OUTLAWS AND WOLFSHEADS.
"To be forewarned is to be forearmed."
_Proverbial Saying._
Count de Montfort, the born autocrat, it may be inferred, was not the
man to permit any remnant of the conquered Saxons to assume an
independent authority, or to defy him in his exercise of unlimited
power. Nor did he relish the fearless tone in which Oswald had addressed
him. Such an affront must not be tolerated for a moment; so he
determined to organise an expedition which should explore the hills and
root out any incipient rebellion which might be afoot. It is needless to
say that the mysterious escape and reappearance of Oswald also caused
increased vigilance in guarding the castle to be resorted to.
Now Badger had manifested a wonderful tact in ingratiating himself with
the rough Norman troopers. It was much more common to see him sallying
forth cheek by jowl with some of these, fishing, hawking, or
boar-hunting, than to see him companying with his Saxon comrades. But
there was method in it all, for he was always possessed of their plans
and purposes; and when he communicated to me this determination of
theirs we made haste to apprise our countrymen of it. That night Badger
quietly issued from the postern gate of the Abbey, leading his mountain
pony Shaggy, and followed by his faithful wolf-hound Grizzly. Every
light was extinguished. Not a sound fell on the stillness of the night
air, saving the horrid braying of a stag in the distant wood, and the
screeching of owlets as they fluttered amid the branches of the trees in
quest of prey. No sooner had they passed through the gate at the
northern extremity of the Abbey's ground than Badger mounted Shaggy's
back, and they steadily threaded their way through the forest, making as
quickly as possible for the hill country. Steady riding for half an hour
brought them to the first spur of the mountain, when Badger threw
himself from the pony's back, and led the way at a brisk walk. Soon they
reached the top of this lower promontory, when, again mounting Shaggy,
they dashed along, sending the rabbits by hundreds scurrying away to
their holes. But Badger steadily forged ahead towards the huge
eminences, which seemed to rise out of utter darkness, and throw their
black and ominous outlines against the starlit sky. Half an hour's more
riding and patient climbing, and he neared the top. Choosing as the
easiest path a deflection between two peaks, he was proceeding at a
rapid pace, when, of a sudden, two men on horseback came bearing down
upon him like a whirlwind, and drew up in front of him with swords
drawn. "Saxon or Norman?" sang out one of them in a tone of inquiry.
"Saxon!" shouted Badger. "Down with the Normans!"
As the well-known voice was heard, the swords were sheathed, and the two
horsemen greeted him with a loud laugh.
"Why, you are living yet, then, Badger!" said one. "We have been
calculating your chances; and we had come to the conclusion you would be
killed and eaten by this time. You would be worth money, Badger, for
your _skins_ alone, this cold weather."
"Better shed every extra skin, Badger, or you'll lose your own, I'm
thinking," said the other.
"Yes, his skins are valuable, but his carcase is good for nothing.
Badgers are just carrion, and nothing more."
"We are right glad to see you, however," said the pair. And indeed they
seemed inclined to hug him in the exuberance of their delight.
"Well, and Shaggy's living too! What next, and next. These Normans are
becoming most merciful," again broke out the first one.
"Yes, yes," retorted the second one, "that's right enough. But they
aren't human beings either of them, or they'd have been murdered before
this."
"What news, Badger? I declare he's gone in a trance. Have they burnt the
castle down? Are they murdering everybody?"
"They'll have a mighty job to murder some of you," retorted Badger,
finding his tongue at last, "unless they could fly. You take mighty good
care of your skins. And i' faith, you've only one to take care of. But I
wager that will be whole at the finish, unless you should happen to
tumble and break your neck with running away."
"Hold there!" said the pair, bursting into a loud laugh at Badger's
retort. "When the time comes we shall be amongst the first at the
Normans' throats."
"All in good time, my hearties. They are coming in the morning to
disturb your roosts, so there will be a chance for you; but come along,
I can't stand here, I must see Oswald forthwith about this matter."
"This is our station for the night, Badger. This valley would almost
certainly be selected for a night attack, or day attack either, for the
matter of that. So we must watch until daybreak."
"Oh, come along, I know everything is perfectly quiet. Not a Norman
astir, I will be bond for it. You will be useful, so come along."
"If you will take the responsibility, Badger."
"That I will readily, so come along."
Then the pair turned their horses' heads round, and joined Badger in his
errand. As they sped across the moor they heard to the right of them a
fierce baying; and presently some half-dozen wolves came bearing down
upon them. The horses began to tremble in every limb, and show evidences
of bolting. So the three dismounted, and stood at the horses' heads with
Grizzly fiercely growling in front. This seemed to reassure the horses;
but as the wolves drew near they were evidently mistaken in their prey,
for they turned tail and fled. But Grizzly with a terrific growl dashed
after them, throwing himself on the haunches of the hindmost, and
rolling him over. Then, seizing him by the throat, he would speedily
have made an end of him, if the horsemen had not come up and dispatched
him with their swords. The monster turned out to be a large gaunt dog
wolf, who would have been an ugly customer for an unarmed man to meet
when the pinch of hunger was upon him.
