Emperor Nero, and called\nthe _Periplus of the Erythraean Sea_, from which Cosmas gleaned much\nof the information which enabled him to make his voyages successfully.\nThe northerly wind soon brought them to the emporium of Ocelis, near\nthe strait of Dere, which opens upon the Erythraean Sea. Here they\nagain took in water and provisions, proceeding along the Arabian coast\nto Kane, a port of considerable trade, where some of the merchandise\nwas exchanged for frankincense and aloes. Sailing onwards to the east,\nthey reached Syagros, whence, in accordance with the directions laid\ndown by his master, Monas proceeded to make his bold voyage across the\ntrackless ocean to distant India. The south-west wind, called Hippalus\nfrom the pilot who first attempted the passage by it, carried the\nlittle vessel across the sea until, in a few days, the coast of Guzerat\nwas sighted, the mouth of the great river Narbada was entered, and\nMonas piloted her past islands and shoals, and anchored her off the\n_gh\u00e2t_ of the busy port of Barugaza.\n\nFounded by the sage Bhriga, the town of Barugaza was one of the oldest\nseaports of Western India, and was then one of the chief seats of\ntrade. Its exports were cotton, a kind of fine calico called _b\u00e1ft\u00e1s_,\nbdellium, and flowers of the mahina tree. Barugaza is on an artificial\nhill 60 feet high overlooking the river, the only rising ground for\nmany miles around; for a flat alluvial plain of fertile black soil\nstretches away for fifty miles to the foot of the mountains, covered\nwith crops of cotton and rice. Here and there a clump of mango and\nother fruit trees denoted the position of a village, and on an island\nin the Narbada there was a banyan-tree with 350 large and 3000 small\nstems, enclosing a space 700 yards in circumference.\n\nThere was much to astonish, much to interest, the English lads on\nfirst landing at the _gh\u00e2t_ of Barugaza. They had seen an elephant\nat Alexandria, but everything else was strange to them; especially\nthe dresses of the people, the merchants in their snow-white robes\nand red turbans, and the crowds of coolies with nothing but a _dhuti_\nround their waists, carrying heavy loads, and taking cargoes on board\nthe boats. Kesava was the name of the merchant who always acted as\nagent for Monas when he brought a cargo to Barugaza; and this was the\nfifth time he had made the voyage, without counting those in which he\naccompanied Cosmas. Before they were contaminated by intercourse with\nEuropeans, the merchants of India were celebrated for their probity and\nfair dealing; and Kesava was a good specimen of his class. Property\ncould be entrusted to his care with perfect confidence, and he took\ncharge of the vessel and the crew, while Monas and the boys were to\nconvey their merchandise up country to Ujjayani, one of the seven\nsacred cities of the Hindus, the famous capital of Malwa.\n\nMonas set out on his journey a few days after his arrival at Barugaza.\nHe and the boys travelled in open palkis, their bales of goods were\nslung on bamboos which were borne on the shoulders of coolies, and they\nwere guarded by a well-equipped body of fighting men. They travelled up\nstream, along the right bank of the Narbada, for 180 miles, to a small\ntown called Mandlesar, where the river is still 500 yards in width.\nThence the route turned northwards across the Vindhya Hills for a\ndistance of seventy miles to Ujjayani. Coelred and Porlor walked across\nthe hills, travelling from midnight until sunrise, and on the third day\nfrom leaving Mandlesar they entered the far-famed capital of Malwa.\nAlong this road the English lads observed that long lines of trees were\nplanted to afford shade to travellers from the scorching rays of the\nsun, while at intervals there were fountains by the road-side to enable\nthem to quench their thirst. Porlor, especially, was deeply impressed\nwith the excellence of a government which took such thought for the\ncomfort of its people.\n\nThe city of Ujjayani was built on the right bank of the river Sipra,\nwith _gh\u00e2ts_ leading down to the water. It was very extensive, and\ncontained many grand edifices, besides the famous temple of Siva and\nthe palace of the Raja. There were, however, more trees than houses.\nEvery dwelling had its shady garden stocked with flowering shrubs, and\nround the city there was a broad belt of fruit trees, and avenues of\nthe sacred _vata_ or peepul trees, frequented by the Hanuman monkeys.\nWithin this belt of foliage were the great tanks with bathing _gh\u00e2ts_\nshaded by clumps of tall trees, above which rose the spreading fans of\nthe palmyra palm and the graceful areca; while _pal\u00e1sa_ and _tulasi_\nshrubs, with their gorgeous flowers, concealed the bathers.\n\nThe golden age of Hindu literature was the period when Vikramaditya\nruled at Ujjayani about B.C. 57, and when the \"Nava-ratna\" or nine gems\nof literature flourished there. His dynasty still ruled over Malwa,\nand in 592 Jayachandra was the Raja. The place was full of traditions\nof the hero king, and of his divine poet Kalidasa, whose immortal\nworks had the freshness and reality at Ujjayani which such poems can\nonly really possess at the place where they were composed. The bright\nriver Sipra, the flowering groves, the pretty girls descending the\n_gh\u00e2ts_ with lotas on their heads, the cranes in the paddy swamps--all\nnature reminded the votaries of Kalidasa that he dwelt at the court\nof Ujjayani when he wrote _Sakuntala_, the _Seasons_, and the _Cloud\nMessenger_. Peace reigned in Malwa, but there were threatening clouds\non the northern horizon. Gollas, King of the White Huns, had overrun\nNorthern India, and terror repeated marvellous stories of the prowess\nof his army, which included 2000 elephants. It was said that, when he\nbesieged a town, his soldiers drank all the water in the ditch, and\nthen marched dry-shod to beat down the walls. It was to this conqueror\nthat Athanagild had contemplated the offer of his sword; but Coelred\nand Porlor had no such intention. Ujjayani was to be the remotest point\nof their wanderings, whence they were to return homewards.\n\nMonas was busily engaged in exchanging the merchandise for bales of\nsmall bulk, containing fine calico and muslin, valuable gums, spices,\nprecious stones, and specie. Among his acquaintance there was an old\nGuru named Govinda, who had travelled far and spoke Greek. He was a man\nof profound learning though of Sudra caste, and was passing the evening\nof his days at Ujjayani, occupied in speculative studies. Govinda had\ntaken a great fancy for the English lads, whose bright intelligence and\nsimple truthfulness first attracted his regard. After their bath in one\nof the great tanks, they often passed hours conversing with the Guru,\nasking him questions, and listening to his wonderful discourse. He was\ngenerally in the verandah of a small garden-house near a large tank,\nwhich was surrounded by flowering shrubs, and shaded by a large _vata_\ntree. Here the Guru sat, an old man with a very benevolent expression\nand high intellectual forehead, clothed in snow-white robes, often with\na bundle of reeds forming a book, and a _kalam_ in his hand. Coelred\nand Porlor reclined on a step at his side, listening eagerly to what\nhe told them. The boys were in perfect health, being well cared for by\nMonas as regards clothing and protection from the sun and from chills,\nand living on a diet of rice and pulses duly seasoned, on fruits, and\nmilk. They were thus able to enjoy to the full all the wonders of their\nsojourn at Ujjayani.\n\nThe Guru had told them many tales of Hindu gods and heroes. One\nmorning the boys came from their bath with a quantity of crimson\nwater-lilies, and a handful of the golden-coloured champaka flower,\nsacred to Krishna. This led Govinda to tell them the story of the\n_avatur_, calling Krishna the Son of God. They, in their turn, related\nthe legend of Balder, and, after reflecting a while, the Guru said that\nBalder and Krishna were one, and that both were Christ. Remembering\nthe conversation with Monas, Porlor asked whether this Son of God with\nseveral names, whom they all worshipped, existed _of_ two natures or\n_in_ two natures. \"Both,\" replied the Guru, and this bold solution\nappeared at once to sweep away the motives for religious disputes which\nsounded so incomprehensible to the boys. \"Both, for whether of or in\ntwo natures, the incarnation of a deity embraces and contains, and in\nfact is, all that can be expressed by prepositions, and much more.\"\n\nThen, descending from such sublime speculations, he said that he\nwould relate to his young friends the sequel of the story of the\nPandavas, those princes favoured by Krishna, including their search for\nheaven after a long life of adventures and vicissitudes. The Pandavas\nfound that all the rewards of this life were vanity, and that they must\nseek for higher and better things. \"We must all do likewise sooner or\nlater, and meanwhile we may reflect on the story of the Pandavas,\"\nhe went on. \"There were five princes--Yudisthira, Arjuna, Bhima, and\nthe two sons of Madri. They set out with their wife Draupadi and\ntheir dog Suparaka.\" \"That is the name of our dear old dog at home!\"\nexclaimed Coelred. \"True,\" said the Guru, \"for Suparaka is Yama.\" He\ncontinued--\"The princes, with their beautiful wife and faithful dog,\nset out for the mighty Himalaya Mountains, to find the heaven of the\ngods on Mount Meru.\" \"Is not Asgard the abode of the gods?\" interrupted\nCoelred. \"Asgard is Meru,\" explained the long-suffering Guru; \"but few\ncan reach it, trusting in their own strength. Sins and moral defects\nprove fatal to the pilgrims. They toiled on over scorching plains and\nsnowy mountains, tired and foot-sore. Draupadi was the first to fall.\"\nPorlor asked why she should be the first. \"Her love for Arjuna was too\ngreat,\" explained the Guru. \"Next fell one of the sons of Madri, for\nhe thought that none was equal to himself; and the other son of Madri\nfollowed, for he had the same fault. Then Arjuna fell, because he could\nnot fulfil his boast that he would destroy all his enemies in one day.\nBhima fell, because he cursed his opponents before he encountered them\nin fight. Yudisthira and the dog Suparaka alone reached the gate of\nheaven. The Prince was invited by the gods to enter, but he refused\nunless Draupadi and his brothers were also received. He was assured\nthat they were already there. But he still refused, unless the faithful\ndog Suparaka could bear him company. The gods remonstrated, but\nYudisthira was firm. 'Never, come weal or come woe, will I abandon that\nfaithful dog.' He prevailed, but when he entered he found that Draupadi\nand his brothers were not in heaven. They cried to him for help from\nhell. Yudisthira triumphed in the crowning trial. He resolved to share\nthe fate of his dear ones in hell, rather than enjoy heaven without\nthem. This was the supreme test applied by the gods. They then showed\nhim that it was all _maya_ or illusion, and the brothers, Draupadi, and\nthe dog dwell in heaven with the gods, in full content of heart for\never.\"\n\nCoelred and Porlor talked much over this story of Yudisthira when they\nreturned that evening to their home with Monas. They loved the Pandu\nprince for standing by the good dog Suparaka, and they swore that they\nwould imitate the steadfast loyalty of Yudisthira.\n\nThus the days passed on, while Monas completed his business, and the\nGuru related many strange tales to the English lads. One day, as they\nsat with him, a dark mass of cloud rose from the southern horizon, and\nmoved rapidly northwards across the sky towards the Himalayan snows.\nOld Govinda pointed to it, and said that it reminded him of Kalidasa's\npoem of the _Cloud Messenger_. \"Tell us about it,\" said both the boys;\nand he related how Yaksha was banished for some fault by the god\nKuvera, and was sent to pass the years of his exile at Ramagiri, near\nNagpore, and to the south of Ujjayani, and of the Vindhyan Hills. One\nday he saw a cloud, the herald of the rainy season, passing to the\nnorth, just as the cloud we now see floats in the same direction. He\nprayed to the cloud to take a message for him, after discharging some\nof its moisture.\n\n    With pinions swifter by the 'minisht store,\n    Soon over Vindhyan mountains thou wilt soar,\n    And Reva's rippling stream, whose waters glide\n    Beneath their feet, without their rush and roar,\n    In many a rock-bound channel, summer dried,\n  Like lines of paint that deck an elephant's huge side.\n\nThe cloud passed on to this bright imperial city of Ujjayani, the\npride of all the earth. It rested on flower-sweet terraces where women\nsit at open casements, while the air of the morning\n\n    Plays wooingly around the loosened hair\n    And fevered cheek--\n    Then, as it blows o'er Sipra fresh and strong,\n    Bids all her swans upon the banks prepare\n    To hail the sunrise.\n\n\"The cloud hurries onward on its journey,\" said Porlor, \"but whither\nwas Yaksha's message sent?\" \"It was sent,\" said the Guru, \"to Alak\u00e0.\"\n\"To Alca!\" exclaimed both the boys, as they sprang to their feet\nin astonishment. Then, seeing the question in Govinda's eyes, they\nexplained that Alca was the beautiful Princess of Deira. \"We love her\nmore than anything in the world. She knows everything. She loves all\nliving things. She can disclose all the hidden mysteries of nature. She\nis our joy, our hope. Oh that the cloud would take a message to her\nfrom us! Shall we pray to it? Answer us, good Govinda.\"\n\nThe Guru looked at the eager faces of the boys. He then pondered for\na long time. At last he said--\"The Alak\u00e0 of our religion is believed\nto be the abode or the heaven of the Gandharva on Mount Meru. The\nGandharva is the being who knows and reveals the secrets of nature and\ndivine truth, and prepares the holy soma juice for the gods.\" He again\npaused to think. \"Your northern Princess Alca is the same as our Alak\u00e0,\nthe abode of the Gandharva of wisdom and truth, the depository of the\nsecrets of nature. You do well to love her. Pray then to the cloud\nand it will take your message.\" The boys knelt down, praying long and\nfervently to the cloud to take their message. It was that they were\nwell, that they had never forgotten her words, that they would return\nto her. The Guru assured them that they had not prayed in vain. They\nhad never felt so happy since they parted from the Princess at Aldby.\n\nNot many days afterwards they bade farewell to the Guru, who\nhad become warmly attached to them; for Monas had completed his\narrangements, the bales were ready, and they started on their return\njourney to Barugaza. The boys had offered their old friend a gold ring\nas a keepsake, which he declined. But when he saw them for the last\ntime he gave them a small parcel as an offering for their Princess. \"It\ncontains,\" he said, \"a very precious gum called bdellium, translucent\nand fragrant. It is a trifle by which to remember me.\" \"We shall never\nforget you, dear Guru,\" exclaimed Coelred; and Porlor declared that\n\"Bdellium\" should be their watchword and the watchword of their friends\nfor evermore. Soon Ujjayani and the Guru, Barugaza and its busy _gh\u00e2t_,\nwere but memories. The north-east wind was taking their little vessel\nhomewards again across the Erythraean Sea.\n\nOne night, as old Monas sat aft by the steering oar, with Coelred and\nPorlor near him, he asked the boys what they had been told by the Guru.\nPorlor was full of his praises, and repeated the stories of Krishna and\nof the Pandus; but something held the brothers back from mentioning the\nCloud Messenger to the aged pilot. They declared that the Guru was the\nwisest, the most learned, and the most religious man in the world, and\nthat he was beloved by God. \"The strange and incomprehensible questions\nover which others quarrel for days and years, the Guru sees through and\nsettles with a word. He is generous, and says that all men, more or\nless, are in the right way.\" Monas shook his head. \"My friend Govinda,\"\nhe said, \"is learned and good. It grieves me to the heart that he will\nassuredly be burnt in hell fire for ever and ever. Yet that must be\nhis fate, for he is unsound on all points of doctrine.\" It was on the\ntip of Coelred's tongue to say he would go where the Guru went; but he\nchecked himself, for the boys loved old Monas, and made it a point not\nto anger or annoy him. \"Beware,\" he continued, \"how you allow plausible\nfalsehoods to sink into your hearts. You are very young and will be\nsurrounded by dangers. May the Lord watch over you!\"\n\nOn another night Monas explained their position to his young friends.\n\"Thanks to Prince Athanagild,\" he said, \"you are very rich. Your\nproperty consists of small bales easily carried but of great value, and\nof gold coins and gems. The crew will be amply recompensed by a present\nof the vessel and a generous distribution of money. We will land at\nBerenike, to which port the voyage is much shorter than to Myos Hormos.\nThere camels can be procured, and the journey to the Nile will occupy\nthree days. I will accompany you to Alexandria and see you embarked for\nAntioch. For myself I need nothing. I go to the cell of my old master,\nwho must now be dead, where I shall end my days happily, in prayer and\nin the contemplation of the true nature of the incarnate Word. Your\ndestiny is very different. I am on the verge of the grave. You are\nentering upon life. You are brave and true. May the blessing of God be\nwith you!\"\n\nIt was very grateful to the old pilot to receive the warm thanks of\nhis young friends, knowing how true and genuine they were; and the\nvoyage passed pleasantly. The plans of Monas were admirably arranged.\nThe crew was satisfied, the journey across the desert and the voyage\ndown the Nile were performed without accident, and when Coelred and\nPorlor left Alexandria in the vessel that was to convey them to the\nport of Antioch, the last thing they saw was the white cloth with which\nold Monas waved his farewell from the Pharos.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER VI\n\n    IRAN\n\n\nSivel was a very intelligent and quick-witted boy, and he rapidly\nlearnt all his companions could teach him in the treasury office at\nAntioch and in the mint. He was able to read and write, and had even\ntried his hand on the dies for stamping coins. The decadence of art\nhad been very rapid since the days of Gallienus. All attempts at\nportraiture on the coins had disappeared, though there was still a\nhead, and an angel with orb and cross on the reverse. It was not beyond\nthe powers of a clever boy like Sivel to tool the inscriptions, and\neven to copy the rough effigy of the good Emperor. Not a few of the\nrude letters traced on Byzantine money of this period are the work of\nour English boy:\n\n          TI MAVRICIVS IMP AN IX COS\n          DN MAVRICIVS PP AVG,\n\nor\n\n          DN MAVRIC TIBER PF AVG;\n\nand he was thus busily employed when the news spread that troops from\nthe Persian war were returning. Sivel lived, with several Greek clerks\nin the employment of the Count of the Sacred Largesses, in a large room\nopening on a court which formed part of the palace. As he worked one\nday, two tall forms stood in the doorway, and in another moment the\ndelighted boy was wrapped in the tight embraces of Lilla and Bassus,\nwho had returned unhurt from the war, and with license to proceed on\ntheir own affairs to Rome. Many days had not elapsed before Coelred and\nPorlor, with their small but precious bales, also reached the Syrian\ncapital and found a safe place--an \"_uvaru_\" they called it--in which\nto bestow their goods for the time. The lads were beside themselves\nwith joy at meeting once more, and they agreed that all, including\nSivel, should embark in the first vessel bound for Brundusium.\n\nThey longed to hear each other's stories, and when Porlor had related\nthe particulars of the wonderful voyage to India and back, Lilla\npromised, with the help of his friend Bassus, to describe what they\nhad seen during the Persian war. On the next evening they assembled\nunder the shade of the grove of palm trees, outside the city gate,\nwhence they had beheld the arrival of Khosro Parviz before their\nadventures began. Bassus first explained the cause of the war. \"On the\ndethronement and death of Hormazd IV., King of Persia,\" he said, \"there\nwas great confusion. Bahram, the ablest of the Persian generals, gained\nover the army and seized the government, while the King's son, Khosro\nParviz, took refuge in Roman territory. We all witnessed his arrival at\nAntioch from this very spot, and we know that the Emperor graciously\nresolved to restore the fugitive prince to the throne of his ancestors.\nHe was influenced in making this decision partly by policy, but mainly,\nit is believed, by the generous dictates of his imperial nature. Our\nmaster in the art of war, the great General Narses, received the\ncommands of the Emperor Maurice to execute his orders, and he planned\nthe campaign with consummate skill. It was known that Bahram, with\nthe Persian army, was posted in the Mesopotamian plain beyond the\nriver Tigris, and not far from the foot of the mountains. Narses\nresolved that the Roman forces should enter Persia in two divisions.\nThe General himself, accompanied by the King of Persia, led the main\nbody from Antioch to the Tigris, while a Roman contingent, under the\ncommand of John, the Prefect of Armenia, was to create a diversion by\nbreaking into the northern Persian province of Azerbijan. For Narses\nhad carefully studied the science of tactics and evolutions under the\neye of the Emperor, who was himself the author of twelve books on the\nmilitary art. You saw the army commence its march, and we parted in the\nearnest hope that this happy day of meeting again would not be long\ndeferred. Lilla must now tell you of our march.\"\n\nThe thread of the story was then taken up by the fearless son of\nGuthlaf. \"As pages of the General,\" said Lilla, \"we rode behind him,\nand encamped near his tent. For several days we had to traverse a\nvast desert, and we were often parched with thirst; but at length we\nreached the river Tigris, passing over it near a great mound which,\nwe were told, covers the ruins of the most ancient city in the world,\ncalled Nineveh. Crossing the river, our General made three rapid\nmarches to overtake the Persians, who were encamped at the foot of the\nmountains. Then the wisdom of the strategy of Narses was made clear.\nHearing of the march of the Armenian contingent, the Persian General\nfeared lest it should fall on his rear, and he began a rapid march to\nthe northward to attack it. But the Prefect John had strict orders to\navoid an encounter; and eventually Bahram made a countermarch to cover\nthe city of Canzaca, towards which Narses was steadily advancing.\nLeaving the plain, our way led us through the mountains of Media, to\nSirg\u00e0n, on the plain of Ushne\u00ef, where a junction was formed with John's\ncontingent. Three days afterwards a great battle was fought in a hilly\ncountry. For a time the Roman infantry fell back before the vigorous\ncharges of Persian horse, and Narses himself dashed into the thick of\nthe battle. We fought by his side, and when the victory was won the\nGeneral was so pleased with us that he gave us separate commands of\ninfantry companies. Next morning Bahram continued his retreat over\nthe mountains, closely pursued by us, and at night we pitched our\ncamp close to the Persian position. Still retreating, the Persians\ndescended into the plain in which their great city of Canzaca is built\non a high rock. Here the final and decisive battle was fought. Bassus\nand I led on our men, and were long engaged in desperate encounters\nside by side. At last we saw the enemy flying in all directions. But\nwe were too exhausted to follow them, and rested for three days on the\nbattle-field. Our General then occupied the Persian city of Canzaca.\n\n\"Khosro Parviz was overjoyed. Our army had made him once more King of\nKings, or _Malk\u00e2n Malk\u00e2_. He declared that the Emperor Maurice was his\nfather, requested a contingent of the Romans to remain in his service,\nand promised great rewards to the rest. For a short time we were posted\nin the wonderful city where the people worship fire which has been kept\nburning for 700 years.\" Porlor and Coelred had both been too absorbed\nin the story of the campaign to interrupt with questions, but now\nPorlor asked whether fire was really the god of those people. \"Yes,\"\nsaid Bassus, \"we saw them worshipping before it. Canzaca is on a hill\nwhich rises high above the plain, with a steep acclivity to the north\nand west, and a sloping approach from the east. The brow of this hill\nis crowned by a circlet of strong stone walls 12 feet wide, extending\nfor a great distance, with an arched gateway also of massive hewn\nstone, leading into the town. In the highest part of the town there is\na lake, 300 paces round, with exquisitely clear water of a deep blue\ncolour, which has no bottom. And now I come to your question about the\nfire. Near the lake there stands a fire-temple--_pyraeum_ the Greeks\ncall it. Built of bricks and cement, its walls are of great thickness,\nand a narrow vaulted passage surrounds the central chamber. This\nchamber has a great arch on each of its sides, and is surmounted by a\ncircular dome on which the stars of heaven are painted. A silver moon\nis on the highest point. In the centre of this chamber is the altar\nwith the sacred fire. We have seen the King, Khosro Parviz, enthroned\nthere, surrounded by emblems of the sun and moon, with the golden globe\non his head, while all his people prayed to the flame on the altar.\"\n\n\"We used to sit on the walls,\" said Lilla, \"and look over a vast\nextent of country bounded by distant mountains. At our feet there was\na winding rocky ridge, the height of two men and 80 paces long, called\n'the Dragon.' We were told that the monster was coming open-mouthed\nto devour the city when it was suddenly transformed into stone by the\npotent spell of the signet ring of an ancient king they call Solomon.\nCertainly it was lying on the plain before us, like a winding serpent\nof stone. We were offered commands by the King of Persia, which we\ndeclined, and the General then said that we deserved some reward and\nmight name it. So we asked for license to go to Rome, where friends\nurgently needed our presence, which was granted. Narses said that he\nwas sorry to part with us when we took leave, and we set out with\na small escort. We had to cross the Median mountains to reach the\nplains of Mesopotamia, and in the pass my Bassus was so badly hurt by\na fall with his horse that we had to remain at a place called Sideh\nfor several days.\" \"Did they also worship fire in that place?