Part 26 (1/2)
”Tarry a lass of wine before thou goest”
”With all my heart,” replied the other And now for the first time since he had entered the tent he opened his visor
”By Heaven and all its Saints!” cried Harleston; ”I felt assured that I had seen yon suit of armour ere this day Yes,” he continued, ”the last ti thee was on the field of battle; e took Berwick froht which did so kindly cuthed ood sword in payment for those that thou didst break that day”
”When I did come to my senses,” said the Frenchentlerasped the Frenchood friends
And thus we sat over our wine and talked, until the trumpets of the heralds warned us that it was tihts Mounting our horses we rode to the southern extre was to take place
CHAPTER XXII
A MIDNIGHT ADVENTURE
Tired hen at length night careat tourna Richard thren his truncheon, and thus put an end, until the morrow, to the jousts
My total injuries for the whole long day were a few dints in my shi+eld and armour, and the loss of my fine plumes, which had been shorn off with a sword blow froht, in the battle of the six and twenty, which had been declared an even contest; though verily do I think our side had a slight advantage; for when, at last, the contest was stopped, on account of the great blood-shed caused, we still had five knights mounted, whilst our opponents had but four True our leader had been placed _hors de combat_, butone more in the saddle on our side However, it may have been more fair to both parties to have the decision as it was, though for ht to a definite conclusion Then again, the Usurper lost not any supporters by stopping the contest before either side had any decided advantage
We had been in our tent for some time previous to the conclusion of the day's events, the last of which wasme in the removal of mine armour, asked, in that fashi+on that ever made it impossible for me to refuse his request:--
”Sure, yer honour, in crave yer honour's pardon fer axin' ye, sor, to be absent a short toiin look after thim ould ladies yonder Sure ye know, sor, Oi'd not be botherin' loike, if Oi wasn't so bound by moy falein's to look after thio; but tarry not after thou hast taken them safely from the field”
”Uh! sure, sor, Oi fale loike a thafe fer so botherin' yer honour with ivir wantin' somethin' Thank ye sor Oi'll be back the er,” and with a respectful salute he vanished
We were at our supper when Michael returned, coh he had travelled far at no slow pace
”What in the devil's na unto thyself?” I asked in surprise
”Runnin', sor,” he gasped
”Short and definite, as well as evident,” said I ”But for why didst thou come in such haste?”
”Uh! sure, yer honour, as Oi was returning after takin' the ould ladies to a place o' safety, and as Oi caht o' yer honour's tint, uh! sure if Oi didn't behould a damned varmint o' a raven a floyin' in circles ouver this viry tint Sure, sor, it's an ill day fer poor Moichael when Oi have the misfortune to have to tillhis enorony of spirit
”Nay, my faithful friend, feel thankful rather that thou wert permitted to see, and thus inform me of the ill-omened bird's presence, in which the Royal Arthur now flies on wings of hell's own darkness o'er this fair land, e those which danger threatens, and thus giving theainst the trouble”
”But did it alight upon the tent, or merely circle overhead?” asked Harleston