by A. D. Crake
Chapter 10: Foul And Fair.
The rivalry between Drogo and Hubert became the more intense thatboth lads were bound to suppress it; and after the return of thelatter from Sussex, it found vent in many acts of hostility andspite on the part of the former, who was the older and bigger boy.Yet he could not bully Hubert to any extent. The indomitable pluckand courage of the youngster prevented it. He would not take a blowor an insult without the most desperate resistance in the formercase, and the most sarcastic retorts in the latter, and he had botha prompt hand and a cutting tongue. So Drogo had to swallow hishatred as best he could, but it led to many black dark thoughts,and to a determination to rid himself of his rival should theopportunity ever be afforded, by fair means or foul.
"I mean yet to be Lord of Walderne," he said to himself again andagain.
And first of all he longed to get Hubert expelled from Kenilworth,and to deprive him of the favour and protection of the earl; andone day the devil, who often aids and abets those who seek hishelp, threw a chance in his way.
The earl had found it necessary to put a check upon the constantslaughter of the deer in his large domains, which bade fair todepopulate the forests. Therefore he had especially forbidden thepages to shoot a stag or fawn, under any pretext, and as his ordershad been once or twice transgressed, he had caused it to beintimated that the next offence, on the part of a page, would bepunished by expulsion: a very light penalty, when on many domains,notably in the royal parks, it was death to a peasant or any commonperson to kill the red deer.
All the young candidates for knighthood at Kenilworth had theirarrows marked, for an arrow was too expensive a thing to be wasted,and therefore the young archers regained their shafts when they haddone their work at the target. Such marks were useful also inpreventing disputes.
One day, out in the woods, letting fly these shafts at lesser game,such as they were permitted to kill, Hubert lost one of his arrows.A few days afterwards the chief forester came up to the castle tosee the earl, who had just returned after a prolonged absence, andhis communication caused no little stir.
The next day, after chapel, the earl ordered all the pages, sometwenty-five in number, to assemble in their common room, where theyreceived such lessons in the "humanities" from the chaplain astheir lord compelled them to accept, often against their taste andinclination, for they thought nothing worth learning save fightingand hunting.
When they had assembled, the earl, attended by the chaplain,appeared. They all stood in humble respect, and he looked with akeen eye down their ranks, as they were ranged about twelve on eachside of the hall. A handsome, athletic set they were, dressed inwhat we should call the Montfort livery--a garb which set off theirnatural good looks abundantly--the dark features of Drogo; thelight eyes and flaxen hair of the son of a Provencal maiden, ourHubert; were fair types of the varieties of appearance to be metamongst the groups.
The earl's features were clouded.
"You are all aware, my boys, of the order that no one belowknightly rank should shoot deer in my forests?"
"We are," said one and all.
"Does any page profess ignorance of the rule?"
No reply.
"Then I have another question to put, and first of all, let me begmost earnestly to press upon the guilty one the necessity of truthand honour, which, although it may not justify me in remitting thepenalty, may yet retain him my friendship. A deer has been slain inthe woods, and by one of you. Let the guilty boy avow his fault."
No one stirred.
The earl looked troubled.
"This grieves me deeply," he said, "far more than the mere offence.It becomes a matter of honour--he who stirs not, declares himselfinnocent, called by lawful authority to avow the truth as he nowis."
Once or twice the earl looked sadly at Hubert, but the face of thefair boy was unclouded. If he had looked on the other side, hemight have seen anxiety, if not apprehension, on one face.
"Enter then, sir forester."
The forester entered.
"You found a deer shot by an arrow in the West Woods?"
"I did."
"And you found the arrow?"
"Yes."
"Was it marked?"
"It was."
The earl held an arrow up.
"Who owns the crest of a boar's head?"
Hubert started.
"I do, my lord--but--but," and he changed colour.
Do not let the reader wonder at this. Innocence suddenly arraignedis oft as confused as guilt.
"But, my lord, I never shot the deer."
