Forest Days: A Romance of Old Times
deputies from the ranks of the people to the high parliament of the
nation; to represent the rights and interests of those classes which
had heretofore no voice in making the laws of the land? I say, it is
the nobles of England; and I am much mistaken if, in all times to come,
that body of men--though there may be, and ever will be, evildoers
amongst them--will not stand between the people and oppression and
wrong--will not prove the great bulwark of our institutions, preserving
them from all the tempests that may assail them, let the point of
attack be where it will."
"Perhaps it may be so," said Robin Hood; "but yet, my good lord, I
could wish that persons in high station would remember that, with their
advantages and privileges, with wealth, power, and dignity, greater
than their fellow-men, they have greater duties and obligations
likewise; and, as envy places them where all their faults may be
observed, it would be as well if, as a body, they were to remember that
each man who disgraces himself disgraces his whole order, and were to
punish him for that crime by withdrawing from him the countenance of
those upon whom he has brought discredit. When the virtuous associate
with the vicious, they make the fault their own; and no wonder that men
of high birth, though good men in themselves, are classed together with
the wicked of their own order when they tolerate the evildoer, and
leave him unpunished even by a frown."
"I cannot but agree with you," said Hugh de Monthermer; "but----"
"Ay, my lord, there is many a but," replied the bold outlaw, after
having waited for a moment to hear the conclusion of the young lord's
sentence; "and there ever will be a but, so long as men are men, and
have human passions and human follies. There was but one in whose life
there was no _but_, and Him they nailed upon a tree;" and the outlaw
raised his hand, and touched his bonnet, reverently, for he felt deep
reverence, however much his words might seem to want it.
Hugh de Monthermer was not inclined to pursue the conversation any
farther, and, turning to the young franklin, he said, "I fear, Ralph,
that after all the wrong you have suffered from one of my class, you
will not be inclined to allow us much merit in any respect; but,
believe me, we are not all like him."
"I know it, my lord--I know it," replied Ralph. "If I were ignorant
that, as well as the blackest vices which can degrade man, there are to
be found in your order the brightest virtues, I should not merit to
have known you.--But in good sooth, my lord, my thoughts are not of
general subjects just now. One private grief presses on me so hard that
I can think of nothing else."
"I would fain have you wean yourself from those remembrances," said his
friend. "Nay, shake not your head, I know that it can only be done by
banishing all those sights and sounds that are the watchwords of
memory, and by seeking other matter for thought. Ay, even matter that
will force your mind away from the subject that it clings to, and
occupy you whether you will or not. There are stirring times before us,
Ralph,--times when the great interests of the state,--when dangers to
our liberties and rights may well divide men's attention with private
griefs. What say you; will you come with me to the west, and take a
part in the struggle that I see approaching?"
"I will follow you right willingly, my lord," replied Ralph Harland,
"though I cannot well go with you. I must not forget, in my selfish
sorrow, that I have a father who loves me; and whose life and happiness
rests upon mine, as I have seen an old wall held up by the ivy which it
first raised from the ground. I must speak with him before I go--must
bid him adieu, and do what I can to comfort and console him. He will
not seek to make me stay, and I will soon follow you; but it shall not
be alone, for I can bring you many a heart right willing to fight under
the same banner with yourself. Where shall I find you, my good lord?"
"As soon as I have taken this fair lady's orders," said Hugh de
Monthermer, "and conducted her whither she is pleased to go, I shall
turn my steps direct to Hereford by the way of Gloucester, hoping to
overtake my uncle and the good Earl of Ashby, and should I find with
him his cousin Richard, he shall render to me no light account of more
than one base act."
"Nay, my lord, nay," replied the young franklin, "I do beseech you,
quarrel not for me. I know, or at least guess, what dear interests you
may peril. But, moreover, though I be neither knight nor noble, there
are some wrongs that set aside all vain distinctions, and I do not
despair of the time coming when I shall find that base traitor alone to
give me an answer. When that moment arrives, it will be a solemn one;
but I would not part with the hope thereof for a king's crown. But now,
my lord, let me not keep you from the lady of your love. Go to her; let
her know she is free to come and go, as far as I at least am concerned;
but tell her, my lord, I charge you, why she was brought here, that she
may be aware of what a serpent her father and her brother cherish."
"Ay, tell her--tell her," said Robin Hood--"tell her, for her own sake;
for there is something that makes me fear--I know not why--that the day
will come when that knowledge may be to her a safeguard and a shield
against one who now seems powerless. Scoff not at it, my lord, as if he
were too pitiful to give cause for alarm. The scorpion is a small,
petty-looking insect, but yet there is death in his sting. And now,
good night; when you have spent another hour in the sweet dreams that
lovers like, betake you to repose, and early to-morrow you shall have
some one to guide you on your way."
CHAPTER XIV.