\" asked\nPorlor. \"No,\" said Lilla, \"they had a stranger worship. They believe in\nan ancient bird called the Sim\u00f9rg, which has been alive since the world\nbegan. Passing to and fro over the earth from the beginning, the Sim\u00f9rg\nhas seen everything. It therefore knows everything, and is a bird of\ngreat wisdom. Its counsel is sought for, but it is seldom seen, and its\nabode is believed to be on the mountain peak of Demavend. They worship\na figure of the Sim\u00f9rg made of silver, which we saw. It was on a raised\nplatform, and has a swelling breast, small head, and wide-spreading\ntail. Two lamps are always burning before it, and close by there is a\njug filled with water, to be used as a spell for the sick and afflicted\nwhen the Sim\u00f9rg cannot be consulted in person. As soon as Bassus was\nwell enough we left Sideh, descended into the plain, and, after a long\nand tedious journey, arrived at Antioch without further accident.\"\n\n\"How wonderful are the numbers of gods!\" observed Porlor. \"We have\nfound people not only worshipping the Son of God under many names, but\nalso bowing down to snakes, cows, and monkeys. Now you tell us that\nthere are people who worship a flame of fire, and others whose belief\nis in an ancient bird. Many of their creeds are incomprehensible, but\nthe Princess Alca will explain it all to us when we go home.\" Coelred\nwarmly thanked Lilla and Bassus for the story of their campaign, which\nhad been of absorbing interest to him, and for telling him and Porlor\nof all the wonders they had seen. A very happy evening had been passed\nunder the palm trees.\n\nThe subsequent days were occupied in preparations for the voyage to\nBrundusium. A vessel had been hired at Seleucia and was ready to sail,\nwhen a great calamity overtook the friends. Little Sivel was missing.\nHe had not been seen since the evening when Lilla and Bassus related\ntheir adventures. The other lads had taken leave of him in the street,\nbut his companions in the treasury said that he never came home.\nSeveral days were wasted in a vain search. At last Lilla remembered\nthat, while passing through a crowd in the _agora_ the day after his\narrival, he for a moment caught sight of a face which reminded him of\nMystacon. The incident had passed from his memory, being full of other\nexciting thoughts at the time. \"I see it all!\" exclaimed Porlor. The\nrest turned to him for an explanation, but he declared there was no\ntime to explain, and that they must hurry down to the port of Seleucia.\nPorlor instituted inquiries at once, through the agent for their\nvessel, and sure enough Mystacon the merchant had been there. He had\nsailed, on his way to Rome, three days before. Further inquiry elicited\nthe fact that some one, muffled up in cloths and gagged, had been\ncarried on board.\n\n\"We are too late!\" exclaimed Porlor. \"We must follow quickly to Rome\nand effect the rescue there. For the villainy is unmasked. Mystacon\nhas seen Pamphronius, who has offered large sums for the recovery of\nhis slaves. He has found out that our Sivel was at Antioch, with his\nvalue greatly increased owing to his acquired knowledge and well-known\nability, of which every one talks. He has kidnapped our boy and taken\nhim to Rome, with the object of extorting a heavy sum from Pamphronius,\nand he will probably keep Sivel concealed until it is paid.\" They were\nall wild with rage. \"To the rescue! to the rescue!\" they shouted.\n\"Death to Mystacon and Pamphronius!\" Their preparations were soon made.\nNext day the captain and crew were on board, the anchor was up, and the\nvessel was bowling along before a fresh easterly breeze. But it was a\nlong stern chase.\n\nThe lads held many consultations during the voyage. Great caution\nwould be necessary, for they were resolved not only to rescue Sivel,\nbut also to kill Mystacon, and perhaps Pamphronius. Otacilia, the widow\nof Symmachus Boethius, who had always been very kind to Coelred and\nPorlor, and disliked Pamphronius, had manumitted all her husband's\nslaves. This news had reached Antioch. Coelred and Porlor, in order to\nbe close to the scene of action, would therefore seek, and felt sure\nof obtaining, hospitality in the great rambling villa of the departed\nSymmachus. Lilla and Bassus would take up their quarters, as imperial\nofficers, in lodgings within the old Pr\u00e6torian camp. Their friends\nat the monastery would be eager to help as soon as the news was told\nthem. Then a watch must be kept on the Pamphronian villa, while Lilla\nwas to visit his old master, and ascertain whether Sivel was already\nthere. All the haunts of Mystacon were also to be searched, and further\ndetails were to be settled hereafter, as they must depend on the course\nof events.\n\nThus did these lads rack their brains to devise the surest way of\nrescuing their beloved companion. Coelred and Porlor were rich, and\neasily defrayed the expenses of the vessel, and of posting rapidly\nfrom Brundusium to Rome. It was early in the year 595 that the four\nlads returned. Six years had passed since the mortifying scene in the\nslave-market. Lilla and Coelred had now reached the age of eighteen,\nPorlor was sixteen years old. Both Coelred and Porlor were hospitably\nreceived by Otacilia, as they anticipated, and the heroes from Persia\nwere lodged in the old camp. Next day they all hurried to greet and to\nconsult with their comrades in the monastery of St. Andrew.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER VII\n\n    THE RESCUE OF SIVEL\n\n\nOnce more the little society of English boys was assembled at its\nold trysting-place under the cypress trees, near the _navicula_, on\nthe Caelian Hill--all but Sivel. When the first transports of joy at\nmeeting again were over, they gazed on each other and rejoiced at the\nchanges they saw, from weak boys to be sold and beaten, to powerful\nyoung warriors who were able to defend themselves. Forthere was nearly\nmad with rage and anxiety when he heard of the abduction of his young\ncousin. He had become a strong and muscular youth, a most formidable\nantagonist, as impulsive as ever, and otherwise unchanged--a vigorous\nfoe, but a true and faithful friend. Little Godric was still a boy.\nHereric had grown into a youth of singular grace and beauty. He was now\nsixteen, and he had an air of cultivation and breeding, due partly to\nhis high rank, but also to the knowledge he had acquired. He could read\nand write, and had become a sincere Christian. If he had a fault, it\nwas that he relied too much on the probity of others, and was easily\ndeceived by designing men. Forthere and Godric were devoted to the\nAtheling, as indeed were all his companions. No one could know the\nDeiran Prince without loving him. To the sons of Seomel and to Lilla he\nwas almost a brother.\n\nHereric had startling news to tell. He had passed most of his time\nstudying under Laurentius in the monastery of St. Andrew. But Forthere\nand Godric, refusing to work at books, were sent to Monte Cassiano,\nwhere they were employed in the fields or at the works connected with\nthe extension of the monastery. They were often in trouble, owing to\ntheir decided aversion for the _Regula Monachorum_ of St. Benedict; and\nthey had recently been brought back to the Caelian Hill.\n\nGregory had not forgotten his intention to introduce Christianity\ninto England, the land of the beautiful children in the market-place.\nThree had been brought up in the monastery on the Caelian, and one\nat least would now make an excellent interpreter. He resolved to\nentrust the mission to his prior of St. Andrew, whose reward was to\nbe the bishopric of the new diocese. Augustine was to be accompanied\nby Laurentius and Peter, Hereric and his two companions, and several\nmonks and attendants. Letters were written to the Queens Fredegonda and\nBrunehaud for protection while passing through their dominions; and\nto Vergilius, the Bishop of Arles, to bespeak hospitality. Brunehaud\npromised also to provide an interpreter. Hereric had been told of the\nmission, and was, of course, delighted at so good an opportunity of\nreturning home, provided that all his companions were equally favoured.\nBut as the day for starting approached, the monks showed great\nrepugnance to being employed on such a service. They were terrified,\nand although Augustine was not so faint-hearted, he looked upon the\nundertaking as being full of danger. The truth was that Forthere had\nbeen telling the monks such stories about England as made their hair\nstand on end. The time was very near; for the departure of the mission\nwas to take place on the very next day, the 21st of July 596.\n\nWhen all the news had been exchanged, the boys were long in\nconsultation. The plans for the discovery and rescue of Sivel were laid\nwith care and circumspection. But Forthere was torn different ways. He\ncould not endure leaving Rome with his adopted brother still in the\nhands of the villain Mystacon; yet his devotion for the Atheling made\nit equally hard to quit the mission and remain. Hereric settled the\nquestion. \"Forthere, my more than brother, your duty is clear. Sivel is\nthe adopted son of your valorous father, Brand of Ulfskelf. You must\nfollow the quest for him until his rescue is achieved. The loss to me\nis greater than I can tell you. But our Godric is growing to be a man,\nand a brave one. He will be my faithful companion and true soldier in\nyour absence.\" Young Godric's face flushed with pleasure, while Hereric\nand Forthere clasped each other in a long, silent embrace. \"But,\" added\nthe Atheling, as he gazed into Forthere's eyes, \"you must follow the\nrede of Porlor, and the guidance of Coelred and Lilla. Strike when they\ngive the signal, but not before. Your blow is strong and sure. Let it\nfall at the appointed time, and not too suddenly, my Forthere. God\nbless you all, and may our next meeting be in our own land, with Sivel\nin our midst!\"\n\nIt was clear that, if the boys accomplished all they intended, Rome\nwould be too hot to hold them. Their course of action must be guided\nby events, but their general plan was to have horses always ready at\nthe Symmachan villa, to overpower the guard at one of the gates when\ntheir work was done, and to join the army of the Lombard King. Thence\nthey would make their way, by fair means or foul, to their native land.\nCoelred prevailed upon Hereric to take a good supply of money, and the\nAtheling also undertook to convey the small but precious bales from\nIndia, as part of his own baggage. It was the only chance of their\nreaching England.\n\nNext day the mission left Rome. Pope Gregory offered up prayers, said\nmass at St. Peter's, and gave the monks his blessing. No attempt was\nmade to oblige Forthere to go when he refused. A more woebegone set of\nwretches than the monks of this mission could not be conceived. They\nlooked miserable and terror-stricken. Augustine was supported by the\nimportance and responsibility of his position, Laurentius and Peter\nwere good men and true, but the rest were very poor creatures. Hereric\nand Godric, alert and armed, brought up the rear, and long did they\nwave their caps to their beloved comrades, who stood on Aurelian's Wall\nto see the last of them. Two days afterwards Augustine came back alone.\nThe cowardly terror of his monks had so increased that they sent their\nprior to entreat the holy Gregory that they should not be compelled to\nundertake so dangerous, toilsome, and uncertain a journey. But the holy\nGregory was inexorable. He sent back Augustine, telling them that \"it\nwas better not to begin a good work than to think of desisting from\nthat which had been begun. It behoves you, my beloved sons,\" he went\non, \"to fulfil the good work which, by the help of our Lord, you have\nundertaken, being assured that much labour is followed by an eternal\nreward. When Augustine returns, humbly obey him in all things.\" So the\ncowardly missionaries had to go on; but very few intended to trust\ntheir precious skins beyond Arles, or some other safe place for monks\nin the south of France. Forthere was much amused at the return of\nAugustine, believing that his stories had played a part in frightening\nthe monks, whom he thoroughly despised.\n\nMeanwhile the plans for the rescue were put in train without delay.\nOn the first day Bassus and Porlor watched the approaches to the\nPamphronian villa. Coelred searched the warehouses under the Aventine\nHill, where they had all been confined when they first came to Rome.\nBut the place was deserted. Lilla and Forthere went through every\nstreet and lane in the Suburra, scanning each face that passed them,\nbut without result. Next day the rescuers were more fortunate. Forthere\nwas again prowling in the vilest purlieus of the Suburra, when he\ncaught sight of a face he recognised. Its owner was muffled in a\ncloak, which he drew quickly over his head, and ran at speed down a\nnarrow lane. In another moment the hand of Forthere was upon him. His\nstruggles were unavailing, and he was dragged out into the open space\nat the foot of the Palatine, gagged, and bound. Forthere was almost\ncertain that the face was that of one of the servants of Mystacon. The\nsun had set, and as soon as it was dusk the vigorous young Englishman\nhalf carried and half dragged his captive across the Forum, and down\nthe Appian Way to the garden of the villa of Symmachus. Forthere shared\na _cubiculum_ in the villa with his cousins. In this little room he\ndeposited the living bundle, and left him still more securely bound and\ngagged. He required the rede of Porlor and his other comrades before\nproceeding further. He found Coelred and Bassus watching the villa of\nPamphronius, while Porlor and Lilla returned from fruitless searches\nsoon afterwards. They all began to examine their prisoner.\n\nThe man swore that he had never seen his captors before, and had\nnever heard of Mystacon; but they all recognised him, so he was turned\non his back, a sword was put on his throat, and he was told that it\nwould be drawn across it if he told a single lie. They then found\nthat Sivel had been several days at Rome, confined in a house in the\nSuburra; not ill treated, the man declared, but only kept secure. All\nthis time Mystacon had been bargaining for the full price of Sivel to\nbe paid again to him if he was restored, pretending that he was not\nactually in Rome. Pamphronius offered half the price. He was furious\nat the way his slaves had been taken from him, and would pay high for\nthe mere spiteful pleasure of getting them into his power. A bargain\nhad at length been struck, and Sivel was to be delivered over to his\nmaster the next day, after noon. The man was tied up again, gagged, and\nsecured in the stable.\n\nAfter a consultation, it was decided that the intended preliminary\ninterview between Lilla and Pamphronius would be unnecessary. They\nnow knew all they wanted to know. They would watch for the arrival of\nMystacon and his victim, and effect the rescue by force. All the old\nfury that they had felt when they first heard that they were to be\nsold as slaves came back to them--the mortification and the burning\nshame. Forthere was beside himself with rage at the thoughts of the\nold insults and of the danger to which his beloved little brother was\nstill exposed. It would be a bad time for Mystacon when he next met the\noutraged lads. In the morning they looked carefully to their arms; and\nsaw that the horses were ready for a start at any moment, with a small\nsupply of food for each rider.\n\nIn the afternoon all five comrades concealed themselves behind a\nruined wall, and kept careful watch over the villa of Pamphronius. It\nwas thought better to allow the slave-dealer with his party to enter\nthan to attack him in the road, where they might be interrupted.\nForthere had a heavy club, the rest were armed with swords. All\nhad long knives. After an anxious interval, they at length heard\nmany footsteps. First came Mystacon himself, looking proud and\nself-satisfied, and it was with the greatest difficulty that Forthere\ncould restrain himself from flying at the villain's throat. Then\nfollowed a closed litter, carried by slaves, and half a dozen armed\nmen. The doors of the villa were closed, but when Mystacon knocked and\nuttered the words \"Servus Captus\" in a loud voice, they were thrown\nopen. The little procession passed in, and they were quickly closed and\nbarred again. The boys rushed towards the doors, furious and baffled;\nbut Porlor made a sign for silence. He then knocked in his turn and\nsaid \"Servus Captus\" in a loud voice. Again the doors were thrown\nopen, and a tall slave appeared. Porlor flew at his throat, and the\nunexpected assault threw him off his balance. He fell without uttering\na sound, and in another instant Forthere had cut his throat. They were\nnow in the large deserted _atrium_. At the other end there were heavy\ncurtains concealing the great hall, and behind them they heard voices.\n\nThe five lads pulled themselves together. They were well armed, but\nthey were about to face heavy odds if the attendants showed fight.\nThey drew their swords. \"Ready?\" cried Coelred, and the curtains were\ntorn aside. Coelred and Forthere occupied the entrance, while Lilla\nand Bassus rushed across the hall to the opposite door, to prevent all\nescape. Porlor then advanced a little and looked round. On the right,\nat a table, were Pamphronius and Mystacon. On the left was Sivel tied\nhands and feet, and held by two slaves, with half a dozen armed men\nbehind them. To send the slaves flying and cut the bonds was the work\nof an instant. Porlor put his arm round Sivel, who flew to his side.\nThe other four lads made a furious onslaught on the armed men. Lilla\nran the foremost through the body, Bassus cut down another, and the\nrest threw down their swords and surrendered. \"The first that moves\nis a dead man,\" cried Coelred, and Forthere proceeded to secure and\ngag them. Pamphronius and Mystacon remained to be dealt with. The\nslave-dealer's face was blanched with fear. Too well he recognised his\nassailants. But the patrician tried to put a bold face on the matter.\n\"The Holy Father will make you all answer for this outrage,\" he cried.\n\"Osvitus and Sivellus are my property. I have a right to recover them.\nThey belong to me.\" This was more than Forthere could stand. To his\nastonishment Pamphronius found himself seized by the throat and dragged\ninto the middle of the room. \"Miserable wretch!\" shouted the enraged\nEnglishman. \"Lilla is the descendant of God, Sivel is the brother of\na goddess. Their fathers were brave warriors who could make a hundred\nsuch creatures as you run before them. You are not good enough to be\ntheir slave. Kneel down and ask their pardon, or I will smash your\nskull,\" and he raised the heavy club he had brought with him. The\npatrician had never been spoken to in this way in all his life. But\nhe was in mortal terror, and did what he was told. \"Shall I kill the\nniddring?\" asked Forthere. \"It is not necessary,\" said Porlor. So he\nwas well tied up, gagged, and rolled into a corner. Then Mystacon\nwas brought forward howling for mercy, and reminding the boys of all\nhis kindness. \"For you, vile wretch,\" said Coelred, \"there can be no\nforgiveness. You had fair warning. We prayed to you to spare us from\nshame and humiliation, and you had no mercy. We told you then that we\nwould kill you, and Englishmen always keep faith. You must die, and at\nour hands.\" He made a sign to Forthere, who ran Mystacon through and\nthrough, and he fell dead. \"We could not have left Rome with honour,\"\nsaid Coelred, \"until this was done.\"\n\n[Illustration: Death of Mystacon]\n\nThey all went quickly to the villa of Symmachus, and prepared to mount\ntheir horses. Coelred and Porlor had already explained what was about\nto happen to their kind old friend Otacilia, and taken their leave.\n\"Will you be able to ride, my Sivel?\" asked Forthere, as he tenderly\nembraced his recovered brother. \"Anywhere with you,\" replied the\nboy. He looked very pale and ill. But there was no time to be lost.\nThey hastily mounted, and, led by Coelred, they galloped down to the\nAsinarian Gate. The guard turned out, and was attacked furiously by\nthe Englishmen. Two men were cut down, and the rest ran away for help.\nBassus and Lilla dismounted to unbar and throw open the gates, and they\nall galloped out into the starry night. For several hours they rode on\nat a steady pace, but they did not appear to have been followed. So\nthey stopped for a few hours of rest before sunrise, tethered their\nhorses, and were soon fast asleep. Next day they continued to ride\nnorthwards, stopping at noon for a short siesta. All this time they had\nbeen too eager while riding, and too tired when resting, to consult\nmuch with each other; and they were awakened from their noonday sleep\nby a great band of armed and mounted warriors who surrounded them.\nRoughly seized, they were almost in despair when they were dragged\nbefore the commander of this force.\n\nBut all turned out well. In the handsome warrior with huge drooping\nmoustache Coelred was reminded of the Gothic Prince Athanagild. \"He\nmust be of our kindred,\" he thought, and spoke to him in English,\nsaying that he and his companions were Englishmen, escaping from\nbondage at Rome, who threw themselves on his protection. The commander\nwas well pleased, received the lads as his countrymen, and enlisted\nthem in his force. It was quite providential that they should have\nfallen in with these Saxons, for they would be taken by them in safety\nwithin easy reach of England. A large Saxon army of nearly 20,000 men\nhad entered the service of Agilulphus, who ascended the throne of the\nLombards in 590. But they were not satisfied, and were about to return\nin a body to their own country on the lower Rhine. There was nothing\nto stop them, and a few months after our English lads entered their\nranks they commenced their march over the Alps, and down the course of\nthe Rhine, a journey presenting physical difficulties, and of great\ninterest, but involving no danger when in such powerful company. This\nprotection continued until our young heroes found themselves on the\nshores of the German Ocean, facing their own native land. They had\nresolved to return from the first. They were always confident that the\nhappy day would come. Alca had told them that they were not to die in a\ndistant land. Now they were full of joyful anticipations. Her words, as\nthey always knew, were true. The years of banishment were past and gone\nfor ever.\n\n\n\n\n    PART III\n\n    WORK\n\n\n          So much to do that is not e'en begun.\n          So much to hope for that we cannot see,\n          So much to win, so many things to be.\n\n                                         L. MORRIS.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER I\n\n    THE STORY OF AUGUSTINE\n\n\nSix tall young warriors landed one summer morning on the British shore,\nat Ebbs-fleet, in the Isle of Thanet. They were healthy, and strong,\nand goodly to look upon. The eldest was a dark Italian, the others\nwith the fair hair and florid complexions of Englishmen. Young Sivel\nhad quite recovered his health and good looks, and all were alert and\nready for anything that might betide. It was the last year of the sixth\ncentury. Their eager inquiries were answered by the news that some\nItalian monks and two English lads had landed two years before, and had\nbeen allowed to establish themselves at Canterbury, the capital of the\nkingdom of Kent.\n\nThe Jutes who formed the Kentish settlement had been near neighbours\nof the English on the Continent, and like the royal houses of\nBernicia and Deira, the \u00c6skingas of Kent were descended from Woden.\nKing Ethelbert had succeeded his father Imeric in 561, and was now\nan old man, having reigned for thirty-eight years. He had married a\nFrankish princess, Bertha, the daughter of Charibert, King of Paris.\nThey were an aged couple, and their son Eadbald had arrived at man's\nestate. Ethelbert, in spite of one crushing defeat which he received\nat Wimbledon from Ceaulin and Cutha of Wessex in 568, had been a\nsuccessful ruler. Northwards his influence extended to the Humber.\nSledda, the King of Essex, who married his sister Ricula, acknowledged\nhis sovereignty, and he was received by all the English people south\nof the Humber as Bretwalda, or overlord. As the Queen Bertha was a\nChristian, she had always had a priest in attendance upon her, and\nLuidhard, the Bishop of Senlis, was now her chaplain.\n\nThe young warriors became acquainted with these particulars on their\narrival, and, as horses could not be procured at once, they set out on\nfoot for Canterbury. The first person they met, superintending some\nbuildings outside the town, was their old friend Peter. He told them\nthat Hereric and Godric were safe and well, and conducted them to the\ntemporary monastery, where the Atheling and his young companion were\nsoon embracing their friends. At length all the boys were again united.\nSoon they sat down round Hereric, to hear the story of his adventures.\n\n\"I and Godric,\" he said, \"saw you all waving to us from the wall of\nAurelian as we rode out of Rome, looking so tall and strong, and we\nwere happy in the certainty that, if it was God's will, you would\nrescue our Sivel. It was a mournful journey, for the unwilling monks\ndid nothing but sigh and groan with coward fear, for which our Forthere\nwas partly answerable. The stories they told, on his authority, were\nenough to appal even brave men, which they certainly were not. At\nlast they sent back the Prior to entreat the Holy Father to allow\nthem to return to Rome. But Gregory's reply urged them to proceed,\nand the threats of Augustine obliged them to continue the journey.\nWhen we arrived at Arles, the good bishop Vergilius received us most\nhospitably, and supplied us with the means of carrying ourselves and\nour goods across France. Here many of the monks feigned sickness, and\ndeclared that they could not travel. They were left behind, and others\nfell away when we passed through towns where there were convents with\nthe Benedictine rule. Queen Brunehaud of Austrasia sent us a Frankish\ninterpreter, but although I could understand him, he had no knowledge\nof English, and was useless in the interpretation of Augustine's Latin.\nWe went over much of the road we all know so well, and at Amfleet our\npitiful condition, when we stood shivering on the sand, came back to\nour minds.\n\n\"Forty very cowardly monks and servants left Rome. Only a fourth\npart embarked at Amfleet. The party consisted of the Prior Augustine,\nLaurentius and Peter, Godric and I, and five convent servants. We\nlanded in the island of Thanet, which, as you saw, is separated from\nKent by the river Wantsum, nearly a mile in width. All now depended\nupon us, for the monks could not speak a word to the people, and the\nFrank sent by Queen Brunehaud was of little or no use. I proposed to\nAugustine that I should go to the King of the country, announce his\narrival, and ask for license to land. The Prior consented, but enjoined\nme to conceal my rank and name. I rode to Canterbury, and was allowed\nto have an interview with King Ethelbert and his son Eadbald. The Queen\nwas also present, and the Bishop of Senlis. They received me very\nkindly, and allowed me to keep my name and rank from them until a time\nwhen I could more fitly divulge it. Eadbald did not wish that the monks\nshould be allowed to remain. But the Queen and her bishop strongly\nurged their cause, and I was sent back with a message that they might\nremain until Ethelbert had seen them, when they would hear further.