blow thin through the woods Kentward.

'"Shall we hang these?" said my men.

'"Then my churls will fight," said Hugh, beneath his breath; but I bade
him ask the three what mercy they hoped for.

'"None," said they all. "She bade us hang thee if our master died. And
we would have hanged thee. There is no more to it."

'As I stood doubting, a woman ran down from the oak wood above the
King's Hill yonder, and cried out that some Normans were driving off the
swine there.

'"Norman or Saxon," said I, "we must beat them back, or they will rob us
every day. Out at them with any arms ye have!" So I loosed those three
carles and we ran together, my men-at-arms and the Saxons with bills and
axes which they had hidden in the thatch of their huts, and Hugh led
them. Half-way up the King's Hill we found a false fellow from
Picardy--a sutler that sold wine in the Duke's camp--with a dead
knight's shield on his arm, a stolen horse under him, and some ten or
twelve wastrels at his tail, all cutting and slashing at the pigs. We
beat them off, and saved our pork. One hundred and seventy pigs we saved
in that great battle.' Sir Richard laughed.

'That, then, was our first work together, and I bade Hugh tell his folk
that so would I deal with any man, knight or churl, Norman or Saxon, who
stole as much as one egg from our valley. Said he to me, riding home:
"Thou hast gone far to conquer England this evening." I answered:
"England must be thine and mine, then. Help me, Hugh, to deal aright
with these people. Make them to know that if they slay me De Aquila will
surely send to slay them, and he will put a worse man in my place."
"That may well be true," said he, and gave me his hand. "Better the
devil we know than the devil we know not, till we can pack you Normans
home." And so, too, said his Saxons; and they laughed as we drove the
pigs downhill. But I think some of them, even then, began not to hate
me.'

'I like Brother Hugh,' said Una, softly.

'Beyond question he was the most perfect, courteous, valiant, tender,
and wise knight that ever drew breath,' said Sir Richard, caressing the
sword. 'He hung up his sword--this sword--on the wall of the Great Hall,
because he said it was fairly mine, and never he took it down till De
Aquila returned, as I shall presently show. For three months his men and
mine guarded the valley, till all robbers and nightwalkers learned there
was nothing to get from us save hard tack and a hanging. Sid