said Osberne, "I remember it."

"Now," said the carle, "I shall make no mystery of it, but shall tell
thee at once that that same man was the brother of the master whom now
I serve. And I have an errand from him unto thee, and he saith that
what his brother knew, he knows, and somewhat more; and thy maiden is
yet alive, and that he can tell thee how to find her surely if thou
wilt. And he is not far hence."

Osberne looked somewhat wildly, and he caught the carle by the hand
and cried out: "Good fellow, bring me to him at once and I will well
reward thee." "Nay," said the carle, "but there comes something before
that; my master is a chapman, and liveth by selling, not by giving;
and he will take of thee two hundred nobles before thou hast his tale.
Thou and I may call that weregild for the slaying of his brother."
"Yea," said Osberne, "but I carry not two hundred nobles in my pouch."

"Well then," said the carle, "I will be here tomorrow or the day after
if thou wilt." "O nay, nay," said Osberne, "but abide thou here, and I
will go up to the castle and fetch the gold." "So be it," said the
carle; and he sat him down by the way-side, and pulled out victuals
and wine from his scrip and fell to dining.

But Osberne put forth all his swiftness of foot, and was speedily in
his lodging, and came to his treasury and took forth the gold and set
it in a bag, and hastened back again, and found the carle where he had
left him. "Thou art swift-foot indeed," said the carle, "but belike
thou shalt not often again run so fast as thou hast e'en now. But thou
art breathed; wilt thou not sit down a while till thou come round?"
"No," said Osberne shortly, "I will on at once." "Well then," said the
carle with a grin, "suffer me to carry thy bag." "Take it," said
Osberne, and reached it out to him. The carle handled the bag and
said: "Plump are the nobles, lord, if there be but two hundred
herein." "There is more in it," said Osberne, "for there is the gift
for thee. But lead thou on straightway." So the carle led on, and they
went by divers woodland paths for some two hours, and then they heard
the sound of a little water falling. Quoth the carle: "It is down in
this ghyll that my master promised to abide me." And therewith he
began to go down the side of a ghyll well bushed and treed, and
somewhat steep, and Osberne followed him. When they got to the bottom
there was a fair space of flat greensward underneath a little force of
the wat