A Clerk of Oxford, and His Adventures in the Barons' War

by Evelyn Everett-Green

  CHAPTER IV.

  _THE FIRST DAY._

  The lads slept soundly in their new quarters, but awoke with the firstlight of day, eager to enter upon the strange life of the city. Makingtheir way first to the top of the wall, they had a good look round themover the still sleeping town; and then finding a place where, by theexercise of a little activity, they could clamber down on the outerside, they refreshed themselves by a plunge in the Fish Ponds, by way ofablutions, and returned through the gate to their lodging.

  They had a great curiosity to go forth together and see the city, butthey did not intend immediately to decide upon the preceptor they shouldfollow. Just at starting they felt almost too excited to settle toregular study, and the visit to the Abbot of Osney was the firstbusiness of the day.

  Putting on their better habits, and making themselves as trim and neatas circumstances permitted, the boys sallied forth, and took the way toCarfax as before. They knew that Osney lay to the west of the city wall,beyond the Castle, and they had a great wish to see that building atclose quarters; so they pursued their way along Great Bayly Street, tillthey reached the mound itself, crowned with its frowning walls andbattlements.

  As they passed along they saw not only numbers of clerks sallying forthto their daily lectures, but great numbers of the Black Friars, whoappeared to be exercising considerable activity. Some were wheelinglittle trucks or carts which held loads of what appeared to be goods andchattels, and they appeared to be very busy, passing to and fro withtheir loads or their empty trucks, like a colony of industrious ants.

  "What are they doing?" asked Jack of a bystander.

  "Removing themselves from the Jewry to the new House that the King'sMajesty has bestowed upon them without the city walls through LittleGate and down Milk Street," was the answer. "They came and settled inthe Jews' quarter, hoping to convert the Hebrew dogs to the true faith;but methinks they have but a sorry record of converts. Anyhow they aregoing thence, and their new house is all but ready. A few may linger onin the Jewry, but the most part will fare forth to the more commodiousbuilding yonder."

  Having thus satisfied their curiosity on that score, the boys passedonwards to the Castle, and just as they approached the West Gate, theywere in time to prevent something of a catastrophe. As they drew near,they perceived that a young lady, mounted on a fair palfrey, wasapproaching from the outer side. She was quite young, perhaps fifteen orsixteen, and was very fair to look upon. Her hair was a dusky chestnutcolour, and was loosened by the exercise of riding, so that it framedher face like a soft cloud. Her eyes were bright and soft and dark, andher figure was as light and graceful as that of a sylph. As the two ladspassed under the gateway, marking her approach, they bared their heads,and glanced at her with honest admiration in their eyes.

  The little lady noticed their salutation, and returned it with a gentledignity of manner; but just at that moment a piece of rag lying in thegutter was suddenly whirled round and up by a gust of wind, rightagainst the face of the spirited little barb she was riding.

  The creature suddenly took fright, reared up on its hind legs, and thenmade a sudden swerve, dashing off along West Gate Street at a headlongpace.

  But luckily the girl rider was not borne away too in this recklessfashion. When the creature started and reared so violently, she had beenalmost unseated; and Leofric, seeing this, had with one quick movementthrown his arm about her; and as soon as the palfrey swerved and madeoff, the lady was simply lifted from her seat and gently set down by thestrong arms of both lads--for Jack had rushed up to give assistance.

  She stood now in the roadway, dazed, but safe, looking from one of herpreservers to the other, and faltering out broken words of thanks.

  Then the servant who had been behind, and who had in vain striven tostop the runaway horse, rode up, lifted the little lady to his saddle,and carried her away, before she had sufficiently recovered her breathto do more than wave her hand to her two deliverers.

  The sentry at the gate, who had now come up, looked after them with alaugh.

  "Old Ralph is a grim guardian. He will never let his young mistress havespeech of any. But I doubt not when it comes to the ears of theConstable, he will seek you out to reward you; for fair Mistress Alys isas the apple of his eye."

  "Who was the lady?" asked Jack eagerly.

  "Mistress Alys de Kynaston, only daughter of the Constable of theCastle, Sir Humphrey de Kynaston. They say she is the very light of thehouse, and I can well believe it."

  After a little more talk about the Castle and its Custodian, the sentrydirected the lads how to find Osney Abbey; and after crossingBookbinders' Bridge and passing the Almshouses, they quickly approachedthe gate by which access was had to the Abbey itself.

  It was a fine building, inhabited by the Canons Regular of St.Augustine. There were the Chapel, dedicated to St. Nicholas, the finecloistered refectory, the Dormitory, the Abbot's Lodging, to say nothingof the fine kitchens, and the Domus Dei of which mention has been made.

  The present Abbot was Richard de Appelton, and when Leofric presentedhis letter and asked speech of him, he was ushered into the presence ofthe great man with very little delay.

