ell of exultation, as their pursuers found that they were
gaining upon them.

"Choose a clear space, Roger, with room to swing our weapons."

The Welsh were running in a close body, but ten yards behind them, when
they arrived at a spot clear of trees.

"Now, Roger!"

As he spoke, Oswald drew his sword and swung round, facing his
pursuers, while Roger did the same. The Welsh, taken by surprise,
endeavoured to check themselves; but before they could do so, Roger's
staff fell upon the head of one of them, while Oswald cleft another to
the chin. With the quickness of an adroit player with the quarterstaff,
Roger followed up his blow by almost instantaneously driving the other
end of the staff, with all his force, against the chest of another, who
was at the point of leaping upon him; and the man fell, as if struck
with a thunderbolt. So swift had been the movements that the remaining
two men were paralysed, by the sudden fall of their companions; but
before they could turn to fly, the weapons descended again, with as
fatal result as before.

"To the right!" Oswald exclaimed, and he dashed off into the forest
again, at a right angle to the line that they had before taken. A
minute later they heard an outburst of yells of fury, from the spot
they had quitted.

"I don't think they will be quite so ready to follow, now," Roger said.
"They are like to be some time, before they take up our track again."

"We will break into a walk, in a few minutes, Roger; and then go along
quietly, and keep our ears open. Their yells will be bringing others
down, from all directions, and we might run right into the middle of
another party, if we kept on at this rate."

In another five minutes they dashed down a steep descent, at whose foot
a streamlet, swelled now into a rushing stream, five or six feet wide,
was running.

"We will follow this down," Oswald said, as he stepped into it.

It was a little over two feet deep, and they waded along it for a
couple of hundred yards, and then stepped out, where some rock cropped
out by the side of the stream. It had not yet dried after the rain, and
their feet therefore left no marks on it.

"That was a sharp run, Roger," Oswald said as, with rapid but stealthy
steps, they strode along.

"Ay, it was. My breath was coming short, when you gave the word to
stop. Another half mile would have finished me. Those Welshmen run
well."

"I have no doubt we should have beaten them, easily enough,