\n\n\"I returned to Thanet, and, by order of the King, we were supplied\nwith provisions and a house. Here were stored the precious Eastern\nbales of Coelred and Porlor, five books sent by Gregory, a cross and\na picture, and some vestments. A few days afterwards the King came to\nThanet, and, sitting in the open air, he ordered our company to be\nbrought before him. He would not let us come into his presence under\na roof, lest we should practise any magical arts so as to impose upon\nhim, and get the better of him. The Prior formed the most imposing\nprocession possible under the circumstances. First he came himself\nbearing a silver cross in his hand, with Laurentius and Peter close\nbehind him, carrying a board with the Son of God painted upon it. Next\ncame Godric and I, while the five convent servants brought up the rear,\nsinging a litany. The King ordered Augustine to deliver his message,\nand when I explained the royal words, the Prior began to preach in\nLatin until they all seemed weary, for not a word did they understand.\nHe then told me to repeat what he had said in English more briefly,\nwhich I did, giving only the substance of his discourse. The King and\nthose with him seemed very favourably impressed; and not only was\npermission granted for the monks to live in Canterbury, but a promise\nwas given to supply them with all necessaries, and they had license to\npreach the new religion.\"\n\n\"All this was due to Hereric alone,\" interrupted Godric. \"The Prior\nwas so long and unintelligible that they were all weary of him, and I\nam sure that he and his monks would have been sent straight back to\nFrance. But when the Atheling stood up, not stooping with a cowl over\nhis head, but erect and graceful, with his golden hair waving in the\nbreeze, the scene changed as if by magic. All eyes were turned to him,\nand every man present listened eagerly. His voice, as we all know,\nis sweet and pleasant to hear. He described the wonderful birth and\nthe good works of Jesus. He related the events of His death with such\nfeeling that the Kentish warriors swore great oaths, while Ethelbert\nsprang to his feet, drew his sword, and waved it over his head with\nexcitement. The monks were terrified. The servants ran away, Augustine\nand Laurentius cowered down, old Peter alone stood his ground. They\nunderstood nothing, but heard the oaths and saw the old King with his\ndrawn sword, vowing vengeance on the Jews. There was a long pause.\nThen, in a gentler voice, Hereric declared to them that the Son of God\nhad risen from the dead to save all, of every nation under heaven,\nwho turned to Him for comfort and help in the hour of death. When he\nstopped there was not one present, from the King downwards, who was not\nwilling to grant anything the Atheling might ask.\"\n\n\"Nay,\" said Hereric, \"our Godric goes too far. I was but the\ninstrument to convey Augustine's meaning in English words.\" \"It was\nnot the words,\" persisted Godric; \"it was the gracious person that\ndelivered the discourse, and the way he spoke the words, that won\nall hearts. Say, my brothers, who was it that deserves the praise?\"\n\"Hereric! Hereric!\" they all shouted, Forthere more vociferously than\nthe rest. \"It is the partial voice of love,\" resumed Hereric, \"which\nmethinks is a little beyond reason. Say no more of me, I pray.\" \"We\nmust speak out,\" said Forthere, \"for the jealous monks will not put\nthy name into their chronicle, it will be Augustine who did it all.\"\nHereric looked distressed, and the subject was dropped. \"We all marched\nto Canterbury,\" he continued, \"and as we drew near the city, with the\ncross raised on high, Augustine caused another litany to be sung. We\nwere temporarily lodged in a house, where the Prior at once established\nand put in force the _Regula Monachorum_ of St. Benedict, in use at\nSt. Andrew's on the Caelian Hill. As the monks were unable to preach\nintelligibly, they had to be contented with good works for a time.\"\n\"Yes,\" said the incorrigible Godric, \"they have resorted to signs and\nwonders and miraculous cures. Augustine performed more miracles in the\nshort time he was at Canterbury than he ever dared to attempt during\nhis former life, under the eye of Gregory at Rome. I can work some of\nthem myself.\" \"So can I,\" added Forthere, \"and I know very well how\nothers are done.\" The Atheling took no notice of this interruption.\n\"There is,\" he went on, \"on the east side of this city a church built\nby the Romans, and dedicated to St. Martin, of whom we all heard at\nthe Gate of the Twins outside Amiens, when we were in the power of\nMystacon. Here the Frankish Bishop performs Christian services for the\nQueen. Here the monks say masses and baptize, and Ethelbert himself has\nsubmitted to the rite of baptism. But the people hold back, encouraged\nby Eadbald. Augustine himself is not here. He has hurried back to\nFrance to be consecrated by the Bishop of Arles; but before he went\nhe had obtained from the King the grant of another old Roman church,\nwhich he has dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul, and where he has\nbegun to build a monastery. It was there that you met old Peter, who is\nto be the first Abbot. I have promised to remain here until Augustine\nreturns as Bishop, and until I have taught Laurentius and Peter enough\nEnglish to enable them to preach to the people. Godric has promised\nto stay with me, and I know Forthere will also. You all need rest.\nBesides, our absence has been long, and we have heard no news. I have\nindeed received a rumour that Ella, our King, is dead, and that our\ncountry has been seized by the Bernicians. I fear that it will be a\nsad home-coming for most of us. Let us give ourselves a little time\nfor preparation to bear our sorrows manfully. I would fain desire that\nwe should all come home together.\" They unanimously agreed to wait\nfor Hereric, and to go home in his company. It was a great joy to be\ntogether again, not only with no one missing, but with one more, the\nfaithful Bassus, added to their company.\n\n\"At one time,\" said Godric, \"I feared that our Atheling would become a\nmonk, but now I know that he never will.\" \"Wherefore?\" asked the rest.\n\"Because he is in love,\" replied Godric. Hereric blushed crimson when\nGodric went on to declare that the name of Braga was often on his lips\nwhen he slept. \"Truly,\" said Porlor, \"the Prince used to be very fond\nof our little sister. If he ever had a present to give, it was always\nfor Braga. Do you remember, Coelred, the day when Alca came to visit\nus at Stillingfleet? That very day Hereric presented little Braga with\na pretty scarf. I think it was the last gift she received from any of\nus.\" \"Hereric is not the only one,\" said Forthere, wishing to turn\nattention from the Atheling. \"Lilla is also in love, if words spoken\nin sleep are to be so explained. Twice have I heard him whispering\nthe name of Bergliot.\" \"'Tis true,\" said Coelred, \"that the young\nPrincess's last message was for our Oswith, when she left us on that\nfatal day.\" So the light talk went on, full of joyous reminiscences\nof home and friends; until Hereric said that they must all speak\nreverently of their loved ones, if they spoke at all, until they knew\ncertainly what had befallen.\n\nDuring the days that they were waiting for Augustine, the companions\nhelped Peter in his work at the monastery, and Hereric was a good deal\nemployed in teaching English to the monks. In the long summer evenings\nthey engaged in conversations. The most important took place a few days\nbefore they all set out for home, and was chiefly conducted by Porlor.\nHe dwelt upon their peculiar position among their countrymen, and\nsuggested rules of conduct. \"We are like men apart,\" he said. \"I have\nfelt already in my intercourse with the \u00c6skingas that there is a sort\nof gulf between us. Our knowledge is immeasurably greater than that of\nour people. This is not due to any merit of our own, but simply to what\nhas happened. But it is a fact. We are as if we had been born in some\nlater age.\"\n\n\"I do not think that Godric and I know very much more than our\ncountrymen,\" said Forthere. \"It is true,\" replied Porlor, \"that there\nare differences amongst us. Hereric is as learned as any monk. Sivel\nunderstands the laws and the arts of the Greeks. Both can read and\nwrite. Lilla and Bassus have acquired a practical knowledge of Roman\nstrategy. Coelred and I have learnt much in our wanderings. Nor can\nForthere and Godric be left out. They too have stored up knowledge in\ntheir travels and at Rome. No, Forthere; you and Godric are included\nin all that I shall say. What I feel is that our knowledge is a gift\nfrom above, but a gift that we must not use for ourselves only. It is\na trust that we are to use for our people, and we must think how it\ncan best be used. My fear is that if we openly proclaim our greater\nknowledge, if we suddenly begin to tell of what we know and to advise,\nif we assume that we are wiser than our people, we shall be distrusted,\nby many disbelieved, and our power for good will pass away. Remember\nCoifi. All men confess that he is more learned than any one else in\nDeira, yet who would listen to him in counsel or take his advice? He\ntalks too much, and is without credit or influence.\"\n\nThe others thought a great deal over what Porlor had said. On\nthe next evening Lilla continued the discussion. \"We have,\" he\nbegan, \"been gifted with rare knowledge and experience, such as\nour fellow-countrymen can never possess except through equally\nextraordinary accidents. Our gifts are, as Porlor says, a trust to be\nused with great care for our country. I have thought long over the\nmatter, and I believe with him that we shall lose the power we may\nsurely gain unless we act wisely. What think you, my Coelred?\" \"My\nrede is,\" said Coelred, \"that, accepting the counsel and the warning\nof Porlor, we should keep silence until such time as the knowledge\nthat any of us possesses above that of our countrymen would be useful\nto them. Then we should use it, but even then by action rather than by\nspeech. Such conduct will be very hard to adopt, and we shall need much\ncounsel amongst ourselves.\" Hereric added that he agreed with all that\nhad been said, except that the Princess Alca and their other loved ones\nmust be told all they knew, withholding nothing. In this all concurred.\nSivel asked Porlor to propose rules of conduct which might serve as\nlaws for them in this grave matter.\n\nNext day Porlor said, \"I have been thinking carefully over a scheme\nfor us to adopt. We are dear friends, tried by companionship in danger,\nin sorrow, in shame, in hardships, and we know and are certain that\nour friendship can have no change for ever. We must make a compact to\nwatch over our gifts for the good of our countrymen. We must often\ntake counsel with each other how to maintain our credit and influence,\nand how to use our gifts prudently and wisely. We will be one body,\ndevoted to the weal of our countrymen, but in a sense apart. We will\nform a _Gem\u00f3t_ of close friends and brothers for ever.\" The rede of\nPorlor was the judgment of all. They clasped hands upon it, and the\nCoelred-_Gem\u00f3t_ was formed.\n\nSoon afterwards Augustine returned in all the importance of his\nepiscopal dignity. His head was busy about the things pertaining to\nhis office. Although as yet he scarcely had a flock, he promptly sent\na long series of puzzling questions to Gregory about the degrees of\nkindred within which members of his flock might marry, and on other\nabstruse points. He also began to work miracles again, and to quarrel\nwith the Welsh bishops about the calculation of the date of Easter. He\ndid not conceal his satisfaction that Hereric was about to leave him,\nwhich surprised the simple-minded Atheling, but which did not surprise\nGodric or Forthere. Hereric explained to the King of Kent that he was\na Prince of the house of Deira, and Ethelbert ordered an escort to see\nhim and his friends as far as the Humber. A message was also sent to\nLondon, to secure hospitality for them from Sledda, the King of Essex.\nEthelbert wished them a cordial farewell. They also had a friendly\nparting from their old teachers, Laurentius and Peter, who gave their\nblessings.\n\nThey first rode to London, then sparsely inhabited, and saw the old\nRoman walls, the ruins of the temple of Diana on the hill, and the\n_miliarium_ whence all the main roads diverged. Sledda and his wife\nRicula received them well in the ruined old pr\u00e6torium near the temple,\nand sent them on their way with a fresh relay of horses. In two days\nthey came to the country of the Gainas, and reached Godric's home near\nthe banks of the Idle. To the boy's great joy he found his old father\nUlchel still alive, but failing, and their meeting was most pathetic.\nThe friends were received very hospitably, and Bassus, who was ill,\nremained behind with Godric until they should be sent for by Coelred.\nThe rest pressed northwards, with pack-horses bearing the precious\nbales. They intended to proceed in a body to Bilbrough, and hear all\nthe news, bad and good, from their kind old friend Saebald the Fairfax,\nbefore they ventured to seek their homes. Going rapidly along the old\nRoman road, they came in sight of the well-known Ingrish Hill with\nfeelings of deep anxiety.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER II\n\n    HOME AGAIN\n\n\nSaebald, chief of the Billingas, had just returned from visiting his\noutposts on the Wharfe. He was standing at the gate of his burg when\nhe beheld six horsemen and some pack animals advancing towards him up\nthe hill. As they came nearer he saw that the men were fully armed\nand accoutred, but he could not guess who they could be. They rode\nup, dismounted, and stood before him. He looked from one to the other\nwith doubt and astonishment, until his eyes rested upon Sivel, whom he\nrecognised at once. In a moment they were in each other's arms, and\nSivel spoke the names of his companions. It was long before Saebald\ncould recognise his little friends in these stalwart young warriors.\nHis surprise was extreme, but his welcome was hearty and cordial. He\nshowed unfeigned joy at their marvellous reappearance. \"Knowing your\nfriendship,\" said Coelred, \"we came here first to hear from you all\nthat has happened in our absence, for we know nothing. We did not\ndare to go to our homes, fearing to find empty hearths.\" He then very\nbriefly told the story of the kidnapping, said that they had had many\nstrange adventures, but that they had sworn to each other to come home\ntogether, and that at length they had succeeded. \"Our stories will\nkeep,\" he added, \"but our anxiety is so great that we cannot wait\nlonger for your news.\" Saebald insisted upon their having supper first,\nand then they went out and sat round the Billinga chief on the hillside.\n\n\"You have given me a melancholy task,\" said the Fairfax, \"for I shall\ncause grief and pain to each one of my young friends. No anxiety was\nfelt until you had been missing for two days. Then search was made\nin every direction, and vigilant watch was kept on the rivers. The\nPrincess Bergliot was overwhelmed with grief, and told some story\nabout the curse of a nixy, but neither she nor the dog could guide the\nsearch farther than to the mouth of Stillingfleet beck. Guthlaf stopped\nevery boat that passed up and down the river, hanging all the crews\nwhose answers did not satisfy him. By this means many sea-thieves were\ndisposed of.\" \"But not our sea-thieves,\" said Porlor, \"for they were\nall hanged by the Franks when we were landed.\" \"At last,\" continued\nSaebald, \"anxiety gave way to despair. There was mourning in many\nhomes, for no boys were ever so beloved. My poor Forthere, your loss\nmust be told first. Verbeia, your gentle mother, never held up her head\nagain. She died of grief within a month.\" Forthere and Sivel bowed\ntheir heads to hide their tears. The eyes of the rest were full, for\ntoo surely they felt that worse was coming.\n\n\"Towards the end of the year,\" Saebald went on, \"a great calamity\nbefell Deira. Our King died very suddenly with suspicion of poison.\nSome looked askance at Coifi; for the dirge he chanted at Aldby when\nKing Ella returned victorious from the borders of Elmet was remembered\nagainst him. Things looked even more suspicious when it was known\nthat Coifi had taken refuge with King Ethelric of Bernicia. Ella was\nscarcely in his grave before news arrived that the King of Bernicia\nwas advancing upon York with a large army, led by his two fierce sons,\nEthelfrith and Theobald. Elfric, the unconquered Atheling, hastily\nassembled a force to oppose them. The gathering was at York. I came\nfirst with the Billingas. Seomel, Guthlaf, and Brand, with their men,\nwere close on my heels. But there was no time to wait for more. The\nHeslingas were to guard the Princess and little Edwin, the hope of\nDeira, at Aldby. Elfric then advanced to encounter heavy odds. Battle\nwas joined beyond the forest. We were overpowered by numbers. First\nthe noble Guthlaf fell, like a stag at bay surrounded by the dogs.\nSeomel was slain while valorously warding off blows from the Atheling.\nFinally, Elfric himself, after dealing death around him, bowed his\nproud head and breathed his last. Brand and I were fighting near,\nand when we saw that all was lost, we drew off our men. 'Edwin must\nbe taken out of the land or he will be murdered. The sons of Ida are\nmerciless.' These were Brand's words as we galloped towards York. The\nold warrior said he would go to Aldby and secure the child, if possible\ninducing the Princess to come with him, while I placed relays of fresh\nhorses outside York and at Tadcaster.\n\n\"Old Brand, as I have been told, broke the fatal news to the Princess,\nand urged upon her that there was no time to lose, and that she and\nEdwin must escape out of the country. She replied that her duty was to\nremain; but that she would entrust the child to her father's oldest\nand most faithful friend. There was no time to be lost. It was known\nthat the Bernician army was marching rapidly on York. The Princess\nAlca folded the child in a tender embrace, and put it into the arms\nof Brand. 'Most valorous warrior,' she said, 'I entrust to your care\nthe hope of Deira.' Her own resolution was immutable. Brand knelt and\nkissed the hand of the elf-maiden, then mounted his horse and galloped\naway. I waited with fresh horses on the Mount at York, and rode with\nthem to Nehalennia's ford. There I bade farewell to old Brand, my\nbeloved uncle, and swore obedience to young King Edwin, returning\ndisconsolately to Bilbrough.\n\n\"Brave old Ingeld, with the Heslingas, remained as a guard at Aldby.\nBut they were not molested. Ethelric advanced to York, and, as\nresistance was unavailing, the country submitted. We had no Atheling to\nlead us. Hereric was lost, his brother Osric was a child. The Bernician\nKing was an old man. He appointed Coifi Priest of Woden, with charge of\nall the sacred images at Godmundham. Four years afterwards he died, and\nwas succeeded by his son Ethelfrith the Wild--a fierce, dangerous man,\nhating all opposition, and often false to his plighted word. He had\ntwice asked for Alca in marriage, but had been repulsed.\n\n\"The Princess continued to live at Aldby, with the children of Elfric,\nOsric and Bergliot, the Lady Volisia, and her young daughters Braga and\nNanna. Worn out with grief and anxiety, Volisia died a year after the\ncoming of the Bernicians. Month after month, year after year, passed\naway, and nothing more was heard of Brand and little Edwin. One day an\naged British priest, named Urien, arrived at Aldby and asked for an\ninterview with the Princess. He came owing to a solemn promise he had\nmade to Brand when he died in Gwynedd. Urien brought up the boy after\nBrand's death, but one day Edwin said that he would leave Gwynedd, and\ngo to a country where Englishmen dwelt. The boy departed, and Urien had\nheard nothing more of him. So the old man kept his vow, undertook the\nlong journey to tell Alca, and then returned. The Princess remained\nquite confident that Edwin was safe, and all knew that she must be\nright.\n\n\"The last event I have to relate is the strangest of all. About a year\nago King Ethelfrith again asked for Alca in marriage, and she consented\non conditions. She sent for us, the surviving thegns of Deira, and said\nthat she only lived for her country, and that she would consent to be\nQueen of Bernicia on condition that Ethelfrith would solemnly declare\nthat Edwin was King of Deira, and that he only ruled until the child\nwas old enough to assume the government. 'The King has consented,'\ncontinued the Princess, 'and is here,' Ethelfrith came into the great\nhall and made the declaration in our presence. He looked haggard and\nfierce, but cowed. Then Alca became his Queen. She has a beautiful\nchild named Oswald. Ethelfrith is devoted to Alca, but we all think\nthat his devotion is more like terror than love. A glance from her\nstills his rage, and he almost cowers in her presence. Fierce, cruel,\nand suspicious when he is away from the Queen, her presence at once\ncalms and softens him. All who are under her protection are safe. It is\nevident that he dare not molest them. It may be her goodness and purity\nwhich effect this change, but she must also possess some power which\nis incomprehensible to us. Thus we his enemies, the thegns of Deira,\nare not molested, though we must obey the King's summons to war. And\nnow, my boys, my sad story is told. I see that you are overwhelmed with\ngrief, and it is best that you should all seek rest.\"\n\nThe lads got little sleep that night. The wounds were too fresh, the\ngrief too acute during the first hours. They wept long and silently\nover their lost ones and the desolated hearths. In the morning they\nbesought Saebald to make their plans for them. He said that he would go\nwith Forthere and Sivel to Ulfskelf. The other four should cross the\nOuse at Acaster, whence Lilla would visit his home at Hemingborough.\n\"You must go to your homes at once,\" he said, \"and assume your\npositions among your people. On the first of the next moon you shall\nall meet again at Stillingfleet, and thence fare onward to Bambrough,\nwhere the Queen now is. I will send a messenger in advance with the\nwonderful news of your arrival, to prepare her mind. The little girls,\ntoo, must not be taken quite by surprise. A great war with the Scots is\nthreatened, so you must promptly offer your swords to King Ethelfrith.\"\n\nIt was so arranged. Hereric, Coelred, Porlor, and Lilla (Oswith) rode\nover to Stillingfleet, where Tanwin, the old and faithful servant of\nSeomel, had kept things in order and led the Stillingas since his\nmaster's death. He was overjoyed at the sight of them, and it was long\nbefore he could believe his eyes. Hereric and Coelred, he declared,\nwere Elfric and Seomel over again, as he remembered them when they\nfirst bore arms. They went slowly up the hill to the deserted hall,\ntheir hearts too full for words. An aged dog was lying on a heap of\nferns in the yard. \"Shuprak,\" they cried, and the faithful old dog\nraised itself on its forelegs, gave a joyful bark, and fell forward.\nThe lads burst into tears. It was the last straw. When they ran up,\nShuprak was dead. Tanwin said that it had lain for months without\nmoving, and taking little food. They made its grave on the other side\nof the beck, near the place where it generally ran into the forest.\nAs they covered its remains with earth, slowly and reverently, Porlor\nsaid, \"Suparaka is Yama. We will not be less worthy than Yudisthira.\"\nThe lads understood each other.\n\nNext day the Stillingas assembled and swore that Coelred and Porlor\nwere their leaders. Each ceorl walked past his chiefs and touched their\nweapons in token of fealty--the ceremony of the wapentake. Sad as it\nall was, it was necessary to give a great feast in the old hall. Lilla\nwished his friends to accompany him to Hemingborough, where the same\nscenes were repeated. The Hemingas crowded round the son of Guthlaf,\nand swore that Oswith (they did not yet know him by the name of Lilla)\nwas their leader, also performing the wapentake ceremony. They might\nwell be proud of the splendid young warrior as he went round to each\nman, renewing the acquaintance of his boyhood. Again and again, both\nat Stillingfleet and Hemingborough, the tale of their disappearance,\nof the long-continued but fruitless search, of the despair of their\nparents, was repeated to the friends, with many details passed over by\nSaebald. They heard about the great battle in which their fathers fell,\nand were told of the numerous losses on the field, and of the sullen\nsubmission of the survivors, while curses were heaped on the head of\nEthelfrith the Wild. Their homes seemed desolate without the loved\nfaces of their dear ones and the welcome bark of old Shuprak. It was\nindeed a sad home-coming.\n\nThey were glad when, at the appointed time, Forthere and Sivel arrived\nfrom Ulfskelf, where they too had passed a mournful time. The gentle\nmother of Forthere had been killed by extremity of grief. Old Brand had\ndied far away from home and kindred. The hearthstone was quite cold at\nUlfskelf.\n\nThe six lost ones, found again, set out together from Stillingfleet and\nrode northwards into Bernicia. Pack-horses, with their precious bales,\nwere in charge of old Tanwin and his son Froda, and of Ingebrand, the\nfaithful servant of Elfric, who had now attached himself to Hereric. In\nthree days they reached Bambrough, the capital of Bernicia. It was an\nalmost impregnable place. The fortress rises up from a solitary rock of\nblack basalt overlooking the sea. The building of Ethelfrith's time was\nconstructed by his grandfather Ida in A.D. 550, on the site of a fort\nbuilt by order of Agricola, and was named Bebbanburgh after his wife\nBebba. The interior court was extensive, with a great hall of timber,\nand many rooms opening into the hall or directly upon the court. The\nwhole had been surrounded by a quickset hedge at first, for which a\nstone wall was afterwards substituted.\n\nOrders had been given for the suitable reception of the guests, and\nthey were soon ushered into the presence of the Queen. Alca was more\nstately and more beautiful than when they parted from her at Aldby.\nHer cheering words had sunk into their hearts, and had inspired their\nactions, keeping alive hope when their need was greatest. Coelred and\nPorlor regarded her with such devoted love that no one else ever found\na place in their hearts. The adoration of the others was little less\nprofound. She embraced them all as dear brothers returned after a long\nabsence, but with no surprise. \"I knew you would return,\" she said,\n\"and I know by your looks that you have returned unscathed by sin or\nshame. You have returned, strong and bold and full of knowledge, to\nserve your country in its sore need. May the All-father bless and\npreserve you!