from the other part of the island, could be disposed of, the other men
would be less likely to fight with any vigour, especially if they knew
that they would be received into favour again by their old eorl's son;
Athelhune shouted out to his men to kill the traitors who came with
Arwald, but to spare the poor fellows who were compelled to fight
against their will for a tyrant and robber they hated; and he
immediately hurled a stone with all his force at the man who seemed to
be the leader of the party. The blow was warded off by the man's shield,
but in raising his arm to do this he exposed himself to a spear thrust
which Beornwulf, who was standing near Athelhune, promptly gave him; and
although the man, with great heroism, continued to struggle on, yet his
blows lost much of their force, and eventually he fell fainting to the
ground.
Meanwhile it was already obvious that Athelhune's well-judged words,
added to Wulfstan's expostulations, had had their effect, and had also
been useful in a way Athelhune had not thought of; for the men who were
from the other part of the island were now evidently suspicious of their
allies, who had given some grounds for it by not pressing up quite so
eagerly as the others had done; and this very consciousness of mistrust
served to make the men work less heartily together.
It was quite clear to the man who succeeded to the leadership of the
assailants on the fall of Athelhune's antagonist that what had got to be
done must be done by his own men, and that the others would join in
heartily enough as soon as they saw success attending their efforts.
Being, therefore, a brave and energetic man, he called to his men to
follow him, and sprang at the wall.
The defences had been raised nearly eight feet high, and a rude platform
had been made about four feet high all round inside; thus the defenders
had the advantage of striking down at their foe, as well as being
protected by the breastwork of the wall. The walls were, however, very
imperfectly made, without any mortar or cement; if, therefore, any of
the defenders were to push too violently against it in places, he was
liable to displace some of the upper stones, and expose himself. This,
however, was not such a disadvantage as at first sight it seemed, for
the second leader, leaping up to grasp the top of the wall, in order to
pull himself over, had seized a stone that was insecurely placed, and
being at the same time pressed upon by Beornwulf above, who was waiting
to strike with his spear the moment the man came within thrusting
distance, the mass gave way, and came down with the man, falling upon
him, and crushing his legs with its weight. The two men who were behind
him, and who were bold enough, caring more for the destruction of their
foes than for the safety of their friends, sprang on to the step thus
offered, and were climbing into the breach when they were resolutely met
by Athelhune and Beornwulf, and a hand-to-hand fight of a desperate
nature began.
[Illustration: How Athelhune kept ye Roman ruins]
The other half-hearted assailants were either making weak attempts to
climb over the wall, or were trying to pull their crushed leader from
under the weight of the stone that was lying upon his legs, and which
was now rendered doubly heavy by the warrior, who was fiercely
exchanging blows with Athelhune, using it as a standing place.
This desire for the safety of their fallen leader was more ostentatious
than genuine, and was certainly not conducive either to his comfort or
the success of the assault; for the only immediate result was to extort
the fiercest execrations from the crushed leader, who suffered untold
agonies by their wrenching his limbs from under the weight, and had the
further consequence of causing their champion, who was engaged in the
hand-to-hand fight with Athelhune, to reel on the unsteady stone. He
thus missed a favourable, and what would have probably been a decisive
blow at his antagonist, and received instead the full force of a
tremendous stroke from Athelhune's axe, which toppled him down off the
stone upon the men who were pulling at his chieftain.
Thus Athelhune was relieved of his assailant at a very opportune moment,
for his neighbour, Beornwulf, was being hard driven by the Wihtwara, who
was a powerful, resolute man, and, having scrambled up to the top of the
wall, was more than a match for Beornwulf, who had hardly recovered from
his late wound inflicted by Ceolwulf in the Andredesweald, and who was,
besides, somewhat weak from want of food. Athelhune, having disposed of
his foeman, turned in an instant to Beornwulf's help, and with a
swinging blow of his axe shore through the leathern gaiters of the
Wihtwara, as he stood striking down at Beornwulf. The force of the blow
was so terrific that it not only severed the leg completely below the
knee, but inflicted a deep gash in the other leg, and the wretched man
fell headlong upon Beornwulf inside the fortification.
