hey begun to speak to him than there was a shout, and
they saw a body of shepherds descending the hill. There were three
hundred of them; warned by the messenger, the whole country had risen to
repel the gipsies. Too late to join in the fight, they had seen the last
of it. They examined the field. There were ten dead and six wounded, who
were taken prisoners; the rest escaped, though hurt. In many cases the
arrow had gone clean through the body. Then, for the first time, they
understood the immense power of the yew bow in strong and skilful hands.

Felix was overwhelmed; they almost crushed him with their attentions;
the women fell at his feet and kissed them. But the archer could
scarcely reply; his intense nervous excitement had left him weak and
almost faint; his one idea was to rest. As he walked back to the camp
between the chiefs of the shepherd spearmen, his eyes closed, his limbs
tottered, and they had to support him. At the camp he threw himself on
the sward, under the gnarled oak, and was instantly fast asleep.
Immediately the camp was stilled, not to disturb him.

His adventures in the marshes of the buried city, his canoe, his
archery, were talked of the livelong night. Next morning the camp set
out for their home in the mountains, and he was escorted by nearly four
hundred spearmen. They had saved for him the ornaments of the gipsies
who had fallen, golden earrings and nose-rings. He gave them to the
women, except one, a finger-ring, set with turquoise, and evidently of
ancient make, which he kept for Aurora. Two marches brought them to the
home of the tribe, where the rest of the spearmen left them. The place
was called Wolfstead.

Felix saw at once how easily this spot might be fortified. There was a
deep and narrow valley like a groove or green trench opening to the
south. At the upper end of the valley rose a hill, not very high, but
steep, narrow at the ridge, and steep again on the other side. Over it
was a broad, wooded, and beautiful vale; beyond that again the higher
mountains. Towards the foot of the narrow ridge here, there was a
succession of chalk cliffs, so that to climb up on that side in the face
of opposition would be extremely difficult. In the gorge of the enclosed
narrow valley a spring rose. The shepherds had formed eight pools, one
after the other, water being of great importance to them; and farther
down, where the valley opened, there were forty or fifty acres of
irrigated meadow.