\"\n\nThen the girls and little Osric ran in, and after the first warm\ngreetings, Bergliot burst into tears at the thought of the last parting\nwith her boys. The nixy's curse had always been ringing in her ears. It\nwould cease now. She put her small hand shyly into her dear Oswith's\nlarge one, while Braga nestled close to Hereric, and Nanna tried to\ndivide herself between her brothers Coelred and Porlor. The rest of the\nday was passed very happily, and on the morrow the young warriors were\nto be presented to Ethelfrith at a great audience.\n\nEthelfrith sat in the hall, surrounded by his thegns. He scowled\nsavagely as the young men came in and stated their names and positions,\noffering him their swords. But when Alca entered and looked at him with\na calm searching glance, his mien changed and he welcomed them warmly\nenough, accepting their services with thanks. Next day Coelred sent for\nBassus and Godric, who arrived at Bambrough soon afterwards.\n\nIn the following days the young men, one after the other, related\nall they had seen and heard to Alca in the minutest detail. They told\nher of their conversations at Canterbury, of their perplexities, of\ntheir proposed _Gem\u00f3t_; and they besought her guidance and advice.\nThe precious bales were opened before her and offered for her\nacceptance. There were gold ornaments of eastern workmanship, precious\nstones, spices, myrrh and frankincense, the small parcel of bdellium\npresented by the Guru, boxes of sandal-wood, fine calico and muslin,\nbesides many bags of gold coin. She insisted upon Coelred and Porlor\nretaining the money, and they afterwards dug a hole by the side of\nShuprak's grave, which became the \"_uvaru_\" for their treasures. Alca\nkept the bdellium and a few things to please her young friends, and\ndistributed the rest among the delighted girls. Alca had had described\nto her the whole realm of France; the buildings and people of Rome,\nConstantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, and Ujjayani; the navigation\nof the Eastern Mediterranean, the Red and Erythraean Seas, and the\nGerman Ocean; the habits and customs of many peoples; the religion of\nChrist, with Porlor's version of some heresies; and the religions of\nthe Fire-worshippers and the Hindus; besides innumerable anecdotes and\nstories. In the minds of most people such an enormous mass of fresh and\nsurprising information could not have been assimilated. It would simply\nhave caused utter confusion. But it was not so with Alca. She told the\nboys that she would take a long time to think over all they had told\nher, and arrange everything clearly in her mind. When she had done so,\nshe promised to take them into her counsels, to consult with them, and\nto let them know her thoughts. But first they must all fight bravely in\nthe coming struggle in which their country would be engaged.\n\n[Illustration: The Young Warriors Presented to Ethelfrith]\n\n\u00c6dan, the King of the Scots, was assembling an immense army with the\nobject of invading Northumbria and destroying Ethelfrith, his forces,\nand his kingdom. Ethelfrith's followers were very numerous, and both he\nand his brother Theobald were valiant soldiers. But they were ignorant\nof the art of war, head-strong, and without judgment. Alca consulted\nprivately with her young friends. It was ascertained that \u00c6dan would\nadvance up the valley of the Eden, intending thence to pour his forces\ndown the western valleys and converge on York. To defeat this plan\nLilla and Bassus conceived the brilliant idea of imitating the strategy\nof Narses in the Median Mountains. Ethelfrith was to advance down the\nvalley of the Eden with the main body of his army, while his brother\nTheobald occupied the mountains and threatened the enemy's flank,\nbut with strict orders to avoid an engagement. Lilla and Bassus were\nto remain with the King and direct the campaign. Coelred and Porlor\nwere to be at the head of the troops gathered from between Ouse and\nDerwent. Saebald, Forthere, and Sivel were to head all the levies from\nthe west of the Ouse. Hereric and Godric were to fight in company with\nthe thegns and their followers from the east of Derwent. Thus all the\nDeirans would be with the King, as well as part of the Bernician army.\nThe detached force of Theobald would consist wholly of Bernicians.\n\n\"But how are we to induce King Ethelfrith to adopt all these measures?\"\nsaid Bassus. \"Leave that to me,\" replied the Queen. \"You and Lilla, as\nyou have named our Oswith, are experienced men of the world. You now\nhave to practise that forbearance for the cultivation of which you have\nresolved to take counsel with each other. Take care that Ethelfrith\ngives all the orders, and so manage as that he will think that they all\noriginated from himself. Let him have the glory, and it will be well.\nIt is sufficient for you to serve your country as brave and faithful\nwarriors.\"\n\nSoon afterwards there was a great assembly of chiefs in the hall\nof Bambrough to hear the final instructions of the King. To the\nastonishment of Lilla and Bassus, they heard Ethelfrith make the\nfollowing speech:--\"I have conceived the plan of marching down the\nvalley of the Eden to meet the enemy in front, while my brother with\na picked force of Bernicians will threaten their flank from the\nmountains. But it is my strict and positive order to Theobald to avoid\nan engagement. Lilla and Bassus are to remain near my person. The whole\nDeiran force will form part of my division, and I shall have my eye on\ntheir chiefs, especially on the young men who lately offered me their\nswords. My plan is perfect, and victory is certain if our men do their\nduty. Prepare to march in a few days.\"\n\nEthelfrith believed that all the arrangements were originated by\nhimself when the army set out from Bambrough in two divisions, to fight\none of the most decisive battles in the dawn of our history.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER III\n\n    DEATH OF ALCA\n\n\nIt was in the autumn of the year 603 that the battle was fought which\nfinally settled the question of supremacy between Scots and English.\nSivel had already introduced the system of counting time _Anno Domini_\namong the associates of the Coelred-_Gem\u00f3t_, which was a valuable\nhelp to them, both in discussing the past and forecasting the future.\nThis year was a great epoch in their lives. Lilla and Bassus were\ncomparatively veterans. All the rest were about to fight in their first\nbattle.\n\nEthelfrith's army was in the upper part of the Eden valley. It was\nknown that a mighty host was being led by \u00c6dan and by Hering the son\nof Hussa up the course of the river. Bassus had arranged with his\nfriends that strong parties of scouts should be thrown out to watch the\nmovements of the enemy. They were led by Forthere, Godric, and Sivel.\nAfter a few days Forthere came back with the news that a large body of\nthe enemy, apparently nearly half their army, had been detached, and\nwas marching up the hills to the west. \"Our plan works,\" said Bassus\nto Lilla, \"just as the plan of Narses worked, our great master in the\nart of war.\" \"But,\" said Lilla, \"the King's brother is not another John\nthe Prefect. The reckless Theobald will never avoid an action.\" An hour\nafterwards Ethelfrith sent a message to his brother with reiterated\ncommands to retreat before the advancing foe. Then the English host,\nby rapid marches, hurried down the valley and attacked the weakened\narmy of \u00c6dan with overwhelming force. The result was never doubtful.\nThe Scots were nearly exterminated, and \u00c6dan fled almost alone from the\nfield. After two days to rest and recruit their strength, the English\nwarriors were fresh and ready to complete their work. Then a messenger\narrived with the news that Theobald had refused to obey his brother's\norders. He would retreat before no man, he declared. He attacked the\nsuperior force of the enemy when weather and ground and everything was\nagainst him. He gave himself no chance. There was a desperate fight,\nfollowed by the death of Theobald and a prodigious slaughter of the\nBernicians. But the Scots were reported to be much weakened and worn\nout with long marches.\n\n\"Now for the final blow,\" said Bassus. The scouts, under the direction\nof Forthere, kept him well informed of the movements of the enemy and\nthe nature of the ground. The Scots were marching so as to expose their\nflank. At the right moment the English army was set in motion and came\nupon the enemy at a place which was long famous, called Degsastan. The\nremnant of the army of the Scots was here literally annihilated.\n\nThe news of this great victory spread over the island. It was thought\nthat no leader so skilful and prudent, so wise and valorous, had\never been known in England as Ethelfrith the Wild. The fame of his\ngeneralship continued long. A hundred years afterwards the Venerable\nBede declared that Ethelfrith \"ravaged the Britons more than all the\ngreat men of the English, insomuch that he might be compared to Saul.\nTo him might justly be applied the saying of the Patriarch, 'Benjamin\nshall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and\nat night he shall divide the spoil.' He was a most worthy king, and\nambitious of glory.\" Lilla and Bassus, the real generals, had far more\nprecious fame in the praise of the Queen, and the full and ample reward\nof all the friends was in the approval and smiles of Alca. Bede says\nthat \"from that time no King of the Scots dared to come into Britain to\nmake war on the English to this day.\"\n\nFor the next few years all the leaders in the service of Ethelfrith\nhad much harassing work in repelling incursions from the direction\nof Strathclyde, and it became known that the King of Gwynedd was\nassembling a great army to stake his fortune where the Scots had\nfailed. His standard was raised at Chester. Bassus was deeply impressed\nwith the maxim that knowledge was power. He acquired a minute personal\nacquaintance with the routes across the moors to Chester. Forthere\nagain commanded the bands of scouts, and kept Lilla and Bassus well\ninformed of the numbers and movements of the enemy. There was no\ndifficulty in marching through Elmet, as old Certicus was neutral,\nindeed he had only too good an understanding with Ethelfrith. The\nEnglish army was assembled at York. The Deiran chiefs were at the head\nof their people, who were more numerous than the Bernicians, the latter\nhaving suffered severely in the war with the Scots.\n\nLilla and Bassus explained their plans to the Queen, and a few days\nafterwards Ethelfrith announced them in council as his own. That wild\nKing was managed with consummate tact. The march was made direct over\nthe moors to Chester. The men of Gwynedd were found drawn up outside\nthe old Roman camp of the 20th Legion. It was their colony of Deva. As\nbattle was about to be joined, Ethelfrith observed a crowd of priests,\nwho had come from the adjacent monastery of Bangor-Iscoed to offer up\nprayers for the soldiers, standing apart in a place of more safety.\nThe King asked who they were, and Forthere told him that they were\nmonks praying for his defeat, and that there was a guard to protect\nthem, commanded by a British chief named Brochvael. \"If, then,\" said\nEthelfrith, \"they cry to their God against us, though they do not\nbear arms, yet they fight against us because they oppose us by their\nprayers.\" He ordered them to be attacked first, and then the chiefs\nof Deira charged the host of Gwynedd, and, after a long and desperate\nfight, the English gained a complete victory. About two hundred priests\nwere slaughtered, and only fifty escaped, their defender Brochvael\nhaving decamped at the first appearance of danger. Their great\nmonastery of Bangor-Iscoed was destroyed. The holy monks of Canterbury\ntaught that the massacre of British priests at Chester was a sign\nof Divine vengeance on them for presuming to differ in opinion from\nAugustine on the subject of the time of keeping Easter. That charitable\nprelate, who died in 604, had already cursed them on the same account.\n\nThe victory of Chester was gained in 607, and from that time there\nwas peace in Northumbria for many years. The Deiran thegns returned to\ntheir homes. Coelred and Porlor were at Stillingfleet, and Hereric was\ngenerally with them. Lilla and Bassus abode at Hemingborough, Forthere\nand Sivel at Ulfskelf, and Godric was now at Markham, near the banks of\nthe Idle, his father, Ulchel, having died. Queen Alca, in these latter\nyears, passed most of her time at her old home at Aldby. She had her\nlittle child Oswald, and the charge of Osric the Atheling, both future\nkings. There were also several sons of Ethelfrid, fine little fellows,\nto whom she was very kind--Eanfrid, Oslac, Oswudu, Oslaf, and Offa, who\nadored her, and a little child named Oswy, recently born to Ethelfrith,\nbut who was not her son. The King was almost always near the northern\nfrontier of his dominions, making raids into the country of the Picts.\n\nThe friends often met at their respective homes, and discussed schemes\nfor the benefit of their countrymen, who under their auspices were\nmaking considerable advances in many ways. But they always remembered\nthe broad lines of conduct laid down by Porlor at Canterbury, and the\nfriends frequently met to hold consultations. Coelred and Porlor having\nascertained from Alca that, after investigation, she was convinced that\nCoifi was not guilty in the matter of her father's death, received\ntheir old friend, who was now too great a man to act as gleeman at\ntheir feasts. His was not an estimable character. He asked innumerable\nquestions, but the friends were not inclined to be communicative. He\nhad to go on praying to his own gods, who never gave him inspirations,\nnor even made his spells work with effect.\n\nLilla's fondness for Bergliot had ripened into love. The fearless\nwarrior was married to the Princess in the hall of Aldby in the\npresence of the Queen. They lived at Hemingborough, where the buildings\nhad been enlarged and improved, and they were soon blessed with two\nsons, who were named Trondhere and Trumhere. At the same time Osric\nthe Atheling married Elfleda, the daughter of Ingeld, chief of the\nHemingas. They had a son named Oswin, destined like his father to be\nking in troublous times. From childhood a devoted friendship sprang up,\nand became stronger with years, between the Atheling Oswin and the two\nsons of Lilla. A year passed away, and there were two more marriages.\nGodric's prophecy came true. Hereric had really cherished his love for\nBraga all through his long exile. He was diffident, but when he saw\nLilla boldly seek the hand of Bergliot, he also told the story of his\nlove. The Atheling Hereric was married in the hall at Aldby to Braga,\nthe sister of Coelred and Porlor. He tried to persuade her to become\na Christian, but she clung to the worship of Nehalennia, her mother's\ndeity, and when the noble-minded Prince saw that the subject distressed\nher he desisted. They had two fair daughters, Hereswith and Hilda.\nLastly, young Godric succeeded in winning the heart of little Nanna,\nand they also were married, going to live at Markham, near the Idle,\nin the country of the Gainas. Hereric and Braga lived at Stillingfleet\nwith their brothers.\n\nAlca became the guardian and inspiring influence of the\nCoelred-_Gem\u00f3t_, which now included three wives among its members. At\nfirst, and indeed for some years, she had conversed little respecting\nthe mass of information brought to her by her friends. But after\nthe marriages she began to talk more on the subject, and asked many\nsearching questions of Porlor and the others. One summer day they were\nall in attendance upon the Queen, under that spreading ash tree at the\nfoot of Garraby Hill where she had talked to the boys so impressively\nlong, long ago. She then began to speak freely about the manifold\nwonders she had heard, and on the impressions they had made on her\nmind. \"The Son of God has indeed risen to save sinners,\" she said with\nconviction, \"as I have believed so long, and as the good man told\nyou all outside the gate of Amiens. Balder has risen, for I see much\ngoodness and true bravery coming back into the world,\" and she looked\nround at her warriors with an ineffably winning smile. \"But I cannot\nthink that Balder and Krishna were Christ, as the learned Guru told\nyou, though I believe there was some truth in what he said. All that\nleads to good actions, from belief in the beautiful story of Balder, in\nthe traditions about Krishna, or in the worship of Nehalennia, my sweet\nBraga, is of Christ, but it is not Christ. It is of Christ, because our\nHereric tells us that Christ is all love and truth. By these sacred\nstories, in all languages, the peoples of the world, when they follow\nwhat is good and true in them, are led to the Son of God, and are\nprepared to receive him. I think that all this is working, but very\nslowly, and that some day, when God wills it, all people will worship\nChrist. We cannot hasten this event, at least not much; but we can\nfollow resolutely and humbly all that is good and true and beautiful\nin our own religious tales, which is following Christ, and some day we\nor our children will be called to enter into the full light.\" They all\nlistened breathlessly, but did not speak.\n\nAlca next turned to other subjects, and spoke, among many things that\nshe touched upon, of the journey of the Pandus to reach Heaven. She\nreverted to this legend some days afterwards, and told them to keep\nthe names of Draupadi and Suparaka always sacred in their _Gem\u00f3t_.\n\"The one is an emblem of the experience of all of us. We strive for\nhigher things, but are borne down by our besetting sin. The other is\na lesson how the humblest may find grace.\" Porlor asked her what the\nGuru intended to convey when he said that Suparaka was Yama. \"Yama,\nor Adam,\" she said, \"was the first man, and represents humanity. I\nthink he intended you to understand that the faithful dog, like human\nbeings, had a soul to be saved.\" That day she ended the conversation by\nexpressing thanks to the Guru. \"He told you many beautiful tales,\" she\nsaid. \"Always remember his kindly gift to me, and let 'Bdellium' be the\nwatchword of your _Gem\u00f3t_.\"\n\nOn another day she pleased Lilla by telling him how fond she was\nof the story of the Sim\u00f9rg. \"We yearn for knowledge beyond our own\nexperience, yet we can know little of what happened before our birth,\nand nothing of what will befall after our death. That there should\nbe a being, coeval with the world, who has seen and knows all that\never happened, and who imparts her wisdom for the good of man, is a\nbeautiful conception. This too is a seeking for the Son of God, and\nmust work for good.\" Many other conversations of the same kind were\nheld at Aldby, sometimes in the hall, at others under the shade of\ntrees; and though at first absorbed in listening to the Queen, the\nfriends gradually began to take more part, making suggestions and\nasking questions. All remembered these meetings to the last day of\ntheir lives. The happiness seemed too great to continue. On one of the\nlast evenings Coelred and Porlor asked the Queen whether she received\ntheir cloud message. \"Yes,\" she said simply. \"I heard the words in my\nsleep, and I think it must have been on the same day. They were--'We\nare well. We have never forgotten. We will return.'\" They started with\nastonishment and awe, for they had not told her. \"There are many things\nthat we can never understand here,\" she went on; \"but we shall know\nhereafter.\" Then came the far-away look they knew so well. She rose to\nretire, saying, \"For me it will not be long.\"\n\nThey went home with some forebodings. Not long afterwards, towards\nthe end of the year 612 A.D., the Queen gave birth to a daughter, who\nwas named Ebba. In the following spring she was taken ill, and soon\nher attendants began to despair of her life. She said that she was\ndying, and sent for her friends. All her warriors were called into the\npresence. \"When I die,\" she said to them, \"Ethelfrith will be false to\nhis promise. He will be under no restraint. All his evil passions will\nbreak loose. He will try to exterminate the house of Deira. Swear to\nserve Edwin and to make him King.\" They all swore. \"That is good,\" she\nsaid. \"When I die, go to him with the Athelings. I think you will find\nhim in Mercia; perhaps at Repton. Tell him I loved him to the end. Tell\nhim that you are my dearest friends, and that you will be his servants\nuntil death. Farewell, my more than brothers.\" They bowed their heads\nin grief, and left the room silently.\n\nOn the next day Alca was sinking fast. At the last there were present\nwith her Lilla, Coelred, Porlor, Hereric, Bergliot, Braga, and Nanna.\nThey watched her pale but beautiful face while she slept. At noon she\nawoke and smiled. She looked at them all, and then her gaze rested\non the Atheling. She said in a scarcely audible voice, but quite\nclearly--\"My sweet cousin Hereric, let me be received into the fold\nof Christ.\" He quickly performed the rite of baptism. Soon after he\nfinished she passed away. Her face was indescribably lovely in death.\nA veil must be passed over the intense grief of the mourners. If\nimmediate action had not been necessary, they could not have borne it.\nAlca slept the last sleep at Aldby by the side of her father, Ella the\nKing.\n\nEthelfrith arrived two days afterwards, like a wild man as he was,\nall restraint cast aside. He roughly snatched little Oswald out of the\narms of Bergliot, and sent all his sons to Bambrough. But he did not\nask for Ebba, and Bergliot took the Princess with her to Hemingborough.\nEthelfrith then swore that he would exterminate the royal house of\nDeira. \"If Edwin is King,\" he shouted, \"a dead man shall soon be King.\"\nOsric and his little son Oswin were concealed by Saebald near the crags\nabove Nehalennia's ford. Hereric was in greater danger. As the eldest\nscion of the house of Deira, the usurper thirsted for his blood. He was\nat York. Coelred and Porlor, with Godric, who was their guest, remained\nfor some days on their guard at Stillingfleet; Lilla and Bassus were in\nthe same attitude at Hemingborough; Forthere and Sivel at Ulfskelf. One\nevening Hereric galloped into the court at Stillingfleet, accompanied\nby a single servant, his faithful Ingebrand. He said that an attempt\nhad been made to seize him, and that he and Ingebrand had fought their\nway through his assailants. But he believed he was followed. He was\nbleeding from a slight flesh-wound. He had determined to take refuge\nfor a time in Elmet. His friends tried in vain to dissuade him. Taking\na tender farewell of Braga and his two little daughters, he continued\nhis flight with a strong escort of Stillingas led by Tanwin. But\nhe dismissed it at the Roman road. Coelred had the rest of his men\nunder arms. Next day a large body of Bernicians rode up to the gate,\nand demanded, in the name of King Ethelfrith, that Hereric should be\nsurrendered. On receiving a defiant refusal, they assaulted the hedge.\nA fierce combat ensued, and the superior number of the Bernicians was\nbeginning to tell, when they were suddenly attacked in rear. They broke\nand fled, closely followed by the Stillingas, who did execution upon\nthem as far as Moreby. This diversion was caused by the return of the\nescort under Tanwin.\n\nNext day there was a consultation with Lilla and Bassus. It was\ndecided that the wishes of Alca should be carried out to the letter.\nThey must seek for Edwin at Repton. There was no reason to fear for\ntheir loved ones. The Angles, even Ethelfrith, did not make war upon\nwomen. The brothers opened the \"_uvaru_\" by Shuprak's grave and\nprovided themselves with treasure. Bidding farewell to sisters and\nwives, full of high hopes and noble aspirations, Coelred, Porlor,\nLilla, Bassus, and Godric crossed the Ouse and fared southwards into\nMercia, well armed and mounted. They sent a messenger to Forthere and\nSivel, arranging to wait for them at Godric's home near the river Idle,\nin the country of the Gainas.\n\nHereric and his escort had crossed the Ouse, by swimming at slack\ntide below the junction with the Wharfe. At the Roman road he dismissed\nthe Stillingas, telling Tanwin that he would be wanted soon to defend\nhis master's home. The Atheling and his servant then rode westward to\nthe banks of the little river Cock, a tributary of the Wharfe, which\nthey crossed by a bridge, consisting of a semicircular arch, a little\nabove Tadcaster. Beyond, at a short distance from its left bank,\nthere was a range of wooded heights where the territory of Certicus\nof Elmet commenced. The range was a high bank rather than a line of\nhills, and the two fugitives made their way up it, and rode over some\nlevel country until they came to another bank covered with ferns and a\ngreat variety of wild flowers. The winding little Cock beck was again\nat their feet. Here the Atheling resolved to pass the night, and his\nservant made a hut of boughs for him. The place was afterwards called\nBeck-heigh (Becca)--\"the hill by the stream.\" Next morning Hereric\nsent Ingebrand, who knew the language of the Britons, with a message\nto the King of Elmet at Barwick, which was about a mile distant. The\nAtheling announced his arrival, requesting protection and hospitality.\nThe answer was a cordial welcome, and when Hereric reached Barwick,\nhe found Certicus waiting to receive him with a crowd of natives. His\npalace was a large circular hut raised on a platform of earth, and\nthe town consisted of a number of smaller huts scattered over the\nvalley. One of these near the King's residence was assigned to Hereric.\nCerticus was a little man with a scanty white beard, brown complexion,\nand small black eyes, which generally had a cunning, and sometimes a\nmalignant, expression, in spite of his efforts to appear frank and\naffable to his guest. Hereric regretted that he had not remained at\nStillingfleet. He had insisted on the course he had taken, lest his\npresence should bring trouble on his friends, and their efforts to\ndissuade him had been in vain. He now determined, on the first excuse,\nto take leave of Certicus and fare southwards in fulfilment of the wish\nof Alca.\n\nCerticus sent meals and horns of mead to the Atheling from his own\nhut. A few days were passed in hunting. One morning Ingebrand reported\nthat he had seen Coifi riding away before dawn. He had noticed a\nmuffled stranger near the King's residence on the previous evening.\nThis seemed very strange, almost unaccountable. Hereric remembered\nthe suspicions of the gleeman after the death of King Ella. He had\nmelancholy forebodings, without being able to assign any tangible\ncause for entertaining them. So he tried to shake them off, and went\nout hunting with Ingebrand and a few natives of Elmet to attend him.\nReturning tired and thirsty to his hut late in the evening, some\nservants soon brought the usual meal and the cup of mead. The mead had\na curious taste, and soon the Prince was seized with violent pains.