Meanwhile things had not been going quite so well on the other side of
Athelhune. The two men who were defending that part of the little fort
were Boseham men, and had not had experience of fighting like the
body-guard of Caedwalla; they were, besides, physically inferior, being
weakened by the long famine from which they, in common with the rest of
the South Saxons, had been suffering; they also mistook the efforts of
the old ceorls of AElfhere for really hostile intentions, and were
proportionately dispirited at the unequal nature of the contest.
The result, therefore, of the first onset had been the breaking down of
the hastily-constructed defences in front, and the entry of two of
Arwald's men, closely followed by three of their Braedynge allies. The
two Boseham men were forced back, still fighting, and were left by the
leading Wihtwara of Arwald's party to be disposed of by the others
behind him.
He himself made a rush for where the wounded Eorldoman AElfhere was
lying, and without a pause waved his gleaming axe over the defenceless
eorl's head. The axe rose, flashed, descended, but at the same instant
two other forms had darted forward, another flash of steel almost
simultaneous with that of the Wihtwara glanced in the air, and the spear
of Wulfstan, driven with all the energy of rage and despair nerving his
boyish strength, pierced the heart of the man who was about to murder
his father; but Wulfstan's blow would have been too late had it not been
for another interposition. Brother Malachi, seeing inevitable death
awaiting AElfhere, had rushed forward, and being without any weapon to
ward off the blow, had without a moment's thought thrust out his arms to
intercept the stroke. With a fortunate instinct he had held them high
up, so that the blow had not gathered full force, but the axe inflicted
a fearful wound, and Malachi's arm dropped useless to his side. But he
had done his work, he had gained his object, and he sank to the ground
with a sense of gratification as he saw the Wihtwara fall. There was
now only one determined foe left, for the rest of the assailants, who
had at no time shown any great desire to come to close quarters, were
now evidently wavering, and seeing that Athelhune and Beornwulf had
disposed of their antagonists, and were coming hastily to assist the
Boseham men and Wulfstan, they drew together and retreated outside the
enclosure, the Wihtwara belonging to Arwald going with them. Wulfstan
could hardly believe in their good fortune; it seemed impossible that
four armed men only, a monk, and a boy should have been able to resist
the determined attack of twelve men. Had these been all animated with
the same spirit as the six followers of Arwald they certainly could not
have made much of a fight of it; but the lucky recognition of his
father's ceorls by Wulfstan, and Athelhune's well-timed speech, had
turned the scale, and they were masters of the field.
But Athelhune was not satisfied with that; springing on to the wall he
shouted out to the Braedynge men to return to their eorldoman, who was
waiting to reward them for their services, and who had recognised how
skilfully they had managed to baffle the attempts of his enemies. He
also told Wulfstan to call to them by name, and invite them to come and
see their lord.
These words had their due effect, and the men came in with a sheepish
air to look at their wounded master, and to salute him with respectful
words. Two or three of them with greater presence of mind suddenly
turned upon the only follower of Arwald still alive or unwounded, and
disarmed him, accomplishing the feat so quickly as to allow him no time
to defend himself.
This was a very hopeful sign of their returning fidelity, and Athelhune
saw it with very visible satisfaction; but, like a prudent commander, he
would take no rest until he knew what had become of Ceolwulf, for he
could not disguise from himself the danger that so small a party as only
three men ran, now that he knew the enemy were aware of their arrival
and whereabouts.
He thought the best thing to do, therefore, would be to send off three
of the most trustworthy of the ceorls to look for Ceolwulf, tell him
what had happened, and hasten his return with the much-needed supplies,
the want of which was now more than ever felt. Wulfstan having told him
who were the men he liked best, he sent them off, and then turned to
examine the results of the fight.
His first care was for Malachi, whose heroism and self-sacrifice had
raised him to a pinnacle of glory. The wound he had received was of a
ghastly nature; the axe had struck the arm below the elbow, had cut to
the bone, and then glanced sideways, inflicting a desperate gash, and
poor Malachi had already fainted from loss of blood. But Athelhune had
seen plenty of wounds of a worse kind than this; indeed, the one he had
himself just now given to his antagonist was of a far more terrible
nature, and he did not doubt that Malachi would recover. He quickly
picked a handful of grass, the softest he could find, placed it firmly
over and round the wound, then tore off a piece of the dead Wihtwara's
tunic, and bound the arm tightly up. Finally, making a sling, and
suspending it round Malachi's neck, and inserting the arm in it, he had
him placed under the shelter by AElfhere's side. Then, leaving Deva and
Wulfstan to watch over the two wounded men, he went out to see what had
become of the other Wihtwaras.
