ng of
hands, for all the Denby men were proud of their wrestler.

When Sir Richard came, he found stout William, puffed up by the shouts
of his friends, walking up and down the ring, daring anyone to come and
try a throw with him. "Come one, come all!" quoth he. "Here stand I,
William of the Scar, against any man. If there is none in Derbyshire to
come against me, come all who will, from Nottingham, Stafford, or York,
and if I do not make them one and all root the ground with their noses
like swine in the forests, call me no more brave William the wrestler."

At this all laughed; but above all the laughter a loud voice was heard
to cry out, "Sin' thou talkest so big, here cometh one from
Nottinghamshire to try a fall with thee, fellow"; and straightway a tall
youth with a tough quarterstaff in his hand came pushing his way through
the crowd and at last leaped lightly over the rope into the ring. He was
not as heavy as stout William, but he was taller and broader in the
shoulders, and all his joints were well knit. Sir Richard looked upon
him keenly, then, turning to one of the judges, he said, "Knowest thou
who this youth is? Methinks I have seen him before."

"Nay," said the judge, "he is a stranger to me."

Meantime, without a word, the young man, laying aside his quarterstaff,
began to take off his jerkin and body clothing until he presently stood
with naked arms and body; and a comely sight he was when so bared to the
view, for his muscles were cut round and smooth and sharp like swift-
running water.

And now each man spat upon his hands and, clapping them upon his knees,
squatted down, watching the other keenly, so as to take the vantage of
him in the grip. Then like a flash they leaped together, and a great
shout went up, for William had gotten the better hold of the two. For a
short time they strained and struggled and writhed, and then stout
William gave his most cunning trip and throw, but the stranger met it
with greater skill than his, and so the trip came to nought. Then, of a
sudden, with a twist and a wrench, the stranger loosed himself, and he
of the scar found himself locked in a pair of arms that fairly made his
ribs crack. So, with heavy, hot breathing, they stood for a while
straining, their bodies all glistening with sweat, and great drops of
sweat trickling down their faces. But the stranger's hug was so close
that at last stout William's muscles softened under his grip, and he
gave a sob.