\n\"Ingebrand,\" he said, \"my faithful friend, the treacherous Briton has\npoisoned me at the instigation of Ethelfrith. The Priest of Woden, the\nplausible Coifi, was not here for nothing.\" Ingebrand was devoted to\nhis master, but, surrounded by enemies, he knew not what to do. There\nwas a period of insensibility, followed by convulsions. Hereric spoke\nwith difficulty. \"Tell Braga,\" he said, \"that I entreat her to be\nbaptized with my children. Take my message of love to my dear friends.\nTell them to remember the words of Alca, and to be loyal warriors of\nKing Edwin.\" These were his last words. He died in the night. Next day\nthe body was hastily buried, and Ingebrand was kept a close prisoner\nin the hut. But he effected his escape during the night, and reached\nUlfskelf.\n\nHereric had been foully murdered, and in two days Ethelfrith was\nopenly glorying over the crime. Forthere was nearly mad with rage. He\nvowed that his avenging hand should rid the earth of both Certicus and\nEthelfrith. But he could not bring himself to believe in the guilt of\nCoifi. Forthere and Sivel assembled all their followers and plunged\ninto the wilds of Elmet, killing and destroying. They fought their way\nto Barwick, whence old Certicus had fled. Here they raised a small\ntumulus over the remains of the beloved Prince, and pressed onwards in\npursuit of the murderer. At last Forthere overtook him, resting after\na long journey, with a small escort. The old wretch then received his\ndeserts. His skull was cleft by the avenger. The two loyal subjects of\nEdwin then led back their followers to Ulfskelf, bade them farewell,\nand fared southwards to join their friends at the home of Godric,\ntaking Ingebrand with them. The peerless Atheling was partly avenged.\nNext it would be the turn of Ethelfrith to meet the avenger of blood.\n\nCoelred and his friends had scarcely crossed the Ouse when the wild\nKing arrived at Stillingfleet with an overwhelming force, and searched\nboth the court and the various buildings for the Deiran Athelings.\nEdwin was beyond his reach, but he thirsted for the blood of the other\nthree--Hereric, Osric, and Oswin. He then proceeded to Hemingborough\nand made a similar search in person, returning to York to receive news\nfrom Certicus, with whom he had long had a secret understanding, that\nHereric was in his power. None of the ladies were ill treated, and\nthough Ethelfrith saw his own daughter Ebba in the arms of Bergliot, he\ntook no notice of her.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER IV\n\n    EDWIN\n\n\nIn the depths of the forests of the upper Trent valley there was a\nwide clearing, and, near the river-bank, on a rising ground sloping\ngently inland but abruptly towards the bank, there was an extensive\nrange of buildings erected round a large court, and surrounded by a\nquickset hedge. This was Repton, the royal seat of Kearl the son of\nKinemund, King of the Mercians. Large bodies of men and many tethered\nhorses were at the foot of the slope. Under the hedge, a few paces from\nthe gate, sat a handsome young man about twenty-eight years of age,\nwith his weapons thrown down on the grass beside him. It was evidently\na time of listlessness and peace. He was playing with two little\nboys. He was making them go through their _idrottir_, or exercises.\n\"Now, Eadfrid,\" said the young man, \"stand up by the side of thy tall\nbrother Offrid.\" The little lads stood like small sentries. \"Mark your\ndistance, and pick up your clubs.\" This manoeuvre was also successfully\nperformed. \"Offrid, whirl thy club; Eadfrid, raise thine over thy\nhead and lower slowly.\" The boys went to work, looking delighted.\nAfter a time they began playing at ball, while their father looked on,\nencouraging them and laughing. Meanwhile there was a stir among the\nmen at the foot of the hill, and presently seven warriors, splendidly\naccoutred, walked up towards the gate, which startled the boys at their\nplay. The young man rose, and, to his astonishment, the strangers knelt\ndown and saluted him as their King. He told them to rise and explain\nwhence they came and who they were. Coelred, Porlor, Lilla, Bassus,\nForthere, Sivel, and Godric stood before Edwin, the son of Ella. They\ngave him the message from his sister Alca, and said that they would\nfight by his side until he was restored to his throne, and serve him\nuntil death, for his own and his sister's sake. Edwin was a tall man,\nlike his father and his uncle Elfric, beautifully proportioned, with\nfair curling hair, and earnest eyes, which betokened habits of thought\nand reflection, unusual in that age. He received his loyal friends\ncordially, but without any strong demonstrations, introduced them to\nthe Mercian King, and saw to their comfort.\n\nAt the first opportunity, Coelred explained the state of affairs in\ngreater detail, and Edwin said it was right that he should put his\nposition fully before his supporters. \"You have doubtless heard,\"\nhe began, \"that I was carried off by old Brand when the Bernicians\nconquered my country. He took me to the land of Gwynedd, and found\nshelter and a home for me near the abode of a good old British priest\nnamed Urien, whose son was my playmate. The grand old warrior watched\nover my helpless childhood and my youth. But at last he began to\nfail and died. To him I owe my life and all the good that is in me.\"\nCoelred pointed to Forthere and said, \"There stands the son of Brand of\nUlfskelf.\" Edwin at once went up to Forthere, embraced him, and took\nboth his hands, pressing them affectionately. \"As my father was to\nthee,\" said Forthere, \"so will I be until death parts us.\"\n\nEdwin proceeded with his narrative. \"When I grew to be a boy, I\nremembered the stories of old Brand, and longed to be again among the\nEnglish. So I bade farewell to Urien, and to my playmate Rhunn, his\nson, who was also intended to be a priest, and went to seek my fortune.\nThey never tried to convert me to their religion--the British priests\nnever do--and I worship the gods of my fathers. I will not weary you\nwith the story of my wanderings and adventures. At last I sought\nprotection from the King of Mercia. He received me, and treated me as\na brother. I have fought for him in all his wars, and he gave me his\nsister Quenberga for my wife. She died, leaving me two little sons. I\nam now dependent on the will of my brother-in-law; my horse, even my\narms, are not my own. I cannot even entertain my friends. How then can\nI hope to recover my kingdom?\" \"We have considered all these things,\"\nsaid Coelred. \"We have not come empty-handed to be a burden to you.\nWe have enough to equip a bodyguard of a hundred men, well armed and\nmounted, with which our King may fight his way from one end of England\nto the other, and appear as a worthy son of Ella.\" Edwin went round and\npressed the hand of each. \"How can I express my thanks?\" he said. \"By\nusing our services as you see best,\" they all replied. \"But the time is\nnot yet ripe for the recovery of Deira.\"\n\nA few days afterwards Edwin called his followers together. \"My\nbrother-in-law, King Kearl of Mercia,\" he said, \"has granted license\nto me to take a hundred men into my service. There are tidings from\nWessex that the Britons are gathering together a great army to\noverwhelm the sons of Cerdic. Let us offer them our swords and fight\nfor them, while the course of events in Deira ripens for action.\" The\nproposal was received with acclamation. \"There is one thing only that\ntroubles me, the care of my little sons. I dare not leave them here,\"\nhe continued, \"for if anything happened to Kearl, and his cousin, the\nsavage and brutal Penda, succeeded, they would be as lambs in the jaws\nof a wolf.\" Godric then spoke. \"My King,\" he said, \"although I am a\nman of the Gainas, I am married in Deira, and came with my friends to\nswear obedience to Edwin. I must return to my home, there to prepare\nthe way for your march northwards at the appointed time. Entrust your\nsons to my care. I will guard them with my life. My place is strong, my\nfollowers are true. There will be no suspicion of their identity. They\nwill be safe.\"\n\nThere were several weeks of preparation. Edwin bade a tender farewell\nto his little boys, who rode away with Godric. Soon afterwards he\ntook leave of his brother-in-law, and fared southwards with his six\npaladins, followed by a hundred well-armed Mercian warriors.\n\nThe Gewissae had acquired their still disputed territory after a long\nand obstinate struggle with the Britons. When Cerdic and his son Cynric\nlanded in 495 they had to fight on the first day. In 508 there was a\ngreat battle, in which the British king Natan-leod was slain with 5000\nmen. Cerdic did not assume the position of King of Wessex until 519; he\nfought another battle in 527, and conquered the Isle of Wight in 530.\nDying in 534, Cerdic was succeeded by his son Cynric, who fought two\ndesperate battles with the Britons at Old Sarum and at Banbury, before\nhe also died in 560. His two sons Ceawlin and Cutha continued the\nstruggle with great vigour. In 571 Cutha fought the Britons at Bedford,\nand captured the four British towns of Lenbury, Aylesbury, Benson, and\nEynsham. Advancing westward, Ceawlin took the towns of Gloucester,\nCirencester, and Bath, and in a great battle killed three British kings\nnamed Comail, Candidan, and Farinmeail at Derham. He fought another\nbattle at Frethern, taking many towns and vast spoils, but on this\noccasion his brother Cutha was slain. Ceawlin was deposed and put to\ndeath in 593, and his successor Ceolwulf had to fight incessantly, that\nthe Gewissae might hold their own. In 611 Ceolwulf was succeeded by his\nnephew Kingils, or Cynegils, who, during his long reign of thirty-one\nyears, did much to consolidate and extend the realm of Wessex. He\nwas a grandson of Cutha, the brother of Ceawlin, who were grandsons\nof Cerdic. In some way Cynegils had his faithless and truculent son\nCuichelm associated with him in the government, and in 614 the two\nleaders were collecting all their forces to the north of the Thames, to\nrepel a great invasion of the Britons.\n\nEdwin, with his small but effective reinforcement, was received\nwith great joy by Cynegils. Under the advice of Lilla and Bassus, the\nlittle force was formed into scouting parties, which were of immense\nuse in keeping Cynegils well informed respecting the movements and\nposition of the enemy. The two armies gradually approached each other\nat a place called Bampton. A council was held, and Edwin advised, at\nthe suggestion of Bassus, that Cuichelm, who held a separate command,\nshould be detached round some woods and swampy ground to make a\ndiversion, while the Kings attacked the hostile army in front. Cuichelm\nwhispered with his principal thegn, a fierce and savage-looking man\nnamed Eumer, and then spoke against the adoption of Edwin's advice.\nAfter a few more remarks from other thegns, he refused to move. His\nforce was encamped on a rising ground apart from the main army. \"At\nleast,\" said Cynegils, \"I shall expect you to support me as soon as\nthe battle begins.\" \"Let your new friends support you,\" said Cuichelm\nbrutally, and both he and Eumer scowled sullenly at the strangers.\nEumer was heard to say, \"Let us see if these new friends of Cynegils\ncan win the fight without us. We will not help them.\" The Britons\nwere advancing rapidly, and a few hours afterwards Cynegils led\nhis army to the attack. The fight was long and obstinate. Without\nthe aid of Cuichelm's force the Britons had a great superiority in\nnumbers. Cynegils and Edwin were hard pressed. At one time their men\nbegan to give way, but they were gallantly rallied by the paladins\nand some of the Wessex thegns, and fought on with renewed vigour.\nMessage after message was sent to Cuichelm for help, but he would\nnot move. At length, towards sunset, the Britons began to retreat,\nbut it was not until their retreat had been converted into a rout\nthat the recreants led their men down and began the pursuit. It was a\ndesperately-contested battle, and the Britons left 265 men dead on the\nfield. Ethelwerd gives the number of slain at 2040. Edwin, Forthere,\nand Bassus were wounded, the latter severely. Old Ingebrand, who had\nattached himself to Forthere since the death of Hereric, fell fighting\nby his side.\n\nNext day Cuichelm and Eumer came to Cynegils to give an account of\nthe success of their pursuit. Edwin was present, and before all the\nthegns declared them to be niddring and unworthy companions. The King\nof Deira was then assisted into his camping hut, while Cuichelm and\nEumer cast looks of malignant hatred at the warrior they had treated\nso shamefully. The wounds healed under nature's treatment, and the\npatients were nearly in a state to resume work, when the King of Wessex\npaid a visit to his guest. He seemed ashamed and deeply moved. Thanking\nEdwin and his friends warmly for their most efficient aid, he entreated\nthem to leave the country. \"There is a plot against your life,\" he\nsaid, \"and at this moment I cannot promise either to ensure your safety\nor to be able effectually to punish the guilty. If anything evil befell\nmy guests while they were within my jurisdiction, I could not survive\nthe shame.\"\n\nImmediate departure could be the only answer to this appeal. Edwin,\nwith his friends, fared northwards, wanderers and homeless. The\ntreasure that Coelred brought with him was nearly spent, and it was\nnecessary to pay and dismiss the Mercian bodyguard. After a long\nconsultation, Edwin resolved to seek protection from Redwald, the King\nof East Anglia.\n\nThe kingdom of East Anglia had been founded in about 495 A.D. by Uffa,\na leader of the English, and closely allied to the Deirans, whose\ndescendants were known as Uffingas. Redwald, who was a grandson of\nUffa, had succeeded in 593. His dominions extended over the territory\nincluded in the counties of Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, and the\nsouth part of Lincolnshire. Redwald was a sovereign of considerable\ncapacity. He enjoyed great influence, and after the death of Ethelbert\nof Kent in 616 he was acknowledged as Bretwalda. Redwald received Edwin\nand his friends with hospitality. They found him at a fortified grange\nor country house near Sleaford, not far from the northern frontier of\nhis dominions; and here they continued to reside, sending messages to\nGodric, who assured Edwin that his boys were well, and that the Gainas\nand Lindisfarnas were being persuaded to join him, when he should\nadvance northwards.\n\nIt was not long before the presence of Edwin and the great Deiran\nthegns at the court of Redwald reached the ears of Ethelfrith the Wild.\nHe immediately sent messengers offering the East Anglian King a large\nsum of money if he would murder Edwin. Redwald indignantly refused.\nSoon afterwards a second embassy arrived with the same result. Then\ncame a third embassy offering the choice of compliance or war. Redwald\nhesitated. Ethelfrith had the reputation of being the ablest as well as\nthe most ruthless leader among the English, and he was very powerful.\nThe King of East Anglia was fond of \"hedging.\" In after years he had\na chapel containing an altar to Christ and another to Woden, and he\nworshipped at both. He promised to deliver Edwin up to Ethelfrith's\nenvoy or else to make away with him. The interview was secret and at\nnight, but Coelred and Porlor had the eyes of lynxes in the service\nof their master. Among the Bernician envoys they noticed one who was\nevidently disguised and ill at ease. They suspected him of being Coifi.\nAs the envoys went from Redwald's presence to their lodging, the two\nbrothers seized the man they suspected, hurried him under a clump of\ntrees, and whispered \"Coifi!\" He trembled. \"Coifi! we know you. If a\nhair of our King's head is harmed, we have sworn to kill you. Tell us\neverything, or this is your last hour.\" The wretch confessed all.\n\nCoelred went at once to Edwin's chamber, where he was going to\nbed, and told him what was designed by his host. \"If you see fit,\"\nhe said, \"we will at once take you out of this place, fighting our\nway if necessary, and conduct you to Godric's home, where the Gainas\nare friendly, and where you will be safe for the time.\" But Edwin had\nlost heart, and for the moment he was overwhelmed by his calamities.\n\"I thank you for your good will,\" he replied, \"yet I cannot do what\nyou propose. If I must die, let it rather be by Redwald's hand than\nby that of any meaner person.\" Coelred retired, in great sadness, to\nseek his brother, while Edwin dressed and sat against the outer wall of\nthe palace. He was overwhelmed by many thoughts, not knowing what to\ndo, or which way to turn. When he had been there a long time, brooding\nover his misfortunes in anguish of mind, he saw a person approaching\nin the dead of night. The stranger, coming closer, saluted him, and\nasked him \"why he sat there alone and melancholy on a stone, at that\ntime of night, when every one else was in bed and fast asleep?\" Edwin\nin his turn asked, \"What is it to thee whether I spend the night within\ndoors or abroad?\" The stranger in reply said, \"Do not think that I am\nignorant of the cause of your grief, your watching, and sitting alone\nwithout. For I know who you are and why you grieve, and the evils which\nyou fear will befall you. But tell me what reward you will give the\nman that shall deliver you out of this anguish, and persuade Redwald\nneither to do you any harm himself nor to deliver you to be murdered by\nyour enemies.\" Edwin replied, \"I will give that person all that I am\nable, for so singular a favour.\" The stranger added, \"What if I also\nassure you that you shall overcome your enemies and surpass in power\nnot only all your progenitors, but even all that have reigned before\nyou over the English nation?\" Edwin did not hesitate to promise that\nhe would make a suitable return to him who should so highly oblige\nhim. Then said the other, \"But if he who foretells that so much good\nis to befall you can also give you better advice for your life and\nsalvation than any of your progenitors or kindred ever heard of, do you\nconsent to submit to him, and to follow his wholesome counsel?\" Edwin\ndid not hesitate to promise that he would in all things follow the\ndirections of that man who should deliver him from so many calamities\nand raise him to a throne. The stranger then laid his hand on Edwin's\nhead, saying, \"When this sign shall be given you, remember this present\ndiscourse that has passed between us, and do not delay the performance\nof what you now promise.\" It was too dark for Edwin to make out the\nstranger's features, and he disappeared in the obscurity of the night.\n\nMeanwhile, Coelred and Porlor had not been idle. Porlor had found\nfavour with the Queen's attendants, and persuaded them to prevail\nupon her to grant him an audience, even at that late hour. He told\nher what he had discovered from Coifi, and entreated her to save her\nhusband from the shame of perpetrating such a disgraceful crime as was\ninvolved in the murder or betrayal of an honoured guest. She promised\nto do all in her power, telling Porlor to await the result without.\nSoon afterwards Redwald went to the Queen's apartment. His mind was not\nmade up, although he had wished to satisfy the envoys. His wife now put\nthe matter before him in such dark colours that there was a violent\nrevulsion of feeling. His face was crimson with shame. He left her\nswearing that not only was Edwin safe, but that he would help him to\ngain his crown. The Queen then sent for Porlor, and told him the result\nof her interview.\n\nCoelred and Porlor were overjoyed. They hurried off in search of\nEdwin, and as they came up to him, Coelred cried out, \"Arise. Go in and\ncompose yourself to sleep without fear, for the King's resolution is\naltered. He designs to do you no harm, but rather to assist you with\nhis power.\" \"Was ever man blessed with truer friends!\" cried Edwin,\nas he embraced the brothers. Next day Edwin related to Coelred his\nmidnight interview with the stranger, which Coelred repeated to the\nother friends. Forthere greeted it with a loud laugh, and said, \"I have\nseen a monk secretly prowling about, and I recognised him as one I had\nknown before at Monte Cassiano. His name is Paulinus. Redwald allowed\nhim to come, and listened to his discourses several times through an\ninterpreter, but would not permit him to appear in the daytime. The\nKing of the East Anglians wishes to keep on good terms both with Woden\nand with Christ. Hence this secrecy. The night bird has gone now,\nand will not be seen again. But mark my words. He is busy hatching a\nmiracle.\" And Forthere laughed again.\n\nThe King of the East Anglians announced his intention of defending his\nguest, and, if the gods were favourable, of restoring him to his crown.\nBut he said that Ethelfrith was a most formidable antagonist, and that\nhe would give them but little breathing-time. Redwald's fine young\nsons, Reynhere and Eorpwald, were sent to bring together fighting men\nas rapidly as possible. Messengers were despatched to Godric, for Lilla\nand Bassus felt that their hopes must rest on the result of Godric's\nwork during the last year, and on the blunders of Ethelfrith. The news\nfrom Godric was excellent. Saebald had arrived at Markham with his\nBillingas and with the Athelings, Osric and Oswin. Blecca, the great\nthegn of Lindum, promised to join with the Lindiswaras, and the Gainas\nwere stanch.\n\nThe Bernician envoys were dismissed with contumely and defiance.\nEthelfrith was furious, and committed every blunder of which an angry\nman could be guilty. He summoned the Deiran thegns to York, and acted\nso suspiciously, and with such insolence, that they refused his summons\nto join him with their men, and remained neutral, if not hostile.\nLevies came in from Bernicia, and as soon as he had what he considered\na sufficient force, the doomed King marched rapidly to the south. He\ncommitted the further blunders of despising his enemy and of taking no\ntrouble to ascertain his numbers or his plans. The wild King crossed\nthe Don and marched across the country of the Gainas, direct for\nSleaford.\n\n\"We must be satisfied with our present force, and with the aid that\nGodric will bring us, as time will not allow us to wait for further\nreinforcements,\" said Bassus, in consultation with the two Kings. \"I\nknow the wild King, and he will do everything in haste. We should\nadvance rapidly to Godric's home at Markham, near the river Idle.\nThere will the blow be struck.\" His advice was taken, and in two days\nRedwald's army was massed at Markham. Once more Edwin embraced his\nlittle boys, and saw his two cousins, Osric and Oswin, for the first\ntime. With himself, the house of Deira now consisted of five male\nscions.\n\nLilla and Bassus laid their plans with admirable skill, leaving\nnothing to chance. The village of Markham is divided from the river\nIdle by a gentle rising ground. Godric and Blecca were placed half a\nmile to the north, with the Gainas and Lindiswaras, just below the\nrise, so as to be out of sight from the river. Redwald's main army\nwas to begin to appear on the rise the moment Ethelfrith reached\nthe river-bank. This would make him hurry his men across furiously,\nand not until the last man was over was the advance to be made. The\nriver was to be just in rear of the Bernicians. Scouts kept Bassus\nexactly informed of the enemy's approach. Ethelfrith despised all such\nprecautions. Things fell out exactly as was intended. The wild King\nshouted and waved his sword when he saw the East Anglians appearing on\nthe crest of the hill. They halted, and, directly the last Bernician\nwas across, Redwald and Edwin advanced resolutely to the attack.\nGodric alone was visible on the sky-line to the north, and the excited\nEthelfrith did not notice him. A desperate hand-to-hand combat\ncommenced. Forthere was in the thick of it. He saw the Bernician King\nwith the glittering gilded boar on his helmet, shouting and calling\non his men. The Berserker rage possessed the son of Brand. Furiously\ndealing blows to right and left, he hewed his way to that gilded boar,\nand reached it just as Ethelfrith killed the brave young Reynhere\nand brutally stamped on his body. The two warriors glared at each\nother. Forthere was a much younger and stronger man. \"Niddring and\nmurderer!\" he shouted, as he beat down the wild King's guard. \"That for\nHereric, and that! and that!\" and he dealt him three tremendous blows.\nEthelfrith was on one knee, and Forthere ran him through.\n\nAt the moment when Forthere first descried the helmet with the gilded\nboar, Godric disappeared from the sky-line. By the time Forthere had\ncrossed swords with Ethelfrith, the Gainas and Lindiswaras were pouring\nover the hillside and falling furiously on the enemy's left flank.\nWhen the wild King was seen to fall, the Bernicians tried to retreat.\nThe river was in their rear, a fresh enemy on their flank. Very few\nprisoners were taken, and Ethelfrith's forces were nearly annihilated.\nNext morning Edwin bade farewell to Redwald in a speech full of\ngraceful thanks. The voice of the East Anglian King was broken with\ngrief. He said, \"I have opened the road wide for you, my friend. I must\nnow go home to bury my dead. Farewell!\"\n\nLilla urged upon Edwin that if his movements were prompt the whole of\nDeira and Bernicia could be secured as far as the Forth. Edwin fully\nconcurred. Not an hour must be wasted. He thanked Godric and Blecca\nwarmly for their effective aid, and marched northwards. At first his\nlittle force only consisted of Saebald's Billingas and some Gainas\nunder Godric. But the march was like a triumphal procession. By the\ntime he reached York the whole available force of Deira was under\nhis banner. There was scarcely a halt. Osric was left in command at\nYork to restore order, and the King marched rapidly northwards. At\nBambrough he found that one of the Bernician thegns had taken all the\nsons of Ethelfrith and fled with them into the country of the Picts.\nEdwin lamented the loss of Oswald, his sister's son. Nearly all the\nother Bernician thegns came into Bambrough and promised obedience. He\nthen advanced to the shores of the Forth, the northern frontier of his\ndominions. Here he established a settlement, and built a fortress on a\nhigh and impregnable rock. It was called Edwins-burg (Edinburgh). When\nhe returned to York, Edwin was undisputed ruler of the great united\nkingdom of Northumbria, extending from the Humber to the Forth.\n\nThe work was not yet done. But there were a few weeks of rest. Lilla\nwas able to visit his beloved Bergliot at Hemingborough, bringing the\nlittle Atheling Oswin with him, to be brought up with his own two\nsons and the Princess Ebba. Coelred strongly advised that a final end\nshould be put to the independence of Elmet, which had become a serious\nnuisance. He had been at Stillingfleet, and when he returned to the\nKing he found that Coifi was in prison. The friends determined to\nintercede for him. They remembered the gleeman of their boyhood, he\nwho had taught them the glorious song of Beowulf and all the northern\nlore, they remembered that Alca had acquitted him, and that his latest\ntreason was atoned for by full confession. At their intercession Edwin\ncontemptuously told Coifi that he was free to return to his images at\nGodmundham.