"Thine arrow is a strong presumptive proof against thee."
"I cannot tell, my lord, who can have used one of my arrows forsuch a purpose--I did not."
Here spoke up another page, a Percy of the Northumbrian breed ofwarriors.
"My lord, I was out the other day with Hubert in the woods, and helost an arrow which he shot at a hare. We often lose our arrows inthe woods."
"Does any other page know aught of the matter? Speak to clear theinnocent or convict the guilty. As you look forward to knighthood,I adjure you all on your honour."
Then Drogo, who thought that things were going too well for Hubert,spoke.
"My lord, is it a duty to tell all we know, even if it is against acompanion?"
"It is under such circumstances, when the innocent may besuspected."
"Then, my lord, I saw Hubert shoot that deer, as I was in the WestWoods."
"Saw him! Did he see you?"
"It is a lie, my lord," cried Hubert indignantly. "I cast the liein his teeth, and challenge him to prove his words by combat in thelists, when I will thrust the slander down his perjured throat."
The earl had his own doubts as to this new piece of evidence, forhe was aware of Drogo's feelings towards Hubert, and therefore hewelcomed the indignant denial of the younger boy. Still, he couldnot permit mortal combat at their age. They were not entitled toclaim it while below the rank of knighthood.
"You are too young for the appeal to battle."
"My lord," whispered one of his knights, "a similar case occurredat Warkworth Castle when I was there: a page gave another thedirect lie as this one has done, and the earl permitted them to runa course with blunted lances and fight it out; adjudging thedismounted page to be in the wrong, as indeed he afterwards provedto be."
"Let it be so," said Earl Simon, who had a devout belief in theordeal, as manifesting the judgment of the Unerring One. "We allowthe appeal, and it shall be decided this afternoon in the tiltyard."
Blunted lances! Not very dangerous, our readers may think at firstthought. But the shock and the violent fall from the horse wasreally the more dangerous part of the tournament. The point of thelance seldom penetrated the armour of proof in which combatantswere encased.
The pages separated in great excitement. Most of them held withHubert--for Drogo's arrogant manners had not gained him manyfriends. Much advice was given to the younger boy how to "go in andwin," and the poor lad was eager for the fight whereby his honourwas to be vindicated, as though victory and reputation were quitesecured, as indeed in his belief they were.
The ordeal! it seems full of superstition to us, unaccustomed tobelieve in, or to realise, God's direct dealing with the world. Butmen then thought that God must show the innocence of the accusedwho thus appealed to Him, whether by battle or by the earlier formsof ordeal {18}.
But was not the casting of lots in the Old Testament akin to theidea, and are there not passages in the Levitical books prescribingsimilar usages with the object of detecting innocence or guilt?
At all events, the ordeal was allowed to be decisive, and if itwere a capital charge, the headsman was at hand to behead theconvicted offender--convicted by the test to which he had appealed.
A peculiarly solemn order and ritual was observed in such appeals,when the fight was to the death. The combatants confessed, andreceived, what to one was probably his last Communion; and thusavowing in the most solemn way their innoc
ence before God and man,they came to the lists. In cases where one of the party must ofnecessity be perjured, the sin of thus profaning the Sacraments ofthe Church was supposed to ensure his downfall the more certainly,for would not God the rather be moved to avenge Himself?
But in the case of these pages, both under the degree ofknighthood, such solemn sanction was not invoked, yet the affairwas sufficiently impressive. The tilt yard was a wide and levelsward, bordered on one side by the moat, surrounded by a low hedge,within which was erected a covered pavilion, not much unlike thestands on race courses in general design, only glittering withcloth of gold or silver, with flags and pennons fair.
In the foremost rank of seats sat the earl and his countess, withother guests of rank then residing in the castle, behind were otherprivileged members of the household, and around the course weregrouped such of the retainers and garrison of the castle as thepiquant passage of arms between two boys had enticed from theirordinary posts or duties. But perhaps it was only the same generalappetite for excitement which gathers the whole mass of boys in ourpublic schools (or did gather in rougher days), to witness a"mill."
