The Well at the World's End: A Tale

  CHAPTER 22

  An Old Acquaintance Comes From the Down Country to See Ralph

  But an hour after midnight Ralph arose, as his purpose was, and calledRichard, and they took their swords and went forth and about the thorpand around its outskirts, and found naught worse than their own watchany where; so they came back again to their quarters and found Rogerstanding at the door, who said to Ralph: "Lord, here is a man whowould see thee." "What like is he?" said Ralph. Said Roger "He is anold man, but a tough one; however, I have got his weapons from him.""Bring him in," said Ralph, "and he shall have his say."

  So they all went into the chamber together and there was light therein;but the man said to Ralph: "Art thou the Captain of the men-at-arms,lord?" "Yea," said Ralph. Said the man, "I were as lief have theseothers away." "So be it," said Ralph; "depart for a little while,friends." So they went but Ursula lay in the bed, which was in a nookin the wall; the man looked about the chamber and said: "Is there anyone in the bed?" "Yea," said Ralph, "my wife, good fellow; shall she goalso?" "Nay," said the carle, "we shall do as we are now. So I willbegin my tale."

  Ralph looked on him and deemed he had seen him before, but could notaltogether call his visage to mind; so he held his peace and the manwent on.

  "I am of the folk of the shepherds of the Downs: we be not a many bycount of noses, but each one of us who is come to man's yean, and manywho be past them, as I myself, can handle weapons at a pinch. Now somedeal we have been harried and have suffered by these wretches who haveeaten into the bowels of this land; that is to say, they have liftedour sheep, and slain some of us who withstood them: but whereas ourhouses be uncostly and that we move about easily from one hill-side toanother, it is like that we should have deemed it wisest to have bornethis trouble, like others of wind and weather, without seeking newremedy, but that there have been tokens on earth and in the heavens,whereof it is too long to tell thee, lord, at present, which havestirred up our scattered folk to meet together in arms. Moreover, theblood of our young men is up, because the Burg-devils have taken someof our women, and have mishandled them grievously and shamefully, sothat naught will keep point and edge from seeking the war-clash.Furthermore, there is an old tale which hath now come up again, Thatsome time when our folk shall be in great need, there shall come to ourhelping one from afar, whose home is anigh; a stripling and a greatman; a runaway, and the conqueror of many: then, say they, shall thepoint and the edge bring the red water down on the dear dales; wherebywe understand that the blood of men shall be shed there, and naught toour shame or dishonour. Again I mind me of a rhyme concerning thiswhich sayeth:

  The Dry Tree shall be seen On the green earth, and green The Well-spring shall arise For the hope of the wise. They are one which were twain, The Tree bloometh again, And the Well-spring hath come From the waste to the home.

  Well, lord, thou shalt tell me presently if this hath aught to do withthee: for indeed I saw the Dry Tree, which hath scared us so many atime, beaten on thy sergeants' coats; but now I will go on and make anend of my story."

  Ralph nodded to him kindly, for now he remembered the carle, though hehad seen him but that once when he rode the Greenway across the downsto Higham. The old man looked up at him as if he too had an inkling ofold acquaintance with Ralph, but went on presently:

  "There is a woman who dwells alone with none to help her, anigh toSaint Ann's Chapel; a woman not very old; for she is of mine own age,and time was we have had many a fair play in the ingles of the downs inthe July weather--not very old, I say, but wondrous wise, as I knowbetter than most men; for oft, even when she was young, would sheforetell things to come to me, and ever it fell out according to herspaedom. To the said woman I sought to-day in the morning, not to winany wisdom of her, but to talk over remembrances of old days; but whenI came into her house, lo, there was my carline walking up and down thefloor, and she turned round upon me like the young woman of past days,and stamped her foot and cried out: 'What does the sluggard dallyingabout women's chambers when the time is come for the deliverance?'

  "I let her talk, and spake no word lest I should spoil her story, andshe went on:

  "'Take thy staff, lad, for thou art stout as well as merry, and goadown to the thorps at the feet of the downs toward Higham; keep theewell from the Burg-devils, and go from stead to stead till thou comeston a captain of men-at-arms who is lord over a company of green-coats,green-coats of the Dry Tree--a young lord, fair-faced, and kind-faced,and mighty, and not to be conquered, and the blessing of the folk andthe leader of the Shepherds, and the foe of their foeman and thewell-beloved of Bear-father. Go night and day, sit not down to eat,stand not to drink; heed none that crieth after thee for deliverance,but go, go, go till thou hast found him. Meseems I see him ridingtoward Higham, but those dastards will not open gate to him, of that besure. He shall pass on and lie to-night, it may be at Mileham, it maybe at Milton, it may be at Garton; at one of those thorps shall ye findhim. And when ye have found him thus bespeak him: O bright Friend ofthe Well, turn not aside to fall on the Burgers in this land, either atFoxworth Castle, or the Longford, or the Nineways Garth: all that thoumayest do hereafter, thou or thy champions. There be Burgersotherwhere, housed in no strong castle, but wending the road toward thefair greensward of Upmeads. If thou delay to go look on them, thenshall thy work be to begin again amid sorrow of heart and loss that maynot be remedied.' Hast thou heard me, lord?"

