red by the princess
herself. So, when the cup was offered to him by a maiden, he refused
it with abruptness, and declined to listen to the harper. His rude
conduct raised a tumult of excitement and indignation, whereupon the
princess herself approached him and offered the cup, which he received
with courtesy. The princess, entirely confirmed in her suspicions
as to his identity, threw a ring into his bosom, and, turning to the
company, craved indulgence for the stranger, who was not acquainted
with their customs. The minstrel remained sullen, whereupon Hereward
seized his harp and played with such exquisite skill as to awaken the
astonishment of the company. As he played and sang, his companions,
"after the manner of the Saxons," joined in at intervals; whereupon
the princess, to help him in his assumed character, presented him the
rich cloak which was the reward of the minstrel. Suspicions as to his
real character were not, however, entirely allayed; and these were
increased by his request to the father of the bride for the release of
the Irish messengers.

Finding that he had endangered his safety and the success of his plans
by his indiscretion, Hereward slipped away unobserved, and, with his
companions, lay in ambush the next day along the road by which he knew
the bride would be conducted by her father to her new home. As the
bridal procession passed, and with it the Irish prisoners, Hereward
rushed out upon the unsuspecting company; and while his companions
released the prisoners, he seized the lady and bore her away in true
knightly fashion. It may well be believed that the bride was soon
united in wedlock to the husband of her choice.

One other circumstance in the history of this man, whose life was a
series of bold undertakings, serves to illustrate the superstitions
of the times. When King William had besieged the island of Ely, which
was the headquarters of Hereward and his large following of Saxon
warriors, and had failed to subdue them, he gave heed to the counsel
of one of his courtiers, to have recourse to a celebrated witch
for aid in the destruction of his foes. Hereward, to spy upon his
adversary and discover his plans, disguised himself as a potter,
and stopped at the house of the old woman whose magic was to be used
against him; that night he followed her and another crone out into
the fields, where they engaged in their curious rites. From their
conversation he learned of the scheme against him,