The first man lay dead, close to the wall; near him lay the second
leader, still unable to move, for both his legs were broken, and the
stone yet rested on them; across him lay the warrior who had nearly
killed Athelhune, and who lay face downwards, his helmet cut through,
and showing clear evidence of what a well-delivered blow from an English
battle-axe could do: he was stone dead. Inside the fortification lay
the other man, whose leg had been shorn off by Athelhune; he was fast
bleeding to death: nothing could be done for him, even if they had felt
inclined. Near the cabin, where AElfhere and Malachi were placed, was
lying the other Wihtwara, with Wulfstan's spear still in him; and not
far off was the captured follower of Arwald, sitting disconsolate and
sulky, with his hands and feet tied fast.
Of Athelhune's little party only two had received wounds, and those very
slight. Wulfstan was unhurt, and had forgotten all about his hunger in
the joy of having slain his first enemy, and, more than all, saved his
father. The rest of the men were talking together, and already
Beornwulf and the Boseham men were fraternising with their late foes,
who were offering to go and bring some refreshments, when a distant
trampling announced the arrival of a considerable body of some sort.
Athelhune directly ordered the men to their posts, and urged them
hastily to repair the walls, and then sent one of the Braedynge men to
reconnoitre.
There were a few minutes of breathless suspense, for had a fresh enemy
appeared it would have fared badly with the weary and scanty defenders.
Suddenly a loud cheer relieved their minds, and they knew that Ceolwulf
was coming, and bringing them food.
*CHAPTER XII.*
*"THE KING SHALL HAVE HIS OWN AGAIN."*
The wild cheering that answered the shouts of Ceolwulf and his party was
scarcely over when the old ceorl appeared, accompanied by a number of
AElfhere's former servants, carrying baskets of provisions and other
comforts, from which it was quite evident that there was no further
danger to be apprehended from Arwald or his followers; indeed, it was
soon known to Athelhune and AElfhere that all the men of Arwald's party
had been engaged in the late assault, and that there was no immediate
risk of Arwald himself coming with a larger band, as the news would not
reach him rapidly, seeing that all his men were either killed, wounded,
or prisoners, and none of AElfhere's men were likely to report the
matter. This was good news to Athelhune's men, who were nearly worn
out, and they were very soon engaged in discussing the good cheer.
Some of the choicest of the food was brought to AElfhere, and although
the wounded eorldoman was able to eat but little, yet that little seemed
to do him good.
"Oh, father, what a joyful time is this!" cried Wulfstan, with his mouth
full of a juicy morsel of pork pasty. "How I do wish AEdric were here!
It seems years since I saw him; how he will wish he had had my luck!"
"My son," said AElfhere, "the gods have been good to us; we must
remember to save of the arms of those robbers to make an offering to
Woden. There is one of them taken alive; it will be as well to offer
him up, that my ceorls who died when they attacked us that night may
have one more foeman to hack in pieces in Valhalla. Mind thou seest to
it that he is taken care of. Verily, as he hath made me suffer, so
shall he suffer."
Old Deva was all this time sitting rocking herself backward and forward
over the fire she had lighted; near her was sitting her goat. The two
seemed to understand each other. She was chanting some doggerel in an
unknown tongue, in which the words "Arthur ap Uther Pendragon" seemed to
occur very frequently, but nobody paid her any attention.
It had now become quite dark, and the scene was very picturesque; the
men had piled up a large fire, and were stretched in various attitudes
around it. They had laid the dead bodies of the Wihtwaras in a distant
part of the ruins, for all were now dead; those who were mortally
wounded having been put out of their sufferings by a merciful cynicism,
human life in that rough age being very lightly valued.
The news of AElfhere's existence and the arrival of the young Eorl
Wulfstan, with old Biggun, had spread over the neighbourhood, and all
the populace had turned out, and were thronging round the ruins.