  "Yea, verily," said Ralph, "and at sunrise shall we be in the saddle toride straight to Upmeads. For I know thee, friend."

  "Hold a while," said the carle, "for meseemeth I know thee also. Butthis withal she said: 'But hearken, Giles, hearken a while, for I seehim clearly, and the men that he rideth with, and the men that arefollowing to his aid, fierce and fell are they; but so withal are thefoemen that await them, and his are few, howsoever fierce. Thereforebid him this also. Haste, haste, haste! But haste not overmuch, lestthou speed the worse: in Bear Castle I see a mote of our folk, andthee amidst of it with thy champions, and I see the staves of theShepherds rising round thee like a wood. In Wulstead I see a valiantman with sword by side and sallet on head, and with him sitteth a tallman-at-arms grizzle-headed and red-bearded, big-boned and mighty; theysit at the wine in a fair chamber, and a well-looking dame serveththem; and there are weaponed men no few about the streets. Wilt thoupass by friends, and old friends? Now ride on, Green Coats! strideforth, Shepherds! staves on your shoulders, Wool-wards! and there goesthe host over the hills into Upmeads, and the Burg-devils will havecome from the Wood Debateable to find graves by the fair river. Andthen do thy will, O Friend of the Well.'"

  The carle took a breath, and then he said: "Lord, this is the say Iwas charged with, and if thou understandest it, well; but if it be darkto thee, I may make it clear if thou ask me aught."

  Ralph pondered a while, and then he said: "Is it known of others thanthy spaewife that the Burgers be in Upmeads?" "Nay, lord," said thecarle, "and this also I say to thee, that I deem what she said thatthey be not in Upmeads yet, and but drawing thitherward, as I deem fromthe Wood Debateable."

  Ralph arose from his seat and strode up and down the chamber a while;then he went to bed, and stood over Ursula, who lay twixt sleeping andwaking, for she was weary; then he came back to the carle, and said tohim: "Good friend, I thank thee, and this is what I shall do: whendaylight is broad (and lo, the dawn beginning!) I shall gather my men,and ride the shortest way, which thou shalt show me, to Bear Castle,and there I shall give the token of the four fires which erewhile agood man of the Shepherds bade me if I were in need. And it seems tome that there shall the mote be hallowed, though it may be not beforenightfall. But the mote done, we shall wend, the whole host of us, bewe few or many, down to Wulstead, where we shall fall in with my friendClement Chapman, and hear tidings. Thence shall we wend the dear waysI know into the land where I was born and the folk amongst whom I shalldie. And so let St. Nicholas and All Hallows do as they wi
ll with us.Deemest thou, friend, that this is the meaning of thy wise she-friend?"

  The carle's eyes glittered, and he rose up and stood close by Ralph,and said: "Even so she meant; and now I seem to see that but few ofthy riders shall be lacking when they turn their heads away fromUpmeads towards the strong-places of the Burg-devils that arehereabouts. But tell me, Captain of the host, is that victual andbread that I see on the board?"

  Ralph laughed: "Fall to, friend, and eat thy fill; and here is winewithal. Thou needest not to fear it. Wert thou any the worse of thewine that Thirly poured into thee that other day?"

  "Nay, nay, master," said the carle between his mouthfuls, "but micklethe better, as I shall be after this: all luck to thee! Yet see Ithat I need not wish thee luck, since that is thine already. Sooth tosay, I deemed I knew thee when I first set eyes on thee again. Ilooked not to see thee more; though I spoke to thee words at that timewhich came from my heart, almost without my will. Though it is but alittle while ago, thou hast changed much since then, and hast gotanother sort of look in the eyes than then they had. Nay, nay," saidhe laughing, "not when thou lookest on me so frankly and kindly; thatis like thy look when we passed Thirly about. Yea, I see the fashionof it: one look is for thy friends, another for thy foes. God bepraised for both. And now I am full, I will go look on thy wife."

  So he went up to the bed and stood over Ursula, while she, who was notfully awake, smiled up into his face. The old man smiled back at herand bent down and kissed her mouth, and said: "I ask thy pardon, lady,and thine, my lord, if I be too free, but such is our custom of theDowns; and sooth to say thy face is one that even a old man should notfail to kiss if occasion serve, so that he may go to paradise with thetaste thereof on his lips."

  "We are nowise hurt by thy love, friend," said Ursula; "God make thylatter days of life sweet to thee!"