t Windshore [125], and Earl Godwin and his sons, and many others
of high degree, left their homes to do honour to the King. And Earl
Godwin came first to his house in London--near the Tower Palatine, in
what is now called the Fleet--and Harold the Earl, and Tostig, and
Leofwine, and Gurth, were to meet him there, and go thence, with the full
state of their sub-thegns, and cnehts, and house-carles, their falcons,
and their hounds, as become men of such rank, to the court of King
Edward.

Earl Godwin sate with his wife, Githa, in a room out of the Hall, which
looked on the Thames,--awaiting Harold, who was expected to arrive ere
nightfall. Gurth had ridden forth to meet his brother, and Leofwine and
Tostig had gone over to Southwark, to try their band-dogs on the great
bear, which had been brought from the north a few days before, and was
said to have hugged many good hounds to death, and a large train of
thegns and house-carles had gone with them to see the sport; so that the
old Earl and his lady the Dane sate alone. And there was a cloud upon
Earl Godwin's large forehead, and he sate by the fire, spreading his
hands before it, and looking thoughtfully on the flame, as it broke
through the smoke which burst out into the cover, or hole in the roof.
And in that large house there were no less than three "covers," or rooms,
wherein fires could be lit in the centre of the floor; and the rafters
above were blackened with the smoke; and in those good old days, ere
chimneys, if existing, were much in use, "poses, and rheumatisms, and
catarrhs," were unknown, so wholesome and healthful was the smoke. Earl
Godwin's favourite hound, old, like himself, lay at his feet, dreaming,
for it whined and was restless. And the Earl's old hawk, with its
feathers all stiff and sparse, perched on the dossal of the Earl's chair
and the floor was pranked with rushes and sweet herbs--the first of the
spring; and Githa's feet were on her stool, and she leaned her proud face
on the small hand which proved her descent from the Dane, and rocked
herself to and fro, and thought of her son Wolnoth in the court of the
Norman.

"Githa," at last said the Earl, "thou hast been to me a good wife and a
true, and thou hast borne me tall and bold sons, some of whom have caused
us sorrow, and some joy; and in sorrow and in joy we have but drawn
closer to each other. Yet when we wed thou wert in thy first youth, and
the best part of my years was fled; and