Part 34 (1/2)
England has need of their strength. The messenger was to stop at Helmsley, and bid every soul left there to hurry to the field. It is but two miles away, and in half an hour they will be here. The first thing for them to do is to carry water to the wounded; there are no lack of vessels in the Nors.e.m.e.n's camp.”
”I will go to the bridge, my lord, and take them in charge when they arrive, and set them at the work.”
”You need rest as much as any, Wulf.”
”I can rest to-morrow,” Wulf said; ”and at any rate could not sleep to-night, for I must see to OsG.o.d, who will, I fear, lose an arm.”
”I am sorry to hear it,” Harold said, ”for one could ill spare so brave a fellow. I saw the Nors.e.m.e.n going down under his axe, and a.s.suredly no man did more than he to-day.”
”I will tell him what you say, my lord; it will do him good. I left him sitting down on a bank bemoaning himself that he might not be cured in time to fight the Normans.”
Harold shook his head. ”I would give half my estates, Wulf, that he should be well enough to fight by your side in our first battle with the Normans.
That would mean that they would not land before two months have pa.s.sed, and by that time I would have all the force of England gathered to receive them. As you are willing that it should be so, I will leave you in charge of the camp to-night. It will be three hours before help can arrive from York. Till then there is nought to do but to carry water to the wounded.
When they arrive the monks will dress the wounds, and the men and women carry such as can be moved down by the river, where they can be treated more easily than lying in the fields. Have a strict search made for the body of my brother, and place a guard over it. Sweyn is in charge of the Norse camp. There is great treasure there, which shall to-morrow be partly divided among the troops.”
Wulf went at once down to the bridge, while Harold and his thanes lay down like the soldiers on the field of battle. In a short time men, women, and children came in from Helmsley. Having been told what they were required for, they had brought with them jugs and drinking cups, and also a supply of torches. The first search was made over the ground west of the river.
Here few English had fallen, but the Nors.e.m.e.n lay thickly. Wulf ordered that water should be given to all, foe as well as friend. The number of living was small, for the heavy two handed axes had done their work thoroughly. When such as survived had been seen to, Wulf led the villagers over the bridge.
”Scatter right and left,” he said, ”and then move forward. You cannot go wrong.” Having seen them all at work, he hurried away to the spot where he had left OsG.o.d sitting. He had before leaving him staunched the flow of blood by winding a bow string round the arm above the wound and then twisting it tightly.
”How fares it with you, OsG.o.d? Here is a ewer of water.”
”That is good,” OsG.o.d said, after taking a mighty draught. ”Truly I felt as if the moisture of my body had all dried up, and not only my mouth but my whole frame was parched.”
”Why, OsG.o.d,” Wulf exclaimed, as he held the torch he carried close to him, ”your arm has gone!”
”That is so, master, an arm after the bone has been cleft through is of no use to anyone, so I thought the sooner I got rid of it the better, and having my knife handy I just cut through the flesh that remained. That was the end of it. Would that we could get rid of all our evils as readily.
To-morrow I will walk to York and get the wound seared.”
”The king sent to York for aid directly the battle was over, and we shall have all the townsfolk here soon, among them monks and others skilled in the dressing of wounds. I told the king of your misfortune.” And he then repeated what Harold had said.
”It does me good to hear that Harold is satisfied with me. I hope to strike many a good blow for him yet.”
”How still it is here, OsG.o.d! There is scarce a sound to be heard from all those lying round.”
”There are but few with life in them, I reckon,” OsG.o.d said. ”A Norse sword and an English axe let out the life quickly when they strike fair.
This blow fell on my arm as my axe was raised to strike, and it were well it did so, or it would have taken me in the neck, and then neither monk nor leech could have brought me back to life. Had it been my right arm I would as lief have been killed at once, for what good is a man without his right arm?”
”You would have learned to use your left in time, OsG.o.d. Now if you can walk, come down to the river, and I will see that you are among the first attended to.”
”I will lie down here,” OsG.o.d said, ”for in truth I feel as if I need sleep. For the last two days I have been scarce able to keep my eyes open, and now that I have had a drink I feel that a few hours' rest will do me more good than any monk.”
OsG.o.d's words came slowly and heavily, and as he ended he lay down on his back. Wulf saw that it was best that he should sleep, and so left him. In two hours a great number of lights were seen along the road, and soon a crowd of men and women from York appeared and scattered themselves over the battlefield, the monks pouring balm into wounds and bandaging them up, while the men and women carried the wounded, as fast as they were attended to, down to the river. The bodies of Tostig and of the King of Norway were both found, and a guard placed over them, and in the morning that of Tostig was carried to York for burial in the cathedral, while Harold Hardrada was buried where he fell.
Harold sent messengers to the Nors.e.m.e.n's fleet offering mercy to them if they would surrender, and their chiefs come to York and swear never again to raise their swords against England--an offer which was thankfully accepted, for the English fleet had entered the Humber, and their retreat was cut off.
The next day the Norse chiefs went to York and took the required oath, and were then escorted back to their s.h.i.+ps. So terrible had been the slaughter, so complete the destruction of the invading army, that, even including the guard that remained at the fleet, twenty-four s.h.i.+ps sufficed to carry away home the survivors of the mighty host. The task of burying the slain was too great to be undertaken, and for many years afterwards the field of battle was whitened with the bones of the invaders who had fallen there.
On the day after the battle Harold returned with his army to York. Here all who had fallen away from the cause of England were pardoned. Measures were taken for making the fighting strength of the North available for the general defence of the country. The wounded were cared for in the houses of the citizens, and for five days the troops rested after their prodigious exertions.