"I hope they've got the sheep, and cattle, and swine all trim and tight,
or I'm feared they'll be missing some of them in the morning, with these
beasts prowling about," remarked one horseman.
"They're getting too plentiful to be at all pleasant. There's been
little time for wolf-hunting since these Normans came; they are getting
bold too, and are beginning to pack," remarked the second horseman.
"I wish they were the worst foes we had to deal with," said Badger; "I
should be a happier man by a good deal. But these dastardly Normans, I
fear me we shall never more shake them off. The villainous brood are
swarming all over the land, and there will soon be never a patch of soil
that a Saxon can call his own. We shall all either have to be slaves or
feed on the wind ere long."
"Not me, Badger," said one. "I have neither child nor chick, and a
freeman I'll be at all costs. The limestone caves and the greenwood
shall make me shelter. As for feeding on air, I'll not want something
more substantial if any Norman this side Baldley Heights or Whernside
Fell has a sheep in the fold or an ox in the stall."
"Well, don't be downhearted, comrades," said Badger. "When the wind
shifts, the cloud lifts. It's a broad ford that can't be bridged. The
strongest bow soonest relaxes, and the spent arrow falls lightly. Our
time will come, for these Normans are not Viking rovers, but like fat
living, and that breeds laziness; and we shall be able to shake
ourselves down comfortably if we can't push them out of the bed."
Whilst this conversation was proceeding the three were rapidly pressing
on, Badger having by this time put eight or ten miles between himself
and the Norman foe. But in the vast distance before them there seemed to
loom an unending stretch of moorland, vast and drear and dark. In the
pale moonlight the mists could be seen climbing the heights, or creeping
lazily along the hollows, where damp and bogs abounded. Like huge
repositories of old-world histories these grim old hills
seemed--dwarfing human nature into nothingness in their
presence--"everlasting hills," broad-based and firm; defying the storms
of winter, and bathing their heads in the golden sunshine of summer;
unmoved amid the changes, transformations, and fierce race struggles
which were being fought out with relentless cruelty around their base;
and offering a cold, unsympathetic shelter to fugitives flying to them
for safety.
"Keep to the left, Badger. We must keep on the outskirts of that vapour,
or we shall be speedily up to the knees in a bog. We have not far to go.
Do you see the tops of those fir-trees just peeping over those boulders?
That is our headquarters, and Oswald will be there."
Presently the persons of two scouts could be seen moving amid the
stones, and evidently reconnoitring the new-comers. A low, shrill
whistle is given by one of them, and is answered by Badger's friends; at
which signal they drew near to interview the strangers. Then it was seen
that the tops of the fir trees were but the outermost ring of a dense
wood, which lined the sides of a mammoth ravine, with a still lake of
water, or tarn, lying placidly in its hollow.
"Is Oswald here to-night?" was the first inquiry.
"Yes. What news?"
"All right so far; but there will be a lively time to-morrow. Badger,
here, has brought the news. Let him have speech with the Earl
forthwith."
So the three dismounted, and began slowly to thread their way by a path,
winding and difficult, with branches hanging low, and brushwood closing
up, so as to make progress impossible except in single file. By-and-bye
the bottom is reached, and before them there stands--what was totally
concealed from any one skirting the wood on the outside--a spacious
one-storied building near the head of the tarn. As they drew near, a
fierce growling of a watch-dog was heard, and a challenge was addressed
to them by some one hid from view by the dense brushwood. The answer
being satisfactory the horses were tied to the trees, and the stranger
led them by a winding path to the rear of the dwelling. A gentle tap
being given to the door, a woman's voice challenges the visitors; but
soon the bolts are withdrawn, and the party enters what was evidently
the kitchen quarters.
"Has the Earl retired?" said Bretwul to his wife.
"Yes, long ago. There has not been a sound in the house these two
hours."
After consulting together it was deemed a matter of sufficient
importance to summon Oswald, and to him Badger briefly related the news
which had brought him.
Then ensued a council of war, some advocating evasive tactics. But this
brought them face to face with the fact that the Normans were all aware
that they were hiding not far away, and they would be sure to persevere
until they had unearthed them. So it was decided that a lesson in
retaliation was necessary. Word was sent round at once for all cattle
and non-fighters to keep especially close, also for the able-bodied men
to meet the Earl at daylight at the cave on Deepdale Head.
Badger's errand being now accomplished, he led his pony to the clear.
There mounting, and accompanied by Grizzly, the return journey commenced
at a steady trot, which was never broken until the monastery was
reached; and soon each one was at rest. He had thus given a timely
warning to the outlawed Saxons, from which it will be seen they were not
slow to profit.