, and begging the fellow to advise him, as
he feared to lose his liberty. The man said he had better stay where he
was, and serve with him under Master Lacy, who was mean enough in the
city, but liked to appear liberal when thus consorting with knights and
gentlemen.

Master Lacy was a merchant of Aisi, an owner of vessels. Like most of
his fellows, when war came so close home, he was almost obliged to join
the king's levy. Had he not done so it would have been recorded against
him as a lack of loyalty. His privileges would have been taken from him,
possibly the wealth he had accumulated seized, and himself reduced to
slavery. Lacy, therefore, put on armour, and accompanied the king to the
camp. Thus Felix, after all his aspirations, found himself serving as
the knave of a mere citizen.

He had to take the horses down to water, to scour arms, to fetch wood
from the forest for the fire. He was at the beck and call of all the
other men, who never scrupled to use his services, and, observing that
he never refused, put upon him all the more. On the other hand, when
there was nothing doing, they were very kind and even thoughtful. They
shared the best with him, brought wine occasionally (wine was scarce,
though ale plentiful) as a delicacy, and one, who had dexterously taken
a purse, presented him with half a dozen copper coins as his share of
the plunder. Felix, grown wiser by experience, did not dare refuse the
stolen money, it would have been considered as the greatest insult; he
watched his opportunity and threw it away.

The men, of course, quickly discovered his superior education, but that
did not in the least surprise them, it being extremely common for
unfortunate people to descend by degrees to menial offices, if once they
left the estate and homestead to which they naturally belonged. There as
cadets, however humble, they were certain of outward respect: once
outside the influence of the head of the house, and they were worse off
than the lowest retainer. His fellows would have resented any show of
pride, and would speedily have made his life intolerable. As he showed
none, they almost petted him, but at the same time expected him to do
more than his share of the work.

Felix listened with amazement to the revelations (revelations to him) of
the inner life of the camp and court. The king's weaknesses, his
inordinate gluttony and continual intoxication, his fits of temper, his
follies and foibles, seemed as fam