ong. That way I shall be able, as we agreed, to
carry it under my doublet. Of course it will make me walk stiffly, and
there will be no possibility of sitting down, but that matters not at
all. It is all the stronger, and will send an arrow a good distance. I
have got six arrows as you ordered me. They are regular arrows, but I
made the man shorten them so as to suit the bow, and then repoint them.
I have got them inside my doublet. I tied them together, made a hole in
the lining under the arm, and put them in."

"You have not forgotten the cord, I hope, Paolo?"

"Not I, master. I should have deserved having my ears cut off if I had
done so."

They were in no hurry, and walked only fast enough to keep themselves
warm. In two hours and a half they arrived at the main road and turned
to the right. "Now we will go another couple of miles, Paolo, and then
look out for a sleeping place. An empty barn or stable or a stack of
fodder is what we want. We may as well sleep warm as cold. We shall not
want to be moving on till seven o'clock."

After walking three miles they came upon a small village.

"Do you stay here, master, I will go round and see if I can find a
place. I am more accustomed to these villages than you are."

In five minutes he returned. "I have found a capital place," he said.
"It is a stable, but it is empty. No doubt the Spaniards have taken the
horses, and are using them in their transport wagons."

"It is enough for us that the place is empty, Paolo."

The door stood ajar. They entered and closed it behind them, and they
then felt about until they found a pile of rough fodder. They pulled
some of this aside, lay down and covered themselves up with the stalks
they had removed, and in three minutes were fast asleep, for they had
had a long day's work. Hector slept until he was awakened by Paolo,
who said, "The day is breaking, and the village will be astir in a few
minutes." The weather had changed, and as they stepped out fine flakes
of snow were drifting through the air, and the ground was already
whitened. They regained the road and walked along until they came to a
wood.

"We may as well wait here and breakfast, Paolo." The parcel was opened
and found to contain a cold capon and some bread, and on these and the
wine they made a capital breakfast, each taking a long sip at the bottle
to the health of the colonel. "The market people are beginning to come
along, and we may as well buy something from