But one essential ceremonial was not omitted. The two combatantsbeing admitted to the lists, each stood in turn before the earl,seated in the pavilion, and thus cried:
"Here stands Drogo of Harengod, who maintains that he saw Hubert(of Nowhere) shoot the earl's deer, and will maintain the same onthe body of the said Hubert, soi-disant of Walderne."
These additions to Hubert's name were insults, and made the earlfrown, while it spoke volumes as to the true cause of theanimosity. Then Hubert stood up and spoke.
"Here stands Hubert of Walderne, who avows that Drogo of Harengodlies, and will maintain his own innocence on the body of the saidDrogo, so help him God."
Then both knelt, and the chaplain prayed that God, who alone knewthe hearts and the hidden actions of men, would reveal the truth,by the events of the struggle.
Then each of the combatants went to his own end of the lists, wherea horse and headless lance were awaiting him, under the care of twofriends--fratres consociati. Percy, and Alois from Blois, were thefriends of Hubert. The chronicler has forgotten who befriended orseconded Drogo, and hopes he found it hard to find any one to doso.
The earl rose up in the pavilion, and bade the herald sound thecharge. The two combatants galloped against each other at fullspeed, and met with a dull heavy shock. Drogo's lance had, whetherprovidentially or otherwise, just grazed the helmet of his opponentand glanced off. Hubert's came so full on the crest of his enemythat he went down, horse and all.
Had this been a mortal combat, Hubert would at once have beenexpected to dismount, and with his sword to compel a confessionfrom his fallen foe, on the pain of instant death in the case ofrefusal. But this combat was limited to the tourney--and a loudacclaim hailed Hubert as Victor.
Drogo was stunned by his fall, and borne by the earl's command tohis chamber.
"God hath spoken, and vindicated the innocent," said the earl.
"Rise, my son," he added to Hubert, who knelt before him. "Webelieve in thy truth, and will abide by the event of the ordeal;but as thou art saved from expulsion, it is fitting that Drogoshould pay the penalty he strove to inflict upon another."
Hubert was not generous enough to pray for the pardon of his foe(as in any book about good boys he would have done). He felt toodeeply injured by the lie.
But his innocence was not left to the simple test of the trial bycombat, in which case many modern unbelievers might feel inwarddoubts. That night the forester sought the earl again, and broughtwith him a verdurer or under keeper. This man had seen the wholeaffair, had seen Drogo pick up Hubert's arrow after the latter wasgone, and stand as if musing over it, when a deer came that way,and Drogo let fly the shaft at once. Then he discovered thespectator, and bribed him with all the money he had about him tokeep silence, which the fellow did, until he heard of the trial bycombat and the accusation of the innocent, whereupon his consciencegave him no rest until he had owned his fault, and bringing thebribe to his chief, the forester, had made full reparation.
There was another gathering of the pages in the great hall on thefollowing day. The earl and chaplain were there, the chief foresterand his subordinate. Drogo, still suffering from his fall, and byno means improved in appearance, was brought before them.
"Drogo de Harengod," said the earl, "I should have doubted of God'sjustice, had the ordeal to which thou didst appeal gone otherwise.But since yesterday the right has been made yet more clear. Dostthou know yon verdurer?"
Drogo looked at the man.
"My lord," he said. "I accept the decision of the combat. Let me gofrom Kenilworth."
"What, without reparation?"
"I have my punishment to bear in expulsion from this place"--("ifpunishment it be," he muttered)--"as for my soi-disant cousin, itwill be an evil day for him when he crosses my path elsewhere."
The earl stood astonished at his audacity.
"Thou perjured wretch!" he said. "Thou perverter by bribes! thouliar and false accuser! GO, amidst the contempt and scorn of allwho know thee."
And, amidst the hisses of his late companions, Drogo leftKenilworth for ever--expelled.