the
descendant of the Norsemen, the Count of Rouen!"

Harold started, and turned to his chiefs. "Sound trumpet, and fall in.
To York we march. There re-settle the earldom, collect the spoil, and
then back, my men, to the southern shores. Yet first kneel thou, Haco,
son of my brother Sweyn: thy deeds were done in the light of Heaven, in
the sight of warriors in the open field; so should thine honours find
thee! Not with the vain fripperies of Norman knighthood do I deck thee,
but make thee one of the elder brotherhood of Minister and Miles. I gird
round thy loins mine own baldric of pure silver; I place in thy hand mine
own sword of plain steel; and bid thee rise to take place in council and
camps amongst the Proceres of England,--Earl of Hertford and Essex.
Boy," whispered the King, as he bent over the pale cheek of his nephew,
"thank not me. From me the thanks should come. On the day that saw
Tostig's crime and his death, thou didst purify the name of my brother
Sweyn! On to our city of York!"

High banquet was held in York; and, according to the customs of the Saxon
monarchs, the King could not absent himself from the Victory Feast of his
thegns. He sate at the head of the board, between his brothers. Morcar,
whose departure from the city had deprived him of a share in the battle,
had arrived that day with his brother Edwin, whom he had gone to summon
to his aid. And though the young Earls envied the fame they had not
shared, the envy was noble.

Gay and boisterous was the wassail; and lively song, long neglected in
England, woke, as it wakes ever, at the breath of Joy and Fame. As if in
the days of Alfred, the harp passed from hand to hand; martial and rough
the strain beneath the touch of the Anglo-Dane, more refined and
thoughtful the lay when it chimed to the voice of the Anglo-Saxon. But
the memory of Tostig--all guilty though he was--a brother slain in war
with a brother, lay heavy on Harold's soul. Still, so had he schooled
and trained himself to live but for England--know no joy and no woe not
hers--that by degrees and strong efforts he shook off his gloom. And
music, and song, and wine, and blazing lights, and the proud sight of
those long lines of valiant men, whose hearts had beat and whose hands
had triumphed in the same cause, all aided to link his senses with the
gladness of the hour.

And now, as night advanced, Leofwine, who was ever a favourite in the
banquet, as Gurth in the council