\n\nA large force was organised for the final conquest of Elmet. The\nKing invited his cousin Braga to accompany him, to take part in a\nsacred duty. There was little resistance. The Britons fled in a body\ntowards Strathclyde, leaving the country to be settled by the advancing\nEnglish. At Barwick-in-Elmet the small tumulus hurriedly raised by\nForthere over the body of Hereric was found. The beloved remains were\nembalmed with the frankincense and myrrh brought from Ujjayani, and\nwrapped in the precious calico and muslin. All his companions, who had\nloved the Atheling so well, stood round the body of Hereric, with his\nwife Braga and his two little daughters. There was not a dry eye in\nthe assemblage. King Edwin then ordered that the largest and highest\ntumulus in the land should be raised above the most noble and the most\nbeloved prince of his race.\n\nThe King resolved to extend his power from sea to sea, and to include\nthe Mevanian Islands in his dominions. Scarcely any resistance was\nmade, and to Coelred was entrusted the conquest of the isles, he being\nthe ablest and most experienced seaman in Edwin's service. Coelred and\nPorlor equipped a small but efficient fleet of armed boats at Chester,\nhaving brought over a number of good sailors from the Humber. Their\nexpedition was ably conducted and was most successful. The inhabitants\nof both the islands submitted, and agreed to acknowledge King Edwin as\ntheir lord.\n\nWhen the sons of Seomel returned home, there was lasting peace\nthroughout the vast dominions of Edwin the Great. The members of the\nCoelred-_Gem\u00f3t_ formed the seven firm and solid pillars which supported\nthe edifice of his power.\n\nAt first the friends had served Edwin for his sister's sake, but they\nsoon began to love him for himself. His good qualities were not on\nthe surface. He was generous, unsuspicious, and not vindictive. His\nfriendships were not quickly formed, but they were deep and lasting. He\nnow looked upon his seven paladins as brothers. He was a man of rare\nability and sound judgment. He was slow to form a decided opinion.\nHe pondered long over what he was told, dismissing it from his mind\nand recalling it again two or three times, before he reverted to the\nsubject and announced his decision. When a resolution was once taken he\nacted promptly and vigorously. He soon became devoted to his country,\nand placed the good of his people before all earthly considerations;\nand he was endowed with rare gifts which enabled him to secure it. He\nhad common sense surely guiding him to the right course, even when the\nmaterials for forming a sound judgment were incomplete or inadequate.\nHe was far in advance of his age by reason of his genius, and not owing\nto the extraordinary accidents which raised his paladins so high above\ntheir countrymen in knowledge and experience. Such a man, with such\nmarvellous assistance, could not fail to become a great sovereign. The\nfriends had not poured their experiences into his ears at once and in\nfull detail, as they did in the case of his sister Alca. After much\nanxious consultation they had only astonished him with a bare outline\nof their stories, reserving particular points to be explained to him in\norder to illustrate discussions on measures or decisions, as the cases\narose. By this course they believed they would be most useful in the\nservice of their King.\n\nAldby, his birthplace and the beloved home of his peerless sister Alca\nthe Queen, became the favourite residence of King Edwin.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER V\n\n    BAPTISM\n\n\nEdwin, about two years after his accession, resolved to take another\nwife, and he decided upon sending an embassy to the King of Kent to\nascertain whether a proposal for a princess of his family would be\nfavourably entertained. Sivel was selected for this delicate mission,\nand he proceeded to Canterbury in 619, where he was cordially received\nby King Eadbald, and by his old master, Archbishop Laurentius. He found\nthat a number of changes had taken place in the years that had elapsed\nsince he and his friends left Kent.\n\nTwo years after the boys set out for their homes, Gregory sent a pall\nto Augustine and a reinforcement of monks, including Mellitus, Justus,\nRufinianus, and Paulinus, with vestments and ornaments for the church.\nA letter was also sent by the Holy Father to Augustine, exhorting him\nnot to glory overmuch in his miracles. They were becoming a little too\nnumerous. This was in 601, and in the following year poor old Peter,\nhaving been sent on an embassy to France, was drowned in landing at\nAmfleet (Ambleteuse). Gregory died in 605, and near the same time\nAugustine had an interview with the Welsh Bishops in Gloucestershire.\nIt was ostensibly on the subject of the correct way of calculating\nEaster, but it was really intended to force the native church into\nobedience to Rome. The overbearing Italian expected the British clergy\nto submit their judgment to his. He lost his temper, performed one of\nhis miracles, cursed the British clergy, and kept seated when they\nappeared--all which proceedings worked irretrievable mischief. In 604\nhe ordained Mellitus Bishop of London, where Ethelbert's nephew Sebert,\nKing of Essex, was willing to receive him. At the same time Justus was\nmade Bishop of Rochester. In the next year Augustine died, and was\nsucceeded as Archbishop of Canterbury by good old Laurentius. Ten years\nafterwards Ethelbert died, after a reign of nearly sixty years. Besides\nadopting Christianity, he introduced a code of laws after the Roman\nmodel, which was written in English, and confirmed by the Witena-gem\u00f3t\nof Kent.\n\nThen there was a panic among the cowardly monks. The new King Eadbald\nrefused to become a Christian, and the consequence was that the people\nreturned to the faith of their fathers. The monks declared that, as a\nsign of divine anger, he was troubled with frequent fits of madness\nand possessed of an evil spirit. Sebert of Essex also died, and was\nsucceeded by profane sons. They refused baptism, but wanted to eat the\nsacramental bread, and told Mellitus that if he would not give it to\nthem he must leave London. These events were looked upon as alarming by\nthe monks of Canterbury. They resolved to desert their posts and run\naway. Mellitus and Justus actually fled into France. Laurentius was\nabout to follow, but ventured first to try a miracle. He had not been\naccustomed to resort to such practices, like Augustine, but he seems\nto have thought that a great occasion justified the means. He went to\nEadbald, took off his shirt, and exposed some marks of recent stripes\non his back. The King was astonished, and asked who had dared to treat\nso great a man with such indignity. Laurentius gravely replied that St.\nPeter had come down from heaven and scourged him for his intention of\nleaving England. Strange to relate, King Eadbald believed the story,\nabjured the religion of his fathers, and was baptized. Henceforward he\npromoted the affairs of the Church to the utmost of his power, and the\nfugitives ventured to return.\n\nSivel gathered these particulars during his stay at Canterbury,\nregretting the proceedings of Laurentius. The King's sister was still\nvery young, indeed the dates point to her having been a grand-daughter\nof Ethelbert. The monks also induced Eadbald to say that it was not\nlawful for a Christian virgin to marry a Pagan king. He, however, gave\nSivel to understand that arrangements might be made which would remove\nthis difficulty, if there was a similar proposal when the Princess\nEthelburga was a little older. During the progress of the negotiations,\nSivel had been busily engaged in procuring a copy of Ethelbert's\nlaws, and other documents likely to be useful to King Edwin in his\nadministration. As soon as he was ready, he took a friendly leave of\nEadbald, and visited Archbishop Laurentius to bid him farewell. Sivel\nhad been grieved to hear of the miracle, and frankly said as much.\n\"The Prior used to resort to those practices,\" he said, \"but you never\ndid.\" Laurentius replied, \"My son, these matters are too high for you.\nExtreme measures are sometimes needed for the safety of God's Church.\"\nThe old man was ill at ease. He had been the instructor of Oswith and\nSivel, Coelred and Porlor on the Caelian Hill, and they loved him.\n\"Alas!\" said Sivel, \"you used to tell us that God is truth.\" Laurentius\nbowed his head in shame. Sivel said, \"My dear old master!\" and put his\nhand affectionately on the Archbishop's shoulder. \"Will you take my\nblessing?\" asked the old man. \"Thankfully,\" cried his former pupil, as\nhe threw himself on his knees. It was a sad leave-taking. A month had\nnot passed before Laurentius was no more. He was succeeded by Mellitus,\nwho suffered a good deal from the gout. It carried him off in April\n624, and Justus became Archbishop.\n\nSivel returned to York with an account of the results of his mission,\nand was occupied for the next five years in assisting and advising\nEdwin concerning administrative measures of various kinds. In 624 Edwin\nagain sent his trusted minister to Canterbury to ask for the hand of\nEthelburga. He was instructed to assure Eadbald that the Princess\nand all her attendants would have leave to follow their faith and\nto worship after the customs of Christians. He was even to hold out\nhopes that, if Edwin was convinced that Christianity was more holy and\nworthy of God than the religion of his fathers, he might embrace the\nnew belief. This time no objection was made. Eadbald promised that\nthe Princess Ethelburga should be sent to Edwin. But Sivel found that\nPaulinus, the very man who played the trick at Sleaford, which was\nexposed by Forthere, was to accompany the bride. Paulinus was ordained\na bishop by Justus before starting, on 21st July 625. He is described\nas having been a tall man with a stooping gait, black hair, a meagre\nvisage, and nose slender and aquiline. James the Deacon was also to\naccompany Ethelburga, a zealous and devoted missionary, untainted\nwith personal cowardice or timidity, and not addicted to tricks. When\nPaulinus deserted his post in the hour of danger, James remained and\nbraved the storm. By the advice of Justus, the Pope Boniface IV. wrote\na letter to King Edwin urging him to become a Christian, accompanied by\na present of a shirt with one gold ornament, and a garment of Ancyra.\nEthelburga received a silver looking-glass and a gilt ivory comb as\npapal gifts.\n\nSivel took his leave of Eadbald and rode with all speed to Aldby to\nannounce the success of his mission. It was considered right that, as\nPaulinus was coming as bishop, the King should be informed by Forthere\nof the trick that had been played upon him by that holy person at\nSleaford. Ethelburga came by sea, and was met by Coelred with a fleet\nof armed vessels to escort her up the Humber and the Ouse. The King was\nat York, where they were married, and then went to Aldby. The Kentish\nPrincess was handsome, with a serious expression, and was very silent.\nShe was surnamed \"Tate.\" She received the admonitions and orders of\nPaulinus with great humility, but at the same time she was devoted to\nher husband.\n\nAfter about a year had passed away since the marriage, the arrival\nof an embassy from Wessex was announced to Edwin. To the general\nsurprise, the envoy was no less a person than Eumer, the truculent\nthegn who, with Cuichelm, acted such a treacherous part at the battle\nof Bampton. Edwin ordered him to be treated with hospitality, and\nannounced his intention of receiving him in audience on the following\nday. He supposed that Eumer came to give some plausible explanation\nof his master's conduct, and to offer amends. The King took his seat\nin the great hall at Aldby, with his thegns on either side of him,\nunarmed except with the _seax_, or long knife, worn at the girdle on\nthe right side. Eumer was introduced, made a low obeisance, advanced\nup the hall, and came close to the King. He put his hand into his\nbreast as if to draw out something to present. Suddenly a long dagger\nwas flashing over his head and descending like lightning. But devoted\nlove is ever vigilant, and even quicker than lightning. Lilla had flung\nhimself between the King's breast and the dagger. The stroke descended\nwith tremendous force, passed right through Lilla, and slightly wounded\nEdwin. In another instant the assassin had turned and plunged his\ndagger into the body of Forthere, who was rushing forward. The vile\nwretch was then cut down, and almost hacked to pieces.\n\nLilla and Forthere were dead, the two brave and most loyal paladins.\nNever did king have truer and more faithful servants, never were\nthere more constant and unchanging friends. Bitter rage was mingled\nwith the intense grief of the Deirans, from the King downwards. Lost\nin their prime, and in an instant! Such sorrow as is felt by men who\nhave shared every hope and every joy, almost every thought, with the\nlost ones cannot be described. After the first agony was passed,\nCoelred and Porlor saw most vividly the stalwart little Oswith ready\nto wrestle with them on the green at Hemingborough, and the brave boy\nForthere sinking exhausted from running and swimming, in the court at\nStillingfleet. Then the whole array of gallant deeds and warm-hearted\nthoughts of their beloved comrades came one after the other to their\nminds and overwhelmed them with grief. Next followed a stupor, replaced\nby more sad reminiscences. The grief of Bergliot was heart-breaking,\nand Sivel could not be separated from the body of his beloved Forthere.\nGodric too had lost one who had been to him more than a brother, and\nBassus was inconsolable, and went about with a settled sternness on his\nhandsome features.\n\n[Illustration: Lilla Saves the King's Life]\n\nThey buried the fearless son of Guthlaf, the bright boy Oswith, the\nunrivalled warrior Lilla, in the old Roman fort at Hemingborough. In\nafter ages a beautiful church with a tall spire shooting up into the\nsky was raised on the spot--a fitting monument to Oswith the fearless,\nchief of the Hemingas. Sivel and Godric found a last resting-place\nfor the body of their beloved Forthere in the tumulus of Vidfinn at\nBilbrough.\n\nOn the same day, it was Easter Sunday, the Queen gave birth to a\ndaughter, who was named Eanflaed. Edwin consented that she should be\nbaptized at Whitsuntide. Twelve women and children of the Deiran family\nwere baptized at the same time. Braga had long felt remorse that she\nhad not complied with the wishes of her beloved Hereric. She joyfully\nreceived the rite with her two daughters Hereswith and Hilda. It also\ngave Bergliot some consolation to be baptized with her two little sons.\nThe wife of Osric came to the font with the young Atheling Oswin, and\nNanna with the son and heir, named Edwin, she had borne to Godric. By\nthe desire of Godric, Nanna was christened by the name of Mary, to\nwhich her husband added the word \"Audr,\" to denote her rare gifts. The\nwife and child of a son of old Saebald made up the twelve.\n\n\"Now for vengeance!\" said Bassus, with a stern inexorable look, as he\nstood before the King. \"Now for justice,\" said Edwin, looking equally\nfull of righteous anger. A carefully-selected force was assembled, well\narmed and supplied by the care of Coelred and Porlor, Sivel and Godric.\nIt was in four divisions, one commanded by each of the paladins, while\nBassus attended the King's person. Rapid marches were made across\nMercia, where every assistance was offered, and when the Northumbrians\ncrossed the Wessex frontier they began to devastate, destroying\nbuildings and crops, and beating down all resistance. They had nearly\nreached Sarum when a messenger arrived from Cynegils entreating an\ninterview. Soon the King of Wessex arrived. He solemnly swore that\nhe was innocent. He declared that if Cuichelm had not escaped and\nconcealed himself, he should have been given up. He assured Edwin that\nhe had arrested at least thirty of Cuichelm's thegns and advisers.\nThey were handed over to Bassus and hanged before the sun went down.\nHe paid the full amount of \"were-gild\" for the murdered thegns. What\nmore was desired of him? Edwin was appeased. He believed Cynegils to be\ninnocent. The King of Wessex then fully acknowledged the overlordship\nof Edwin, who returned to York the most powerful sovereign that ever\nreigned over Britain. He had been Bretwalda since the death of Redwald\nin 624 over all the other English kingdoms except Kent.\n\nEdwin had long been pondering deeply over the religion of his people,\nand the question of introducing Christianity. Personally he had ceased\nto believe in the gods of his ancestors. He also felt that the old\nreligion was fast losing its hold on the people, while some abiding\nfaith was necessary for their happiness and well-being. He conceived\nthat the belief in Woden and the Asyniars had suffered a severe wrench\nwhen it was transplanted from its native land to a new country. It was\nlike an uprooted tree that had been replanted and failed to thrive.\nIt was fast withering. So he turned to Christianity. Since the death\nof Hereric, Porlor was the friend who was most competent to explain\nits tenets, which he did to the best of his abilities. He advised the\nbaptism of Edwin and the active propagation of the new religion on very\nmuch the same grounds that had recommended such a measure to the King.\nPorlor concluded one long conversation by saying, \"Alca, thy sister,\nwas the wisest being this world will ever see. She also pondered over\nthis question--this solemn question--for years. Her last words were,\n'Hereric, my sweet cousin, bring me into the fold of Christ.'\" Edwin\nwas deeply moved, but he only said, \"My own mind is made up. But I\nthink of my people, not of myself.\"\n\nOne day he was meditating deeply, after Porlor had left him, when\nPaulinus entered and came towards him with an air of mystery. He\nput his right hand on the King's head and said, in a solemn voice,\n\"Dost thou know that sign?\" The effect was very different from what\nhe anticipated. Edwin sprang to his feet with a look of scorn and\ncontempt, and waved him away. He said, \"Here you will always be treated\nwith hospitality and respect as a servant of the Queen. But when I\nam baptized, it shall be by an honest man, not by a trickster. Go!\"\nPaulinus slunk off, seeing that his miracle had failed to work.\n\nEdwin resolved to assemble the Witan, and to submit the question to\nthe great and wise men of the kingdom. The assembly met in the large\nhall of the Aldwark at York. Coelred was selected to explain to them\nthe tenets of the Christian faith, which he did as nearly as he could\nin the words of the beloved Hereric when he addressed Ethelbert and his\nnobles at Thanet. Edwin then asked the notables what they thought of\nthe new religion. Coifi had the assurance to speak first. He said that\nthe old belief had no virtue in it, for that no one had more diligently\napplied himself to the worship of the gods than he had, but they\nneither inspired him nor would they make his spells work. \"Many are\nmore preferred than I, yet, if the gods were good for anything, they\nwould rather favour me, who have been more careful to serve them. Let\nus receive the new religion without any delay.\"\n\nThen Saebald, chief of the Billingas, now a very old man, rose and\naddressed Edwin. He said, \"The present life of man, O King, seems to\nme, in comparison with that which is unknown to us, like to the swift\nflight of a sparrow through the room wherein you sit at supper in\nwinter, with your commanders and ministers, and a good fire in the\nmidst, whilst the storms of rain and snow prevail abroad. The sparrow,\nI say, flying in at one door and immediately out at another, whilst\nhe is within is safe from the wintry storm; but after a short space\nof fair weather, he immediately vanishes out of your sight, into the\ndark winter from which he had emerged. So this life of man appears for\na short space, but of what went before, or what is to follow, we are\nutterly ignorant. If, therefore, this new doctrine contains something\nmore certain, it seems justly to deserve to be followed.\" The other\nthegns and councillors spoke, generally to the same effect. Osric,\nhowever, manfully maintained that the people should not abandon the\nreligion of their ancestors.\n\nCoifi again stood up and advised that the temples and altars they\nhad consecrated without reaping any benefit from them should be set\non fire. \"I, who worshipped through ignorance, will first profane\nthe temples, as an example to others, with the King's permission.\"\nEdwin contemptuously, and perhaps thoughtlessly, gave permission,\nfor the buffoonery of the recreant priest would cause pain to many\nconscientious men. Then Coifi mounted a stallion and set out to\ndestroy the idols. The people thought he was distracted. As soon as he\nreached the sacred enclosure at Godmundham, he profaned it by hurling\na spear into it, and then ordered the venerable images and altars to\nbe destroyed. Coifi was a bad priest of Woden, and was not likely to\nbe a good Christian. He had no faith. His name appears to be Celtic,\nand as the priesthood was, as a rule, looked upon as hereditary, it\nis probable that he was some stray lad who had been adopted by the\n\"Godi\" or priest. His guardian, seeing his natural talent as a gleeman,\nallowed him to pass the first half of his life in that capacity, and\nEthelric, for some secret service, promoted him to the priesthood. His\nfinal performance in a priestly capacity was that of a buffoon. He was\nequally dissatisfied with his new religion, and died a year afterwards.\n\nOsric was much incensed at the desecration of the venerable images\nwhich had been brought by his ancestors from the Continent when they\nfirst settled in England. Coelred and Porlor also thought that the\nconduct of Coifi was contemptible, and that the things highly valued by\ntheir fathers, if their use had ceased, should have been put away with\nbecoming reverence.\n\nKing Edwin, with the full consent of the Witan, had now determined\nto undergo the rite of baptism. He began to build a timber structure\nnear the north-eastern angle of the walls of York, which was to serve\nas a baptistery. When it was nearly completed he sent for Sivel, and\nentrusted him with a mission. \"You remember,\" said the King, \"the\nstory of my early life, how I was befriended in Gwynedd by a Christian\npriest named Urien, and that his son was my playmate. This son was to\nbe brought up for the priesthood. They were true and honest people.\nMy Sivel, I want my playmate to come here and to baptize me.\" He then\nexplained some topographical details bearing on Urien's country. \"It is\na difficult, perhaps a dangerous, mission, but I entrust it to you in\nfull confidence that it will succeed in your hands. I and my friends\nshall be baptized by an honest man, not by a trickster.\"\n\nSivel set out alone. His quiet manner, his coolness, and his great\nexperience made him a most skilful diplomatist. He easily made his way\nto Gwynedd and found his man, the British priest Rhunn ap Urien, who\nreadily consented to return with him. Two months had not elapsed before\nKing Edwin greeted the simple British priest who had once been his\nplaymate, and lodged him comfortably in the Aldwark. On Easter Sunday\nof the year 627 King Edwin was baptized, in the wooden baptistery at\nYork, by the British priest Rhunn ap Urien; and with the King his two\nsons, most of his thegns, and a vast number of common people also\nreceived baptism. But Osric the Atheling refused the rite. The baptism\nwas an epoch in the life and reign of Edwin the Great.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER VI\n\n    THE GREAT BRETWALDA\n\n\nEdwin had achieved the most excellent and most difficult work that\ncould have been undertaken in that age. He had established profound\npeace which continued until his death. His sons Offrid and Eadfrid\nhad grown to be fine young men. The former was married and had a son\ncalled Iffi, after the King's grandfather. Ethelburga had borne Edwin\nfour children--Eanflaed, born on the fatal day of the assassinations;\nEthelhun and Etheldrith, who died in infancy; and a son named Wuscfrea,\nafter the King's great-grandfather. The five paladins were constantly\nin attendance on Edwin, ready with their services and advice; including\nGodric, whose sons were old enough to manage his affairs in the country\nof the Gainas, with the help of his man Wiglaf. Mary Audr (Nanna)\nlived with her sister Braga at Stillingfleet, to be near her husband.\nBergliot, with her two sons and the royal children Oswin and Ebba,\nwas at Hemingborough, for the wife of Osric was dead, and he too was\ngenerally with the King.\n\nThe most important matter requiring statesmanlike treatment was the\nchange of religion. The baptism of the King had led to a strong and\ngeneral tendency among the people in the same direction, but Edwin was\ndetermined that no constraint should be used. The choice was to be\nabsolutely free. Rhunn ap Urien remained, baptizing all classes, and\nby his preaching many believed on Christ. James the Deacon was a most\nzealous missionary, and visited all parts of the country, explaining\nthe precepts of Christianity, catechising and baptizing. He was the\nman whom Edwin would have preferred as bishop. But he found that the\ndismissal of Paulinus would be painful to Ethelburga. He therefore\nsent for the Roman monk, who was certainly a zealous preacher and a\nman of ability. The interview took place in the same chamber where he\nhad failed to dupe the King. Edwin said to Paulinus, \"Do your work\nzealously as the bishop of my church. Preach and baptize. Attend to\nthe spiritual needs of my household and of that of the Queen. But\nremember! there must be no miracles. In this country men are too shrewd\nto be treated with such stimulants.\" Paulinus replied in a becoming\nmanner, and henceforward confined himself to legitimate work; and Pope\nHonorius sent him the pall. The Bishop of York preached and baptized in\nBernicia and in Deira, and in the parts of Lindsey, where he converted\nBlecca, thegn of the Lindiswaras, and all his family. A man named\nDeda informed the Venerable Bede that a very old man had told him how\nhe, with a great number of people, was baptized in the river Trent by\nPaulinus, near Southwell. Deda's informant even described the personal\nappearance of the Roman Bishop. Edwin himself persuaded Eorpwald, who\nhad succeeded Redwald as King of East Anglia, to embrace Christianity\nwith all his people. There had been a close friendship between them\nsince the battle on the Idle. There was, however, a revolt of the party\nadhering to the old religion, headed by a chief named Richbert, and\nKing Eorpwald was murdered. The worship of Woden again prevailed in\nEast Anglia for three years. Then Sigebert, a half-brother of Eorpwald,\nwho had been educated in France, succeeded in 630. The new King invited\na monk from Burgundy named Felix to assist him, and when he was made a\nbishop, gave him Dunwich for his see. Under Sigebert and Felix the East\nAnglians once more became Christians.