. But Cloudeslee showed no fear. He addressed the crowd
gravely: "Good folk, stand all as still as may be. For such a shot a
man needs a steady hand, and your movements may destroy my aim and
make me slay my son. Pray for me."

Then, in an unbroken silence of breathless suspense, the bold marksman
shot, and the apple fell to the ground, cleft into two absolutely
equal halves. A cheer from every spectator burst forth deafeningly,
and did not die down till the king beckoned for silence.

The King and Queen Show Favour

"God forbid that I should ever be your target," quoth he. "You shall
be my chief forester in the North Country, with daily wage, and daily
right of killing venison; your two brethren shall become yeomen of my
guard, and I will advance the fortunes of your family in every way."

The queen smiled graciously upon William, and she bestowed a pension
upon him, and bade him bring his wife, fair Alice, to court, to take
up the post of chief woman of the bedchamber to the royal children.

Overwhelmed with these favours, the three yeomen became conscious of
their own offences, more than they had told to the royal pair; their
awakened consciences sent them to a holy bishop, who heard their
confessions, gave them penance and bade them live well for the
future, and then absolved them. When they had returned to Englewood
Forest and had broken up the outlaw band they came back to the royal
court, and spent the rest of their lives in great favour with the king
and queen.

CHAPTER XII: BLACK COLIN OF LOCH AWE

Introduction

In considering the hero-myths of Scotland we are at once confronted
with two difficulties. The first, and perhaps the greater, is this,
that the only national heroes of Lowland Scotland are actual
historical persons, with very little of the mythical character about
them. The mention of Scottish heroes at once suggests Sir William
Wallace, Robert Bruce, the Black Douglas, Sir Andrew Barton, and many
more, whose exploits are matter of serious chronicle and sober record
rather than subject of tradition and myth. These warriors are too much
in reach of the fierce white searchlight of historic inquiry to be
invested with mythical interest or to show any developments of ancient
legend.

The second difficulty is of a different nature, and yet almost equally
perplexing. In the old ballads and poems of the Gaelic Highlands there
are mythical heroes in abundance, such as Fingal and Ossian, Co