Athelhune, who did not know whether they were to be trusted, was at
first a little uneasy, and told his men secretly to be on their guard;
but Ceolwulf soon reassured him, and he cast off all anxiety, feasting
and enjoying himself with the rest.
Song and jest and practical joke rapidly succeeded, and it would have
been hard to realise that only about an hour before that same spot had
been the scene of a desperate fray, in which at least ten of the
revellers had been deadly antagonists; but so it was then, when men were
more like children than they are now, when the world has grown older,
and the transitions from one frame of mind to another were more rapid
and complete, and impressions were less lasting.
As all of Athelhune's party were very weary, directions were given by
Ceolwulf that a trusty band of the ceorls of AElfhere should guard the
ruins that night, while he and a few more returned to the half-burnt
homestead at Braedynge. With him dispersed the rest of the crowd, and
the ruins once more sank to their usual silence.
The night passed tranquilly enough. When day broke next morning, the
sun rose on a sleeping band of men, and they were not aroused from their
deep, refreshing sleep until the servants of AElfhere were busied in
preparing the morning meal.
Wulfstan woke with a deep sense of comfort. He was at home, as it were.
Round him were the faces of many who had been familiar to him from
infancy, and he sniffed up the fresh morning air that blew salt and pure
from the sea with the relish of healthy youth.
The ruins bore a new aspect. Fresh rushes had been laid down near and
around the little cabin where AElfhere lay; a large iron vessel was
steaming over the fire a little way off, from which the fragrant smell
of a well-seasoned stew reached him, and this he appreciated even more
than the pure air from the sea.
In different parts of the ruins his companions-in-arms were either still
recumbent or were going through a simple toilet. Personal cleanliness
was not much in fashion in the seventh century, except when it was
likely to conduce to comfort, and not many, therefore, were found
indulging in the luxury of a wash in the cold water from the well; but
some there were, and of this number was Athelhune.
When all were aroused, breakfast was served. It was pleasant to
Wulfstan to see how much better his father seemed this morning, and that
Malachi also was going on well. He had had his wound dressed and
strapped up again, and this time some linen was substituted for the
rough remedies of Athelhune.
After breakfast a council of war was called, near the wounded AElfhere,
and it was debated what should be done next, as it was not likely Arwald
would allow the death of his men to go unavenged, and the news was sure
to reach him soon. It was also discussed whether it would not be better
to move AElfhere to the homestead again.
It was finally decided that this should be done, and it was also thought
the restoration of the eorldoman to his home should be made as important
as possible; for as Arwald was sure to hear of the matter very soon, it
would be as well to let him know that the love of AElfhere's ceorls was
still with their lawful lord, the descendant of the first chieftain that
led the free band of roving Jutes to conquer the land for themselves and
their descendants.
Messengers, therefore, were sent out to all the country round, and all
the ceorls and their thralls were invited to assist at the ceremony of
bringing home the eorldoman. It was also widely disseminated that
Caedwalla had sent a large force to assist AElfhere, and to restore the
Wihtwaras and Wihtea to the domination of Wessex, a part of which
kingdom it had originally formed, until Wulfhere, the son of Penda, had
quite recently handed it over to Edilwalch, king of the South Saxons;
who, however, had never done more than appoint Arwald as his deputy,
with instructions to depress such of the Wihtwaras as still preserved
any attachment to Wessex.
It was quite evident to Athelhune and AElfhere that Arwald would not
allow these proceedings to pass off unmolested; or, if he did not feel
himself able to attack them at once, he would undoubtedly do so in the
course of a few days, when he had collected enough men for the purpose;
but they hoped that the ceorls and thralls would be all wrought up to
enthusiasm by the unexpected return of their own eorldoman, and would be
able to make a stubborn and effectual resistance.
To the surprise of all, AElfhere seemed much better this morning:
whether it were that the treatment of Malachi had really done any good,
or that the excitement of the evening before, combined with the
delightful satisfaction of having been saved by his own son, and seeing
his enemies slain, had roused him from his despondent torpor, and so
produced this good effect. But, from whichever cause it arose, there
could be no doubt of the fact--he was decidedly better. His wounds
looked more healthy, and he was much more cheerful.