\n\nAfter much consultation with his paladins, the King resolved to build\na church of stone at York to replace the wooden baptistery, and to be\ndedicated to St. Peter. Edwin entrusted the provision of materials to\nCoelred, and the erection of the edifice to Sivel. The chief of the\nStillingas had organised a very efficient fleet to patrol the Humber\nand its tributaries. There must be no more kidnapping. Every unknown\nboat was stopped and examined, and the crews had to give a strict\naccount of themselves. A strong patrol was always maintained at the\njunction of the Ouse and Wharfe. Coelred employed some of his vessels\nto convey the blocks of limestone from Calcaria to York, and Porlor\nsuperintended the work at the quarries. They were near the ford of\nNehalennia, and the brothers often remembered with affection the deity\nworshipped by their gentle mother, and the memorable day when they\nvisited the shrine at Appleton with the Princess Alca. Sivel was well\nable to design a working plan. He built with the objects of durability\nand strength, constructing his walls by laying the stones in the\nherring-bone fashion. Part of Sivel's walls may still be seen in the\ncrypt of York Minster. The work progressed steadily. The King dedicated\na large gold cross and a golden chalice for the use of his church of\nSt. Peter at York, which was not finished at the time of Edwin's death.\n\nThe paladins of Edwin desired that as Bretwalda of all Britain he\nshould assume some of the imperial state they had seen at the court of\nthe Emperor Maurice. Sivel called him Basileus and Sebastos in state\ndocuments. His banners were borne before him when he rode about to\nvisit all parts of his dominions. On the occasions of his walking along\nthe streets a tuft of feathers fixed on a spear, called _Tufa_ by the\nRomans, was carried before him. The privilege of performing this duty\nbelonged to Godric.\n\nThe King appointed a council consisting of Coelred, Porlor, and\nSivel to examine the code of laws established by Ethelbert, to adapt\nthem for use in Northumbria, and to prepare a code for submission to\nthe national \"Witan.\" This assembly of notables of the kingdom was\ncalled at regular intervals throughout the reign of Edwin. With some\nalterations, they adopted the code proposed by the King as the laws\nof Northumbria. When these great men returned to their homes they\nwere the means of making known the beneficent measures of the King,\nand of impressing upon all men the importance of abiding by the law\nand keeping the King's peace. \"It was reported that there was then\nsuch perfect peace in Britain, wheresoever the dominion of King Edwin\nextended, that, as it is proverbially said, a woman with her new-born\nbabe might walk throughout the island from sea to sea without receiving\nany harm.\" Once Porlor related to Edwin the story of his journey with\nCoelred across the Vindhya Hills to Ujjayani in India, and described\nthe care of the Malwa Rajas for the comfort of their subjects by\nbuilding fountains along the road at intervals and planting trees. The\nKing was much struck by Porlor's account, and was anxious to imitate\na measure which must add so much to the convenience of travellers. He\nsaw the importance of encouraging traffic and movement of all kinds.\n\"In several places where he had seen clear springs near the highways he\ncaused stakes to be fixed with brass dishes hanging at them for the use\nof passers-by; nor durst any man touch them for any other purpose than\nthat for which they were designed, either through the dread they had of\nthe King or for the affection which they bore him.\"\n\nAll matters relating to the currency were naturally entrusted to\nSivel, who was so well informed respecting the working of the mint at\nAntioch. In Britain it was in a deplorable state of decadence. The\nRoman coins of three metals were used long after the legions departed,\nuntil those in circulation were quite worn out. The expedient was then\nadopted of melting the defaced money of all three metals together,\nfrom which very small coins were struck called _stycas_. They may\nbe considered to have been worth about a shilling of our time, with\nreference to buying power. They had some letters or runes on them, but\nnothing the meaning of which was intelligible, and no king's name.\nSivel began with a reform of the _stycas_. He caused Edwin's name as\nKing of the English to be clearly stamped on the obverse; his own name,\nas the moneyer, with the place (EOFER), on the reverse, and a cross in\nthe centre. There was no room for more on these minute pieces. Sivel\nwas also anxious to introduce a silver penny like those of the Eastern\nemperors, and he actually designed one. On the obverse was King Edwin's\nhead, with the inscription--\n\n                       EDVIN : REX : A : BRET :\n\nand on the reverse a winged figure of Alca, and the letters--\n\n                      SIVEL : SERV : ALCA : DIV :\n\nSeveral were struck; but it was found that the precious metals at the\ncommand of Edwin's government were not sufficiently abundant to bring\nit into circulation. Sivel had his mint and treasury at York, and he\ntaught several young English lads to read and write, so as to serve as\nhis scribes. He recorded the events of the reign, the measures that\nwere adopted, and even notes of important speeches delivered in the\nWitan, such as those of Coifi and Saebald on the occasion of the debate\non the change of religion. No one can doubt that such a record once\nexisted who compares the number of anecdotes and incidents and speeches\nchronicled by Bede respecting the reigns of Edwin and his immediate\nsuccessors with the meagre lists of dates and names and battles which\nis all we are told of the other kings of the Heptarchy. Exclusive of\nmonkish miracles and discussions about the date of keeping Easter, no\nother reign is to be compared with that of Edwin for the amount of\ninformation that is given by Bede. It cannot, therefore, be disputed\nthat the good monk of Jarrow must have had before him either Sivel's\nrecord or very full extracts from some such document.\n\nEdwin's favourite residence always continued to be at Aldby, near the\ngrave of Alca, but the duties of administration made his sojourns at\nYork very frequent. He periodically visited all parts of his dominions.\nIn the far north he had a country seat called Adgefrin on the river\nGlen, where the court often remained for a month at a time. Another\ncountry seat was at Catterick, where the fine buildings of the Roman\nstation of Cataractonium were rendered fit for habitation. Here the\nDeacon James eventually took up his permanent abode. Another was at\nCampodunum--the modern Tanfield, near Ripon; another at Driffield\nin the Wolds. At Barwick-in-Elmet the King sometimes resided in a\nfortified house, near the lofty tumulus erected to the memory of\nHereric, the good Atheling. On these occasions he usually invited his\ncousin Braga, with her saintly little daughters, to keep him company.\n\nCoelred and Porlor snatched occasional intervals to rest from the\ncares of state with their sisters at Stillingfleet. Good old Tanwin had\nbeen gathered to his fathers, but his trusty son Froda was lieutenant\nto the brothers, and they intended, in the fulness of time, that he\nshould succeed them as leader of the Stillingas. They enjoyed the rest\nin the old home and the visits to Bergliot at Hemingborough, where they\nplayed with the sons of their beloved Lilla, and taught them warlike\nexercises. But what Coelred and Porlor loved most in their advancing\nyears was to sit or recline together on the grave of Shuprak, and talk\nover the past of their eventful lives. Here they could pour out the\ninnermost thoughts of their hearts to each other, and revive all the\nold memories. From the time that they were little boys they had loved\nAlca with a pure and holy fervour which entirely prevented any other\nwoman from obtaining a place in their hearts. Now that she was gone,\nthe devoted, loving service was changed into worship and a tender\nmemory. They were, while this life lasted, all in all to each other. It\nwas a very pleasant spot. The mighty trees of the primeval forest, with\nmasses of ferns at their roots, overshadowed them, while a grassy slope\nextended from Shuprak's grave to the bright little beck which babbled\nover rounded pebbles under the willow trees. The quickset hedge and the\nopen gateway forming the boundary of the court of Stillingfleet were\nvisible on the crest of the opposite hill.\n\nOne evening, as they were reclining together against the mound over\ntheir faithful dog, a clap of thunder rumbled in the distance. It\nreminded both of the day of the kidnapping. For a long time neither\nhad spoken. How enjoyable is an occasional interval of silence by the\nside of a dear friend! Coelred was the first to speak. \"I remember,\" he\nsaid, \"when we all dashed wildly into the forest on that fateful day, I\nturned my head for a moment and saw our mother standing in the gateway,\nlooking at us with her hand shading her eyes. We were near this very\nspot.\" \"Dear gentle mother!\" said Porlor, \"she never saw us or heard of\nus again. Yet Alca must have cheered her last moments with her gracious\nconfidence that we should return.\" \"I often think,\" said Coelred,\n\"that there is no difference between the parting of friends on earth\nand the parting by death--at least it has been so in our case. We came\nback and found father and mother and many friends cut off by death. We\nleft friends far away, and have never heard of them since. To us there\nis no difference.\" \"I think there is a difference,\" answered Porlor.\n\"Sivel heard of the wicked murder of the Emperor Maurice when he was at\nCanterbury, and of the cruel slaughter of the good General Narses by\nthe usurper Phocas. How gladly would we have drawn our swords in their\ndefence, or to avenge their deaths! Of the rest of our far-off friends\nwe have heard nothing, it is true. But if we know our friends we can\nmake forecasts which cannot be far wrong. We may be certain that the\ndear Guru ended his days happily and peacefully, and that death had no\nterror for him. Good old Monas, after a few years of prayer under his\npalm trees, passed away in the certainty that his doctrine was the true\none, and in the undoubting belief of reward hereafter. But I wonder\nwhat has become of that strange young Arab, Muhammad ben Abdallah.\"\n\"No common fate,\" exclaimed Coelred. \"I think that he now leads the\nbelievers in some new religion that he has preached. Remember what old\nMonas said.\"\n\nThey then talked of themselves, \"And what of ourselves?\" continued\nCoelred. \"The Valkyrie have been long in choosing us. Our turn cannot\nbe far off now. Are we ready, my brother?\" \"I believe,\" said Porlor,\n\"that we have done the work that was set before us with all our might.\nThat work cannot fail to appear to ourselves, and it certainly appears\nto the world, to have been of service to our King and our countrymen.\nOur country has been raised to great prosperity. Alca would have smiled\nupon us. It is enough. We may rejoice when the Valkyrie choose us.\"\n\"But this great prosperity--this happiness enjoyed by our country--will\nit last?\" \"No,\" said Porlor, \"it cannot last. We must work on until\nour appointed time, without comprehending the ways of the All-father.\nThere will be wild kings and confusion again and again. But of this\nbe certain:--No good work is ever wasted. All may appear hopeless to\nthose who come after us. They may think our work was in vain. But it\nis not so. We have done little. Much of our seed is cast among thorns\nor by the wayside. But some few seeds have fallen on good ground and\nwill bear fruit for ever. We are not unprofitable servants. Our work is\ndone. I feel that our time is near. My Coelred, we will die together.\"\nThey wound their arms round each other in a brotherly embrace, as they\nhad done under the palm trees by the Red Sea.\n\nPresently the sound of horse's hoofs was heard, and Godric emerged from\nthe forest. He had come on a visit to Stillingfleet for a day or two,\nand announced that on the third day they were all summoned to attend\nthe King to Adgefrin. The days passed away happily, and when the time\ncame, Coelred and Porlor bade their sisters a tender farewell. Mounting\ntheir horses, they passed through the well-known old gateway for the\nlast time.\n\nAt the Aldwark they found the King engaged in conversation with\nBassus and Sivel. The great general was representing to Edwin that\nneither Penda nor Cadwalla was a neighbour on whose good faith reliance\ncould be implicitly placed. Penda, the King of Mercia, had succeeded\nin 626, not without suspicion that he had made away with his cousin\nKearl, the late King, by violence. He was a truculent, faithless man,\nalways committing aggressions on his neighbours, and ever thirsting\nfor blood. He had, however, freely acknowledged the Bretwaldaship of\nEdwin, assisted him in his march to Wessex, and continued to profess\nfriendship. Bassus thought that he protested too much. Cadwalla,\nthe King of Gwynedd, although professing Christianity, was a more\nbrutal savage than Penda. He was endowed with some cunning, and also\nprofessed friendship for the great Bretwalda. Bassus had reason for\nsuspecting that there was a secret understanding between the two\ntraitors. He was no alarmist, but there had been a long peace, and\nthe King was unsuspicious and over-confident. A sudden invasion would\nfind him unprepared. \"What has happened to make you speak thus, my\nBassus?\" asked the King. The faithful paladin was unable to say that\nanything had actually happened. \"Ah! you think we are rusting in the\nlong peace. If there should ever be war, which God forbid,\" he added\naffectionately, \"in Bassus will be our hope and our reliance.\" The\nother friends had unbounded faith in the military sagacity of their\nbeloved companion. But Edwin would hear no more. Bassus and Sivel\nremained at York. The rest fared northward, with the King and his\nfamily, to the royal country seat of Adgefrin.\n\n\n\n\n    CHAPTER VII\n\n    THE END\n\n\nThe day had been passed delightfully, hunting in the forests at the\nbases of Cheviot Hill and Yeavering Bell. The royal party had assembled\nat a trysting-place for an early supper, and was now riding home to\nAdgefrin. Edwin looked splendid in his hunting-dress, with his golden\nlocks falling from a light cap, and his fair beard resting on the\ndarker leathern coat. He was superbly mounted, and in one hand he held\na hunting-horn. His eyes brightened with pride as he glanced at his\ngallant young sons, Offrid and Eadfrid. Close behind him rode Osric and\nhis young son Oswin. Then followed Coelred, Porlor, and Godric, with\nFroda and other faithful retainers bringing up the rear. Alas! it was\nthe good King's last hour of pleasure. The joyous laughter of the young\nAthelings rang through the glades as the cavalcade reached home.\n\nSivel was at the gate, his face full of anxiety, his horse covered with\nfoam and ready to drop. He brought certain news that Penda, the King\nof Mercia, was marching across the country of the Gainas with a large\narmy, and had given a defiant answer to a messenger who had been sent\nto ask the cause of his invasion. In a few days he would be on the Don.\nCadwalla was known to have an equally large force in motion, and Bassus\nwas sending out scouts to ascertain his position day by day. He had\nalso summoned the Deiran tribes to meet at York.\n\nEdwin sorrowfully remembered the timely warning of his faithful\ngeneral. Fresh horses were ordered, and the King set out at once,\naccompanied by the four paladins and his two sons. Osric undertook to\nguard the Queen, Paulinus, and the children, and to escort them as\nquickly as possible to Aldby. The King reached York in the first week\nof October 633. Still worse news awaited him. Cadwalla, with an immense\narmy, had crossed the moors from Chester, and was marching rapidly with\nthe apparent object of forming a junction with Penda. In a hurried\nconsultation Bassus pointed out that every hour was of moment, as the\nonly hope was in engaging the two armies in detail, before they were\nin touch of each other. But the Northumbrian force was very small, and\nthere was no time to wait for reinforcements. Bassus wished to attend\non the King's person, but Edwin insisted that he must remain at York.\n\"If anything happens to me,\" he said, \"who is to guard my wife and\nchildren, who is to save the kingdom if you fall by my side?\" Bassus\nreluctantly yielded. He was to strive to form a second army at York,\nand guard the Queen.\n\nEdwin left York with a small but valiant force, commanded by himself\nin person, Coelred, Porlor, Godric, Sivel, the two Athelings, and the\nprincipal thegns of Deira. He felt confident that he could dispose\nof Penda if he could engage him before the arrival of Cadwalla. All\ndepended upon that. At the ford of Nehalennia loyal old Saebald joined\nthe King with his Billingas. But news also came that Cadwalla was\nalready advancing down the valley of the Calder. Edwin increased the\nrapidity of his marches to the Don.\n\nHatfield Chase was a vast extent of lake and morass on the lower\ncourse of the Don, overgrown with reeds and other water plants, and\ndotted with islands covered with trees and frequented by deer in great\nnumbers. Penda led his army across this labyrinth, from island to\nisland, wading and sometimes swimming. He had just escaped from his\ndifficulties and drawn up the forces of Mercia on the firm land, when\nthe well-marshalled army of Edwin came in sight. They passed the night\nfacing each other, with the camp fires of both sides visible, and next\nmorning they joined battle.\n\nEdwin rose at dawn and called his chiefs around him. \"We must beat the\nMercians,\" he said, \"before our other enemies arrive, or we are lost.\nIt is in the hands of God. If it is His will I will die on this field\nfighting for the right. But keep the men in good heart. Friends and\nbrothers, never in the world's history had king such faithful servants!\nLiving or dying, our hopes, our aims, are one. True and loyal friends,\nwe stand or fall together.\" He embraced his sons, his four surviving\npaladins, and the venerable Saebald, whose hair was now white with\nage. He was seventy-three. They then all knelt down and received the\nsacrament from James the Deacon, who offered up prayers for the good\nmen and true who were to fight that day in a righteous cause. It was\nthe morning of the 14th of October 633.\n\nEdwin's army was in three divisions. He entrusted the right to Godric\nand Saebald, with his son Offrid. Porlor and Eadfrid commanded the\nleft. The King and Coelred were in the centre. Sivel was well mounted,\nand undertook to bring news to the King from the two wings and to carry\norders. The whole line advanced bravely to the attack, the numbers of\nthe two armies being about equal, but Penda had his back to the swamps.\nBoth sides fought most valiantly. At last the Mercians began to give\nway. Porlor had actually driven a large body into the swamps. The day\nappeared to be won. At this critical moment Sivel galloped up to report\nthat the Welshmen under Cadwalla were in sight, and rushing down upon\nthe rear of the English right flank in overwhelming numbers. Edwin was\nobliged to order two-thirds of his force, under Godric and Saebald, to\nface round and advance to meet the Welsh. Before leaving with these\norders, Coelred called Sivel aside, and entreated him, by their sacred\nfriendship, to save his life. \"One of us must survive,\" he said. \"The\nsafety of the widows and children will be in your keeping. My Sivel,\nyou must live on.\" They pressed each other's hands, and Sivel galloped\noff with his orders.\n\nPenda now saw that the force opposed to him was so weakened that it\nwas less than half his own strength. He rallied his men, and a terrible\nslaughter commenced. The Deirans fell where they stood. None fled.\nThere was not a man who was not ready to die for his beloved King.\nPorlor had closed up from the left, and the brothers were now fighting\nby the side of Edwin. At this moment Froda arrived with the appalling\nnews that Godric, Saebald and his sons, and Offrid had all been slain,\nand that the right wing was falling back, overwhelmed by numbers.\n\"Froda, my true friend,\" said Coelred, \"go at speed to the Humber bank,\nwhere you will find one of my boats. Hurry to Hemingborough and to\nStillingfleet. Tell the ladies to fly with the children to Driffield in\nthe Wolds. Then speed to York and announce the tidings to Bassus that\nall is lost. Remember that, when we are dead, Froda the son of Tanwin\nis chief of the Stillingas.\" The young man knelt down, kissed the hands\nof the King, of Coelred, and Porlor, then galloped off in the direction\nof the Humber.\n\nThe very thick of the fight now centred round the King and his two\npaladins. Their brave men had fallen in heaps. Not one yielded an inch\nof ground. Edwin retreated fighting until he had a bank about six\nfeet high, covered with tangled briers, at his back. Here he made his\nlast stand. He wielded his sword like a true Viking, but at length a\nspear-thrust dealt him a mortal wound. He fell. Coelred and Porlor\nnow stood over the body of their King--their backs to the bank, and\nhalf surrounded by the foe. It was not the Berserker rage that flashed\nfrom their eyes, yet something as terrible. It was the righteous wrath\nof brave men who foresee the ruin of a great cause. Their blows were\ndealt with deadly force and with deadly skill. Before the death-dealing\nstrokes their assailants recoiled and paused more than once. In such\nmoments the brothers clasped hands and exchanged a few words. Then\nagain their swords flashed right and left with lightning speed, dealing\ndeath around. Penda himself had been carried away, sorely wounded.\nThere was a semicircle of Mercian dead round the hero brothers, as\nthey protected the body of their King. Another pause. \"The Valkyrie\nhave chosen us at last, my Porlor,\" said Coelred. \"They are carrying\nus away.\" \"To Christ,\" continued Porlor. Then they both quoted the\nwords of Alca spoken long ago when they were little boys. \"We fall in\nbattle, fighting in a righteous cause.\" These were their last words.\nThere were loud yells and shouts, and an irresistible rush of spearmen,\nfor no sword could touch them. They both fell dead across the body\nof the King, which they had defended so long and so valiantly. Their\nhands were clasped, their faces turned to heaven. The battle swept\naway in another direction, and there was silence. Brambles and ivy and\nthe straggling branch of an overhanging yew tree, through which the\nsunbeams found their way in flickering light, shaded the mortal remains\nof three heroes, three among the chief makers of England.\n\n[Illustration: King Edwin. Coelred, and Porlor Slain]\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\"All is lost!\" Froda had realised the fears of Bassus. No hope.\nFew men had come to his standard. The time was too short. There was\nno choice for the Queen but immediate flight. The three widows at\nHemingborough and Stillingfleet had escaped, with the children, to the\nfortified post of Driffield on the Wolds. Bassus hastily got one of\nCoelred's finest vessels ready, and the Queen, with the three children,\nEanflaed, Wuscfrea, and Iffi, came from Aldby. Paulinus was at York,\nand said that he would accompany the Queen to Kent. \"Are you not Bishop\nof York?\" said Bassus with surprise. \"Is not your duty here? The Queen\nis safe with me.\" \"My duty is to accompany the Queen,\" replied York's\nfirst bishop, who wanted a safer see. \"Coward!\" muttered Bassus. \"He\ndeserts at the first hint of danger, like the monks sent by Gregory,\nlike Mellitus and Justus when they ran away from Canterbury.\" Unknown\nto Bassus, Edwin's golden chalice and cross belonging to the church at\nYork were appropriated by Paulinus, who wished to make his appearance\nin Kent more acceptable by the presentation of these treasures.\nCadwalla would scarcely have perpetrated such an act as this. So\nEthelburga and her children, and her timid bishop, sailed for Kent\nunder the protection of Bassus.\n\nThey arrived safely in Kent, where Ethelburga was affectionately\nreceived by her brother King Eadbald, and she brought up her daughter\nEanflaed at Canterbury. But she could not feel that the boys were safe\nwhile they remained in England. She persuaded Bassus to take Wuscfrea\nand Iffi to Paris, and to put them under the protection of her cousin\nKing Dagobert. They both died in infancy, and were buried with the\nhonours due to royal children, it is believed at St. Denis. Bassus is\nsupposed to have then returned to his native country, and to have died\nat Rome full of years, fondly cherishing to the last the memory of his\nbeloved friend Lilla.\n\nThe saddest thing of all was the fate of Edwin's two brave young sons.\nThe body of Offrid was never found. Eadfrid was taken prisoner, and\nshortly afterwards was basely murdered by his cousin Penda.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nIn the second night after the battle three lights might have been\nseen flickering over the ghastly field. One came from a lantern held\nby Wiglaf, Godric's man, who was searching for the body of his master,\naccompanied by the two sons of that valiant paladin. They found it, and\ncarried it to his home, where it was buried amidst fruit trees, on the\nsite on which afterwards rose the church of East Markham. The other\ntwo lights were carried by Sivel and the Deacon James. They found the\nprecious remains lying as they fell under the yew tree. Long they gazed\non those peerless forms. \"When will God send us their equals?\" sighed\nSivel. \"It must be long, alas!\" assented the good Deacon. \"Perhaps in\nHis own good time men like them may arise again.\" The three bodies\nwere borne away to the Humber by many loving hands, and placed in a\nboat. Proceeding up the Ouse, the boat was met opposite to Acaster by\nFroda and a few surviving Stillingas. The bodies of Coelred and Porlor\nwere handed over to them, and were borne slowly to Stillingfleet,\nwhere they were interred by the side of Shuprak on the spot they had\nloved so well. The Deacon James performed the funeral service, and\nafterwards a tumulus was raised over their grave. Sivel then went to\nYork with the body of the King. Bassus and Ethelburga had already\ndeparted. The head of Edwin the Great was interred under the porch of\nhis unfinished church. His body was borne to Aldby, and buried by the\nside of his sister Alca. Long afterwards it was removed to Whitby by\nhis grand-daughter the Abbess Elflaed.\n\nThe work of Edwin and his paladins seemed to be all undone. But it was\nnot so. The good seed was sown. Northumbria flourished wonderfully for\nnearly a century through the initiative given to progress by Edwin's\nbrilliant administration, and her Kings were Bretwaldas of Britain.