to Ralph and hailed him, and Roger
and Stephen both made obeisance to him. Ralph, who had risen up,
hailed him in his turn, and the tall man said: "I am the Captain of
the Dry Tree for lack of a better; art thou Ralph of Upmeads, fair
sir?" "Even so," said Ralph.

Said the Captain: "Thou wilt marvel that I have ridden after thee on
the spur; so here is the tale shortly. Your backs were not turned on
the walls of the Burg an hour, ere three of my riders brought in to me
a man who said, and gave me tokens of his word being true, that he had
fallen in with a company of the old Burgers in the Wood Debateable,
which belike thou wottest of."

"All we of Upmeads wot of it," said Ralph. "Well," said the Captain,
"amongst these said Burgers, who were dwelling in the wildwood in
summer content, the word went free that they would gather to them other
bands of strong-thieves who haunt that wood, and go with them upon
Upmeads, and from Upmeads, when they were waxen strong, they would fall
upon Higham by the Way, and thence with yet more strength on their old
dwelling of the Burg. Now whereas I know that thou art of Upmeads, and
also what thou art, and what thou hast done, I have ridden after thee
to tell thee what is toward. But if thou deemest I have brought thee
all these riders it is not wholly so. For it was borne into my mind
that our old stronghold was left bare of men, and I knew not what might
betide; and that the more, as more than one man has told us how that
another band of the disinherited Burgers have fallen upon Higham or the
lands thereof, and Higham is no great way hence; so that some five
score of these riders are to hold our Castle of the Scaur, and the rest
are for thee to ride afield with. As for the others, thou hast been
told already that the Scaur, and Hampton therewith is a gift from us to
thee; for henceforward we be the lords of the Burg of the Four Friths,
and that is more than enough for us."

Ralph thanked the Captain for this, and did him to wit that he would
take the gift if he came back out the Upmeads fray alive: said he,
"With thee and the Wheat-wearers in the Burg, and me in the Scaur, no
strong-thief shall dare lift up his hand in these parts."

The Captain smiled, and Ralph went on: "And now I must needs ask thee
for leave to depart; which is all the more needful, whereas thy men
have over-ridden their horses, and we must needs go a soft pace till we
come to Higham."

"Yea, art