The ruins of the Roman villa--for whatever Deva might think about her
ancestors having built it, there was no doubt it was built by the Romans
or Romanised Britons--were about two miles distant from the house of
AElfhere. Ceolwulf had given directions to have the house made as
comfortable as possible, and all traces of its occupation by Arwald's
followers were carefully obliterated. Care also was taken that there
should be a large supply of food; for no Saxon or English ceremony could
be considered complete at which a large amount of good cheer was not
consumed; and the usual result of a very splendid festival was the half
starving of the poorer population for some weeks afterwards; but as it
also had another effect, namely, the producing of a good many quarrels,
which generally terminated fatally, the number of mouths to be filled
subsequently was somewhat reduced.
When all was properly prepared, which was not until the afternoon, a
litter was made for AElfhere, and another for Malachi, who was now
treated with greater respect, while old Deva was also placed in an
important position; then Athelhune and Ceolwulf marshalled the
procession. The advance was led by Ceolwulf, attended by all the old
servants of AElfhere carrying such hastily contrived banners as could be
obtained for the occasion, and armed with axe and spear. Then came a
crowd of thralls; a great many ceorls followed, all armed also; and
immediately behind them came the litter of Malachi, followed by that of
AElfhere, by whose side walked Wulfstan and Deva, and attended by one or
two of his own servants carrying refreshments. Behind the eorldoman
came Athelhune, followed by Beornwulf and Osborn, and the four Boseham
men, their arms all bright, and their accoutrements in proper order.
This was the end of the organised procession, but a crowd of men, women,
and children came thronging behind, shouting, talking, and
gesticulating.
At the head of the whole procession marched a harper; there had not been
time to get more than one. He was attended by a band of children, who
sang desperately out of tune, and with a very hazy notion of the words,
a song of welcome, and waved branches of oak leaves and holly, while
some had bedecked themselves with the red berries of the wild iris, and
sprigs of "Holm" or "butcher's broom."
The procession wound round the foot of the downs skirting the marshes,
and then ascended a gentle rise, until, turning to the left among the
tall trees, the old homestead suddenly appeared.
It was a long, low-built, thatched house, with no pretentions to
architectural effect. One end was in ruins, and the gaunt, half-charred
rafters produced a feeling of desolation, which was somewhat relieved by
piles of straw lying ready to repair the damaged roof, while new timbers
were in process of being sawn up in a pit close by; behind the house
could be seen the higher roof of the barn, and other farm buildings, and
the blue smoke curling up amid the brown trees gave a look of comfort
very pleasing to AElfhere and Wulfstan.
A few servants stood outside the house ready to receive their lord, and
tables were set under the trees near, upon which a lavish amount of
steaming joints, huge jugs of ale, and gigantic loaves were spread, and
it was quite evident from the longing looks cast in this direction that
unless the ceremonies were soon over the procession would dissolve of
its own accord.
Ceolwulf therefore briefly welcomed his master home, to which AElfhere
as briefly replied, and then have directions that all should at once sit
down and begin upon the feast, and he hoped that all would eat plenty
and thoroughly enjoy themselves.
A loud cheer answered these few words, and instantly all was confusion.
AElfhere had told Ceolwulf to see that Wulfstan paid especial attention
to Athelhune and his men, to whom seats of honour were assigned at the
head of the principal table.
The feast passed off like all the feasts of those days: an enormous
amount of food was consumed, a little wit went a very long way, and no
one seemed much inclined to move. After the eating was over one or two
loud voices seemed to show that some amount of quarrelling was going on,
but Athelhune and Ceolwulf had determined that none of this should take
place, and so order was well kept.
Had Arwald attacked them directly after the festivities he would have
found an easy prey; but, fortunately for AElfhere and his supporters,
the news did not reach Arwald until late that day, and he was not in a
position to move at once to the attack.
While the feast was at its height a boy rushed in and shouted that a
boat was coming up the haven, and no one knew who it could be.
Questioned by Ceolwulf, he said that the boat was not a large one but
that there were several men on board, and from the sun shining on
something bright, he thought they were well armed. Ceolwulf immediately
sent a trusty man to find out what the boat was, and bring him word
again.
Just as the festivities were ending this man returned, accompanied by
four men in linked shirts of mail, and fully armed. On seeing them
Athelhune leapt to his feet, and shouted: