A Boys Ride | Page 3

wicked heart was full of rage. He had hit upon one
means of punishing them which they all could feel,--he struck them
through their wives and children. Some of the barons were obliged to
flee from England for their lives. Many were obliged to give the king
their sons as pledges of their loyalty. In every man's knowledge was the
sad case of one baron who had been obliged to flee with his wife and
son into hiding. The king, through his officers, had pursued them,
ferreted them out of their hiding-place, taken the wife and son captive,
shut them up in prison, and starved them to death. Lord De Aldithely
himself had been obliged to flee, but his son would never be delivered
up peaceably to the king's messengers, for De Aldithely castle was
strong and well defended.
This was the meaning of the arrows shot at the strange boy. The king's
messengers, who were constantly spying on the castle from the wood in
the hope of gaining possession of the person of the young lord by
stratagem, had taken him for Josceline, the young heir of the De
Aldithelys.
And now came a summons for both lads to come to the ladies' bower,
for Humphrey had not been idle.
"My change of raiment?" said the strange lad, inquiringly.

"Shall be in thy chamber presently," answered Josceline.
"I would that Fleetfoot also might be conveyed thither," said the
stranger, with an engaging smile.
"It shall be done," promised Josceline.
He gave the necessary commands to two grooms, and the lads, each the
counterpart of the other, waited a few moments and then started toward
the tower stairway, followed by the grooms bearing the huge dog
between them on a stretcher. The stair was steep, narrow, and winding,
and built of stone. Josceline went first, and was followed by the
stranger, who every now and then glanced back to speak a reassuring
word to his dog. At the entrance to the ladies' bower Josceline paused.
"Thou mayest, if thou like, lay the dog for a while on a skin by my
mother's fire," he said, and looked inquiringly at his guest.
"That would I be glad to do," was the grateful reply. "See how he
shivers from the loss of blood and the chill air."
For answer Josceline waved his hand toward his mother's parlor, and
the grooms, conveying the dog, obediently entered. For all but
Humphrey, the Saxon serving-man, were accustomed to obey the
young heir unquestioningly. But Humphrey obeyed no one without
question. It was often necessary to convince his rather slow reason and
his active and many superstitions before his obedience could be secured.
No one else in the castle would have dared to take his course, but
Humphrey was thus favored and trusted because he was born a servant
in Lord De Aldithely's father's house, and was ten years older than the
mistress of the castle, whose master was now gone. He had already told
Lady De Aldithely all that he knew of the strange lad, and had advised
her, with his accustomed frankness, to put lad, horse, and hound at once
without the castle walls. Lady De Aldithely had listened, and when he
had finished, without any comment, she had commanded him to send
the two lads to her.
For a moment Humphrey had seemed disappointed. Then recovering
himself he had made answer, "Oh, ay. It will no doubt be best to see for

yourself first, and there is no denying that the three can then be put
outside the walls."
Receiving no reply, he had withdrawn and delivered his message.
Lady De Aldithely was standing evidently in deep thought when the
little group entered. The strange lad looked at her curiously. He saw a
slight figure clad in a green robe, and as she turned he caught the gleam
of a jewel in the golden fillet that bound her wimple on the forehead.
Her eyes were blue, and her look one of high courage shadowed
somewhat by an expression of anxiety. One could well believe that,
however anxious and worried she might be, she would still dare to do
what seemed to her best. She now diligently and eagerly compared the
two lads, glancing quickly from one to the other, and their exceeding
great likeness to each other seemed to strike her with astonishment. At
last she smiled and spoke to the stranger. "Thou art welcome, my lad,"
she said kindly. "But whence comest thou? and what is thy name?"
[Illustration: "Thou Art Welcome My Lad" Said Lady De Aldithely]
"I am to-day from York, and I am called Hugo Aungerville," was the
frank reply with an answering smile.
"To-day," repeated Lady De Aldithely. "That argueth that thy residence
is not there, as doth also thy