There are some days of life when everything appears to combine to
heighten the hues of happiness, when not only the sensations in our own
bosoms, and the circumstances of our fate are all bright and cheerful,
but when every external object, every feature in Nature's face seems to
smile, and every sound to be in harmony with our feelings. But such
hours are too precious to be many; blessed is that life which can count
two or three of them; and it has been often remarked, that as at some
seasons of the year, a peculiarly fine day generally announces the
approach of storm and tempest, so do one of these bright intervals in
our cloudy existence precede a period of sorrow, trouble, and disaster.
An hour after daybreak, on as sweet a morning as ever dawned, in the
midst of the magnificent scenery of the forest, Hugh de Monthermer and
Lucy de Ashby stood by the side of their horses, ready to mount and
depart. Love gave its sunshine to each heart. Lucy's bosom beat high at
her deliverance by her lover. The assurance of her affection--the
delight of her presence--the increased hope of obtaining her, rendered
his sensations not less joyful. The yellow morning light spread sweetly
overhead; the old grey Saxon building rested calm in its ivy robe
behind them: every blade of grass was sparkling with a thousand
diamonds; every air wafted the breath of the sweet forest flowers;
every tree was tuneful with the song of the birds. It was like some
happy dream, when imagination, stripping life of its stern realities,
revels supreme, and decks the brief moments of sleep with all the
boundless treasures of her airy kingdom.
A step nearer to the lodge stood the bold forester; his fine, muscular
limbs clear and defined in his tight-fitting garb, and his nut brown
hair curling round his thoughtful forehead. A faint smile hung upon his
lip as he watched the two lovers, leaving them to proceed as they
would, without interrupting them with courtesies. It seemed as if he
was reading a pleasant book, of the truth of which he might have some
doubt, but which yet interested and amused him; for Robin knew the
world too well to suppose that such happiness could last long, but yet
his mind was of that firm and hardy nature which clouds not the present
with cares and fears of the future, but extracts from every hour its
honey, and leaves the rest to fate.
When Hugh de Monthermer had placed Lucy on her horse, he turned to bid
their host good bye, frankly holding out his hand.
"Farewell, my lord!" said Robin, taking it. "We shall soon meet again
in busier scenes, if I judge right. But where is the guide I promised
you? Why, Tangel, Tangel! where are you?" and he raised his voice loud
and somewhat sternly. At his last call the dwarf crept forth from
behind the house, with a bent head and crouching posture, like an
unwilling dog, approaching his master slowly, and eyeing him askance.
"What now--what now?" said Robin Hood. "Did I not give you orders?
Where is the horse?"
"I would fain not go," cried the dwarf. "Let me stay with thee, Robin,
let me stay with thee. Send Smooth Face, send White Skin, send Harry
the page.--If the fool can't take care of himself, and must have a boy
to lead him about the world, like a blind beggar, send young Porkflesh
with him.--Why should he take me?"
"Nay, my good friend," said Hugh de Monthermer, seeing the bold
forester about to speak somewhat angrily, "Let the lad stay with thee!
I shall find my way well enough; his only fault is loving thee well."
"Those that love me obey me," replied Robin Hood; "and, my good lord,
he must do so, or never see me more. It is not alone to guide you
through the forest I send him with you; you must take him to Hereford,
and keep him till we meet again. You will find him faithful and true,
crafty and active, though he shews himself so unruly at present; and in
these dangerous times it may be of great service both to you and me
that you should have some one with you who knows every man in my band.
I may have to convey intelligence to you and to the good lord, your
uncle; for I gain a knowledge of all that takes place throughout the
land, which my Lord of Leicester, with all his power, cannot attain. It
is needful that you should have some means of knowing which messengers
are really mine, and which are not, for these are times full of deceit,
and human cunning is more busily at work than the world ever saw, I
believe. If anybody comes to you in my name, call for this boy, and
make him tell you whether he be one of my people or not. Go, Tangel;
and let me hear that you have done your duty."
"Come, my boy--come!" said Hugh de Monthermer, speaking to him kindly;
"I will try to make thee as happy as may be; and thou shalt love me,
whether thou wilt or not."
"Goodsooth, I love thee well enough," replied the dwarf, "though I have
no weakness for men in purfled jerkins. I love thee well enough, though
not so well as him; but what must be, must be. Poor Tangel has always
been Fate's foot-ball. Well, I will get the horse."
So saying, he stretched out his long arms, put his hands suddenly upon
the shoulders of Lucy's two maids, who were standing close together,
and vaulting over them with a leap that made them both scream, he
bounded round the angle of the building, and soon reappeared, leading
a small brown forest horse, furnished with saddle-bags for his journey.
As soon as the whole party were mounted, the Outlaw approached the side
of Hugh de Monthermer's horse, and, looking up in his face, said a few
words to him in a low tone which seemed to excite some surprise.
"Indeed!" exclaimed the young knight; "but are you certain?"
"As certain," replied Robin Hood, "as of that being a magpie in the
tree."
"Then you must have taken some means to delude them," said Hugh de
Monthermer.
"Not I," answered Robin Hood, "I always leave fools to delude
themselves; they are sure to do it more cleverly than I could. However,
it was necessary that you should know the fact, so I tell you. Now, God