\nA great calamity swept over the land, a storm beat down the ripening\ngrains, but they rose again, bright and golden, and the sowers had not\nlived in vain.\n\n          Through labour to rest,\n          Through combat to victory.\n\n                              THOMAS \u00c0 KEMPIS.\n\n\n\n\n    EPILOGUE\n\n\nThis story will be incomplete if a concluding narrative is not given\nof the subsequent fates of the friends and relatives of King Edwin and\nhis paladins, of their children and immediate descendants, as well as a\nbrief notice of the historian to whose laborious zeal our knowledge of\nthis striking episode in our annals is due.\n\nAs soon as Sivel had performed his pious duties, he took refuge at\nDriffield, for the Welsh were close upon his track.\n\nPenda and Cadwalla met after the slaughter. As the former was wounded,\nhe determined to return to Mercia, after making a bargain for a\nshare of the plunder. Cadwalla dispersed his army in large parties,\nmoving northwards to kill, harry, and destroy. The Welshmen committed\nevery conceivable atrocity: neither age nor sex was spared, and the\nsavages revelled in their cruelty. Bilbrough and Ulfskelf were sacked.\nHemingborough escaped, but of Stillingfleet not a vestige was left,\nand the ancient buildings of Aldby were levelled with the ground. Few\nhouses escaped their fury. Finally, they occupied York itself, where\nthere were new scenes of devastation and horror.\n\nOsric collected the remnant of the Deirans at Driffield, who\nproclaimed him their King. He declared that he adhered to the religion\nof his ancestors, and if the wretched old Coifi had not died soon after\nhe polluted the sanctuary of Woden, he would probably have been taken\nto Godmundham and put to death. After months of preparation, Osric\nadvanced to York, where the King of Gwynedd still remained. The King\nof Deira attacked the Decumanian Gate; but Cadwalla sallied out with\nhis whole army and put the English to flight. Osric was himself among\nthe slain. Cadwalla then marched northwards to subdue the Bernicians.\nOn the death of Edwin, the sons of Ethelfrith had returned from their\nexile among the Picts, and the eldest, Eanfrid, had been accepted as\nKing of Bernicia. On the approach of the ferocious Welsh King, he sued\nfor peace, and it was arranged that there should be an interview.\nEanfrid came to the enemy's camp with six attendants, and was foully\nmurdered by Cadwalla. Eanfrid had also adhered to the religion of his\nancestors. Consequently both these gallant young princes, Osric and\nEanfrid, are vilified and slandered by the monks.\n\nOswald, the son of the peerless Alca, then succeeded, and was joyfully\nreceived, both by the Bernicians and Deirans, as their King. He saw\nthat there could be no terms with the faithless Welshman--he must be\nstamped out. Cadwalla was in the neighbourhood of Hexham, near the\nGreat Wall. When Oswald reached a spot called Heavenfield, he put up\na cross, helping to fix it in the ground himself. Then, raising his\nvoice, he cried to his army, \"Let us all kneel and jointly beseech the\ntrue and living God Almighty in His mercy to defend us from the haughty\nand fierce enemy. He knows that we have undertaken a just war for the\nsafety of our nation.\" Advancing towards the enemy at dawn, he gained\na great victory, and Cadwalla was killed at a place called Denisburn,\nperhaps Dilston.\n\nOswald came to York, and visited the melancholy ruins of Aldby, where\nhis happy childhood had been passed with his mother, and where he\nhad been torn from the arms of Bergliot by the savage Ethelfrith. He\nconsulted with Sivel, and encouraged him to persevere with the work of\nbuilding the church of St. Peter at York until it was completed. Oswald\napplied to the monks of Iona for a bishop, and in 635 they sent him a\ndevout man named Aidan, to whom he assigned the island of Lindisfarne\nas his episcopal see. \"A man of singular meekness, piety, and\nmoderation, and zealous in the cause of God.\" Oswald was acknowledged\nas Bretwalda of all Britain in succession to his uncle, Edwin the\nGreat, and \"when raised to that height of dominion he always continued\nhumble, affable, and generous to the poor and strangers.\" The ruthless\nsavage Penda had to add one more crime to the long list before his\ncup was full. He invaded Northumbria, and killed the good and saintly\nOswald at the battle of Maserfield, probably at Winwick in Lancashire,\nin the year 642. Oswald's niece Osfrith, Queen of the Mercians,\ntranslated her uncle's bones to the Abbey of Bardney in Lincolnshire in\n697, and in 909 they were removed into Mercia. The monks traded much\nwith them, as a means of working miraculous cures.\n\nOswald was succeeded in Bernicia by his half-brother Oswy, who had\nreceived a mother's care from Queen Alca, though not her son. He\nusurped the rights of Oswald's son Ethelwald, the grandson of Alca.\nIn Deira Oswin became king in succession to his father Osric. This\nexcellent prince had been brought up by Bergliot with the sons of\nLilla, to whom he was warmly attached. Trondhere, the eldest, became\nhis adviser and constant companion. The younger son, Trumhere, entered\nthe priesthood. During the first year of Oswin's reign the Princess\nBergliot died, and was buried by her sons, by Lilla's side, in the\nold Roman fort at Hemingborough. Oswin was a man of wonderful piety\nand devotion, and governed Deira very prosperously, with the aid of\nSivel, Trondhere, and Bishop Aidan, during seven happy and prosperous\nyears. He was tall and graceful, affable and always courteous, and most\ngenerous, so that he was beloved by all ranks of the people. He was\nwarmly attached to Aidan, who was astonished at his humility, a virtue\nrare in kings.\n\nA story was recorded by Sivel, and repeated by Bede, which exemplifies\nthis virtue. The King had given Aidan an extraordinarily fine horse,\neither to use in crossing rivers or in any extraordinary emergency,\nfor ordinarily the Bishop travelled on foot. Soon afterwards, meeting\na beggar, Aidan dismounted and presented the horse, with all its royal\nfurniture, to the miserable creature. This was told to the King when he\nand the Bishop were going in to dinner. Oswin said, \"Why did you give\nthe beggar that royal horse which was necessary for your use? Are there\nnot many other horses of less value which would have been good enough\nto give to the poor?\" Aidan answered, \"What is it you say, O King? Is\nthat foal of a mare more dear to you than the Son of God?\" Upon this\nthey went in to dinner, and the Bishop sat in his place, but the King,\nwho had just returned from hunting, stood warming himself, with his\nattendants, at the fire. Suddenly, calling to mind what the Bishop had\nsaid to him, Oswin ungirt his sword, gave it to a servant, and hastily\nknelt before the Bishop asking forgiveness. Aidan was much moved,\nand, starting up, raised the King, saying he was entirely reconciled,\nif he would sit down at meat and lay aside all sorrow. The King then\nbegan to be merry. The Bishop, on the other hand, became so melancholy\nas to shed tears. His priest asked him in Gaelic why he wept. In the\nsame language Aidan answered, \"I weep because I know the King will not\nlive long. For I never before saw so humble a king, whence I conclude\nthat he will soon be snatched out of this life, for this nation is not\nworthy of such a ruler.\"\n\nIt was too true. In 650 the ambitious Oswy collected a great army\nto invade Deira. Oswin assembled a smaller force, and advanced, with\nTrondhere, to Catterick. But finding that the King of Bernicia had\na much larger number of troops, he dismissed his men to their homes\nto avoid useless bloodshed, resolving to go into concealment until\nbetter times. A certain Earl named Hunwald promised him a safe place\nof retirement at Gilling. But Hunwald was a traitor. The place was\nbetrayed to Oswy. On the 20th of August 650 a commander named Ethilwin\nand several followers forced their way into the house. Like his father\nLilla before him, Trondhere threw himself before his master to protect\nhim from the blows of the assassins. But in vain. He was slain and\nthrown aside, and then the good King Oswin was despatched. One may hope\nthat this was not done by order of Oswy, and that, as in the case of\nHenry II. and Becket long afterwards, he was only guilty of a hasty\nword misinterpreted by an unscrupulous servant. For some time the crime\nwas concealed.\n\nIt was not known to Sivel, who could hardly have taken a lenient view\nof the King's conduct, when bitterly resenting the murders of the son\nof Lilla and of the nephew of Hereric. But he was even then on his\ndeath-bed. During the reign of Oswin the last of Edwin's paladins had\nbeen chief of the Billingas, but he had resigned the duties and given\nup all his rights to Saebald's grandson Osbert, whose two brothers,\nnamed Adda and Utta, had become priests. For Sivel was now advanced in\nyears. He lived at York, occupied with his chronicle, his coinage, and\nthe completion of King Edwin's church of St. Peter, or York Minster.\nHis cousin Utta had been one of his clerks, and had since taken orders,\nbut continued to attend on Sivel in his old age. At last his long and\nuseful course was finished, having reached his seventy-first year,\nand survived all his friends. More than two hundred years afterwards\nthere was a moneyer at York of the same name, who struck coins for\nKing Edwig, and who may not improbably have been a descendant of\nSivel's cousin Saebald. Osbert, Adda, and Utta conveyed the body of\nthe last surviving paladin of Edwin the Great from York to Bilbrough.\nThey buried Sivel in the tumulus of his father Vidfinn, by the side of\nhis beloved Forthere. The tumulus was then raised to nearly twice its\npresent height.\n\nAdda became Abbot of Gateshead, and was afterwards employed in the\nconversion of the Mercians. Utta was \"a man of great gravity and\nsincerity, and on that account honoured by all men, even the princes of\nthe world.\" When King Oswy resolved to send an embassy to Ercombert,\nKing of Kent, who had succeeded to his father Eadbald, in 641, to ask\nfor the hand of the daughter of Edwin the Great, he had consulted Sivel\nwith regard to the selection of an ambassador, who recommended his\ncousin Utta. But the mission did not start until after the funeral of\nSivel. King Oswin, Bishop Aidan, and Sivel died within a week of each\nother; and soon afterwards the mission left York.\n\nBishop Aidan, before his death on 31st August 650, made an excellent\nsuggestion to Utta. He thought it likely that a storm would be\nencountered either going or returning, and he gave Utta a keg of oil,\nsaying that if he threw it overboard the rough sea would become smooth.\nThe experiment was remarkably successful, as Bede was told by a priest\nnamed Cynemund, who had it from Utta himself.\n\nEanflaed, the daughter of Edwin by Ethelburga of Kent, arrived\nsafely, and was married to King Oswy, the step-son of her aunt, the\npeerless Alca. She was then twenty-five years of age. The Queen was\nhorrified when she heard of the murder of her cousin Oswin, and\nrecoiled from her husband. He appears to have protested his innocence.\nEventually a monastery was built at Gilling, where daily prayers were\nsaid for the soul of Oswin, and for forgiveness to the repentant Oswy.\nThe first abbot was Trumhere, the younger son of Lilla and Bergliot,\nand brother of the murdered Trondhere. Born in 611, Trumhere was a\ncousin of the slaughtered King, his mother Bergliot having been a\nsister of Oswin's father. He was brought up in the same monastery with\nChad, the future saint, but not under his direction, as Bede says, for\nthey were contemporaries. Trumhere went from Gilling to be the first\nbishop of the Mercians, with his see at Repton. Resigning his bishopric\ninto the hands of King Wulfhere, who appointed Jaruman to succeed\nhim, Trumhere retired to a monastery. When a very old man, he was the\ninstructor of the historian Bede, and told him the anecdote of St.\nChad, remarked upon by Jeremy Bentham in his _Life of Christ_, touching\nhis habit of praying whenever there was a storm, and the reason he gave\nfor the practice. St. Chad succeeded Jaruman as bishop of the Mercians,\nand having transferred the see from Repton to Lichfield, he died there\nin 674. Trumhere survived him for sixteen years.\n\nA few years after Oswy's marriage, his kingdom was exposed to the\ndesolating incursions of the bloodthirsty King Penda of Mercia. He did\nall in his power to appease the old man. His son Egfrith was even given\nup as a hostage to the Mercian Queen Cynthryth. He offered immense\ngifts if Penda would return home and cease to devastate the country.\nBut Penda refused them, swearing to destroy Oswy and all his race. Oswy\nbecame desperate. He said, \"If the Pagan will not accept our gifts, let\nus offer them to Him that will, the Lord our God.\" He vowed that if he\nwas victorious he would dedicate his youngest daughter, Elflaed, to the\nservice of God.\n\nOn 15th November 655, the two armies met on the banks of a stream\nnear Leeds, which was much swollen by the rains. The place was\ncalled Winwidfield. Penda's army was vastly superior in numbers to\nthe Northumbrians, and consisted of all the power of the Mercians,\nbesides a contingent of East Anglians led by their king, Ethelhard.\nThe dethroned son of Oswald, Etheldwald, the grandson of Alca,\nwas a spectator, but he did not engage in the battle against his\ncountrymen. Oswy had with him his (illegitimate?) son Alchred. After a\nwell-contested battle, the Mercians were forced back into the swollen\nwater of the flood, where there was much loss of life. Both Penda and\nEthelhard were among the dead. There was a great slaughter, and Oswy\ngained a complete victory. The unfortunate son of Oswald is not again\nmentioned, and his fate is unknown.\n\nOswy became very powerful. He was acknowledged as Bretwalda in\nsuccession to Oswald, and for some years he personally administered\nMercia. Afterwards Peada, the son of Penda, having become a Christian,\nwas allowed to succeed, and was followed by his brothers Wulfhere\n(659) and Ethelred (675), who married Oswy's daughter Osfrith. Oswy\nmust have been a man of considerable ability. He died on 15th February\n676, leaving a son, Ealhfrith, by a first wife, and four children by\nEanflaed. These were Egfrith, his successor; Elfwin, cut off in his\nyouth, which was full of promise; Osfrith, the Mercian Queen; and\nElflaed the nun--the four grandchildren of Edwin the Great.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nThe daughters of Braga now claim our attention. Her younger sister\nNanna, or Mary Audr, as Godric loved to call her, died at Driffield\nsoon after their flight thither, and was buried by the side of her\nbrothers. Like her namesake, the wife of Balder, she could not survive\nthe death of her lord. Braga lived on. At the time of Hereric's flight\nshe had a strange dream. She fancied that she was seeking for him most\ncarefully, and could find no sign of him anywhere. After having used\nall her industry to seek him, she found a most precious jewel under her\ngarment, which, whilst she was looking at it very attentively, cast\nsuch a light as spread itself throughout all Britain. It was thought\nthat this dream was fulfilled in the life of her daughter St. Hilda.\nSoon after her daughters were grown up, Braga died, and was buried at\nStillingfleet with her sister and brothers.\n\nBraga's eldest daughter, Hereswith, married Ethelhard, King of East\nAnglia, who was slain fighting for Penda at Winwidfield. Her son\nAldwulf, who succeeded, eventually became a monk. Hereswith herself\nretired to the monastery of Chelles near Paris. Hilda wished to follow\nher sister, but Bishop Aidan recalled her and induced her to lead a\nmonastic life on some land near the banks of the river Wear. She was\nmade Abbess of Heruteu (Hartlepool), and, after some years, was removed\nthence to be Abbess of Streaneshalch (Whitby), where she was an example\nof good life and a person of singular piety and grace. She also had\nconsiderable influence in church and state; and the famous synod, with\nOswy presiding, when Wilfrid confuted Colman in the Easter controversy,\nwas held in her abbey. She was a great sufferer during the last year\nof her life, and died at Whitby on 17th November 680, aged sixty-six\nyears. She had built another monastery at Hackness, and at the moment\nof her death one of the Hackness nuns named Bega (St. Bees) saw her in\na vision being carried up to heaven by angels. When the monks came next\nmorning with the news, the Hackness nuns told them that they had known\nit for some hours. Thus died St. Hilda, the child of Hereric and Braga.\n\nElflaed, the grandchild of King Edwin, was entrusted to her cousin\nHilda when she was at Hartlepool, and removed with her to Whitby. On\nHilda's death, Elflaed became abbess, and, on the death of Oswy, her\nmother Eanflaed came to pass the last years of her life with her child.\nThey translated King Edwin's body from Aldby to Whitby, and there they\nboth died and were buried. Oswy was also buried at Whitby. The death of\nElflaed took place in 714.\n\nBoth the children of Alca were canonised--St. Oswald and St. Ebba.\nThe sweet little Ebba was brought up by Bergliot at Hemingborough, and\nearly took to a religious life. She was abbess of the monastery of\nColudi, now called Coldingham, in Berwickshire. Bede tells us that Ebba\ndied before 679, when the Abbey of Coldingham was burnt down.\n\nEgfrith, the grandson of King Edwin, succeeded his father Oswy in\n670, at the age of eighteen, and married Etheldrida, daughter of Anna,\nKing of East Anglia, who preferred a monastic life, and bore him no\nchildren. Eventually she obtained her husband's permission to take the\nveil at Coludi, where St. Ebba, Egfrith's cousin, was abbess, whence\nshe removed to Ely. In 679 this king and his brother-in-law of Mercia\nhad an unfortunate quarrel, and there was a battle on the banks of\nthe Trent, in which young Elfwin, Egfrith's brother, was killed. He\nwas a youth of great promise aged eighteen, and his loss was deplored\nby both sides. This made it easy for Archbishop Theodore to offer his\nmediation, and the combatants were appeased. Egfrith was restless and\nambitious. In 684 he sent an army to invade Ireland; and the following\nyear he himself led a force to ravage the country of the Picts, much\nagainst the advice of Bishop Cuthbert and his other councillors. He was\nled into an ambush at Dunnichen, on the coast of Forfarshire, and slain\non the 20th of May 685, aged forty years, and having reigned fifteen.\n\nEalhfrith, a son of King Oswy, but not by Eanflaed, succeeded his\nbrother Egfrith, and retrieved the ruined state of the kingdom. He had\nbeen instructed by St. Wilfrid, and was very learned in the Scriptures.\nAdamnan, the Abbot of Iona, was ambassador at Ealhfrith's court, and\npresented a book he had written on the Holy Places to that King, who\nsent him back to his country well rewarded. In 697 Osfrith, Queen of\nthe Mercians, sister of Egfrith and grandchild of King Edwin, was\nmurdered, but the circumstances are not related. Her husband Ethelred\nabdicated in 704 and became a monk at Bardney, where he died in 716.\nTheir son Coelred succeeded his cousin Kenred as King of Mercia in 709,\nand dying in 716, he was buried at Lichfield. Coelred survived his aunt\nElflaed by two years, and was thus the last descendant of King Edwin.\n\nKing Ealhfrith of Northumbria died at Driffield in 709, and was\nsucceeded by his son Osred, who was then eight years of age. When only\nfifteen, he appears to have been murdered, and a usurper named Coenred,\nor Kenred, seized the government and held it for two years. He was\nfollowed by a king named Osric, who reigned for eleven years, when he\nis said to have been slain. Then, in 731, King Ceolwulf became ruler\nof Northumbria, and reigned until 739. He was not of the family of\nOswy, but was descended directly from Ida, the first King of Bernicia.\nHe became a monk in 739, leaving the kingdom to his cousin Eadbert,\nwhose brother was Egbert, the Archbishop of York. This learned prelate\ncollected a large library, and ruled the see from 729 to 776. Alcuin\nwas his scholar. Eadbert, after a reign of twenty years, also became a\nmonk in 757, and died in 768.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nThe Ecclesiastical History of the Venerable Bede is the source whence\nnearly all the information respecting the historical persons in this\nstory is derived. Bede was born during the reign of King Egfrith in\n673, in the country between the Tyne and the Wear. Egfrith granted\na tract of land to a friend of his named Biscop in 675, on which\nhe founded Wearmouth; and in 682 Biscop erected the monastery of\nJarrow on the banks of the Tyne, and became abbot under the name of\nBenedict. This remarkable man travelled several times to Rome, bringing\nback books and works of art, masons and glaziers. Bede lived in the\nmonastery of Jarrow all his life, from the age of seven. He received\ninstruction in theology and the Scriptures from Trumhere, the son of\nLilla and Bergliot, then very old, who thus trained him for his future\nhistorical labours. Bede was ordained priest in 705, during the reign\nof King Ealhfrith of Northumbria, by John, Bishop of Hexham, better\nknown as John of Beverley. Bede seldom left his monastery, but he\ncertainly paid a visit to Archbishop Egbert at York, and was also most\nprobably the occasional guest of Ceolwulf, King of Northumbria, who was\na man of singular learning and a great patron of literature. It was\nCeolwulf who requested Bede to write the ecclesiastical history, and to\nwhom Bede sent the sheets for his perusal. The great historian died on\nthe 26th of May 735, four years before the retirement of King Ceolwulf\ninto a monastery.\n\nBede wrote his history about a century after the death of Edwin the\nGreat. He received his education from the son of Lilla, and derived\nhis materials for the Northumbrian part of his history from the\nchronicle of Sivel. It was providential that such a man should have\narisen at such a juncture, gifted with talent and ardour in the pursuit\nof learning, and that the times should have been favourable for the\ncomposition and preservation of his work. He lived under the reigns of\nenlightened Kings of Northumbria, whose culture was due to the impetus\ngiven to progress by Edwin and his paladins. To one of those kings,\nthe good Ceolwulf, he dedicated his history. He enjoyed the friendship\nof the best and most learned of the Archbishops of York before the\nconquest, Egbert, the brother of Eadbert the King. He was furnished\nwith materials from many quarters. But for Bede's history, written\nunder these favourable circumstances, we should know nothing of the\nearly proceedings of the makers of England, nothing of the story of\nEdwin the Great.\n\nIn spite of the excessive number of monkish miracles he records, which\ntestify to his simplicity, and show that he was not in advance of\nhis contemporaries in the matter of credulity, Bede is transparently\nhonest. His authorities are perfectly safe in his hands, and he gives\nall his information without a word of alteration. The confidence we may\njustly repose in its author increases the interest as well as the value\nof the earliest of our histories.\n\n\n                                THE END\n\n\n      _Printed by_ R. & R. CLARK, LIMITED, _Edinburgh_.\n\n\n\n\n                            THE WOLF PATROL\n\n                 A Tale of Baden-Powell's Boy Scouts.\n\n                                  BY\n\n                            JOHN FINNEMORE\n\n AUTHOR OF 'JACK HAYDON'S QUEST,' 'THE STORY OF A SCOUT,' 'TWO BOYS IN\n                WAR-TIME,' 'IN THE TRENCHES,' ETC. ETC.\n\n\n  Large Crown 8vo. Cloth. Containing Eight Full-page Illustrations in\n                        Colour by H. M. PAGET.\n\n                      Price =3s.= =6d.=\n\nThis story is the only boy's book which Mr. Finnemore will publish this\nseason, and deals with a subject now of burning interest among all\nboys--the scouting movement founded by Lieut.-General Baden-Powell,\nC.B., the hero of Mafeking. The story deals with the adventures of\nboy scouts who formed a patrol, and above all, the doings of two\npatrol-leaders who, beginning as bitter enemies, become close friends\nunder the influence of the boy scout movement. The book is dedicated by\nspecial permission to General Baden-Powell, who has been so kind as to\nread the story in manuscript, and to approve of it most heartily. In\na letter to the author he says, \"Wishing you all success for this so\nexcellent a work.\" The book is thus stamped with the hall-mark of the\nfounder's approval.\n\n\n                             PUBLISHED BY\n\n          A. & C. BLACK, 4, 5, AND 6 SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W.\n\n\n\n\n                           THE GOLDEN GIRDLE\n\n                                  BY\n\n                         COL. MOCKLER-FERRYMAN\n\n\n  Large Crown 8vo. Cloth. Containing Eight Full-page Illustrations in\n                       Colour by ALLAN STEWART.\n\n                      Price =3s.= =6d.=\n\nThe hero of this thrilling story of pluck and adventure is a young\nEnglishman who, after a course of training at the British Museum, is\nsent out by his uncle to Babylon, to unearth a mysterious girdle,\nknown to have been worn by one of the ancient Assyrian Queens. Making\na start from Baghdad, young Henderson, accompanied by the Residency\nSurgeon, crosses Mesopotamia, and eventually enters the Arabian\ndesert. Here the two friends became the guests of a tribe of Bedouins,\nand, while prosecuting their search, enjoy many strange experiences.\nThey return to Baghdad after a fruitless quest, and subsequently the\nhero returns alone to the desert, when, with his Bedouin friends, he\nresumes the pursuit of what he now discovers to be the object of the\nmost superstitious dread. The chase, as told, is replete with exciting\nadventures, and the interest of the story is maintained to the end. The\nyoung Englishman's indomitable determination has its reward, and the\nmysteries ascribed to the Golden Girdle are laid at rest.\n\n\n                             PUBLISHED BY\n\n          A. & C. BLACK, 4, 5, AND 6 SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W.\n\n\n                          TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE\n\n-Italic text is denoted by _underscores_; bold text by =equal signs=.\n\n-fixed plain print and punctuation errors.\n\n-Page 33: the word \"Sose\" has benn changed in \"S\u00f4se\" as below\n\n-Page 96: \"Monte Cassiano\" is obviously an error; corrected as\n \"Monte Cassino\".\n\n-Page 169: Every source gives \"Naravatna\" as a single word; I left it\n as spelled by author.\n\n-Page 291: \"united kingdom\" has not been capitalised because doen't\n refer to the modern United Kingdom.\n\n-Page 322: Colons spaced because they mean separation between words and\n not punctuation, following the ancient inscription style.","title":"The Paladins of Edwin the Great","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":68193}