say it is fair for us!" Wulf brought down his fist upon
the table with a blow that made the cups rattle. "Therefore now is our
chance, say I! All is confusion; the lords fight amongst themselves; we
are slowly gaining the ground they lose--let us also gain wealth with
it!"

He discoursed at great length, repeating himself incessantly, losing
himself in endless trains of argument which nobody contradicted. It was
not very clear what he wanted, even to himself, it would seem. But he
was quite convinced that existing conditions were altogether wrong and
something should at once be done about it. What the something should be
he did not take the trouble to state. Wardo dozed peacefully, his head
on Sada's breast. No one in the room paid the least attention to them.

Wardo roused, in time, reaching out blindly for his cup, and caught a
word of Wulf's oration:

"... Gold for the taking. Had I but a half hundred--"

"Gold! That is a good thing to have!" Wardo muttered. He pulled Sada's
head down to him. "When I have gold, I shall buy thee from thy mistress.
Wilt go with me?"

The girl's fair face flushed.

"Ay, thou knowest I will go," she answered. "Wheresoever thou wilt take
me."

"If thou wouldst have gold, my friend, come with me, and it shall be
thine in plenty," Wulf cried eagerly.

Wardo looked at him with awakening interest.

"How so?"

"Thus," said Wulf. "We shall take for ourselves what should be ours by
right, what is wrung from us by infamous greed. What would suffice us
would not be missed by those who have more than plenty, yet even this
they will not give us. We must get it for ourselves."

Wardo nodded.

"That will be a good thing to do. Where shall we find it?"

"Why should we show mercy to them?" Wulf declaimed. "What mercy have
they shown us? Do they not grind us into the earth; do we not pay in
sweat and blood for their idle pleasures? And with all of this, have
they not sought to force us to our knees before any new god they choose
to perch upon a pedestal? I, for one, will not worship because one man
says 'Bow down!' And I do not care who knows it. I am as good as the
next man, and I will have my rights."

Wardo, who had never heard anything like this before, was impressed
deeply.

"I say so too," he exclaimed with great earnestness. "Let us take what
is our own. Then if thou hast rights, _I_ have rights also. And I will
have my rights!"

"Of course! I see thou art a clever fellow, an