  Strangers, even youthful strangers, were always received hospitably atthe religious houses, and the Abbot, after reading the letter of hisfriend, spoke kindly to the boys, asking them whether they desired theshelter of the Domus Dei.

  Leofric explained what had befallen him since that letter was penned,and how he had met with kind friends, and had already found a lodgingwithin the walls of the town. The Abbot stroked his shaven chin, andlooked from Jack to Leofric, letting his eyes rest somewhat longer uponthe face of the latter as he said,----

  "So thou art not as yet disposed to the religious life? Yet thou hastthe face of a godly youth."

  "I trust we may yet be godly without the cloister wall," answeredLeofric modestly. "It is not for roistering and revelry that we havechosen to live within the town, but we would fain have some small spotthat we may call our own, and I had thought that perchance I might turnsuch skill as I have in penmanship to account, so that I might earn feesfor----"

  "Ah yes, I know what thou wouldst say. Perchance we can give thee somework of that kind from time to time. But there be other ways of winningmoney too, open to poor clerks. Thou canst say a prayer or a grace atsome rich man's table, or the Chancellor will give thee a licence to begfor thy maintenance. A likely youth, with a face like thine, will notfind living hard. And if thou art ever in any trouble, thou canst alwayscome to me. The Domus Dei is open to such as thou, and any son who comesfrom my good friend the Prior of St. Michael will be welcome for hissake."

  Leofric thanked the Abbot gratefully, and received from him a smallpresent in money, and two or three squares of vellum, such as were usedin the making of breviaries. This was a very great acquisition forLeofric, as he could now begin some illuminating or transcribing work inhis leisure hours, and by the sale of this add to their scanty store ofmoney, and obtain the material for fresh work of a like kind.

  This he preferred greatly to begging, notwithstanding that mendicancyhad been made respectable, if not honourable, by the friars, and that togive alms to a poor clerk, or reward him for singing a "Salve Regina,"or saying a prayer or grace, was one of the regular and esteemed formsof charity.

  "And remember, good lads, that there are homes in the city open to suchas ye," said the Abbot, as he bid them adieu. "There is Glasson Hall inthe High Street, which pious John Pilet gave to Osney Abbey not longsince. We might find room for the pair of you there, if you weredisturbed in your nest. There is Spalding Court in Cat Street, which theburgesses of the town have bought for the use of poor clerks; and therebe Halls where the poorer clerks serve the wealthier, and earn apittance thus. Ye will find many ways of living; and pray Heaven we havea good harvest this year, so that the present scarcity may cease."

  And with a nod and a word of blessing the Abbot dismissed his youngguests.

  "Let us take a prowl round
the town," said Jack, as they turned theirbacks upon the stately buildings of the Abbey, "there is so much to seeat every turn, and I would fain know the streets and lanes of the cityby heart. We must enter by the West Gate that we left, but we willwander round the walls and see what lies in the south ward of the city."

  Leofric willingly agreed, and they retraced their steps as far as thegate, where they were at once hailed by the same sentry as had spoken tothem before.

  "Fortune favours you, honest lads," he said. "The Constable of theCastle has just sent down this purse, to be given to the two clerks whosaved the Mistress Alys from hurt when her palfrey took fright," and heput into the hands of Jack a small leathern satchel, in which were agoodly number of silver pieces.

  "Now this is luck indeed!" cried the youth, as they took their wayonward. "We meet with success at every turn. Methinks that either thouor I must have been born beneath a lucky star."

  But they had little time for discussing their good luck, for almostimmediately they found themselves in the heart of the Grey Friars'colony, which lay close to the West Gate, just where there was a gap inthe city wall, probably owing to the proximity of a marshy tract whichrendered the protection of the wall of comparatively little use. TrillMill Stream wound round the little colony, and formed its southernlimit. The parish was that of St. Ebbs, perhaps the poorest in Oxford.This was doubtless why the Minorites, or Grey Friars, had made of ittheir headquarters. To dwell among the poor, and to live as poorly asany of them, was their principle and practice; and down in theselow-lying, swampy districts, fever, ague, even leprosy abounded, and theFriars toiled with might and main amongst the sick.

  The boys saw them going forth by twos and threes, or passing in and outof their low, poverty-stricken buildings. It was against the desires oftheir founder that they should ever possess property or aspire tolearning; but the practical inconvenience of the one prohibition, andthe thirst for knowledge which was growing up in the hearts of men atthis time, militated against the strict code of St. Francis.

  The Franciscans made their houses as simple and unpretentious aspossible. They lived the most self-denying of lives; but they werebeginning to frequent the schools, and to teach in schools of their own,and although there were often drawbacks and difficulties placed in theway of their advancement, they had already many great and notablescholars in their ranks.

  The main difficulty was that by statute no one might begin in theologywho had not first taken a degree in Arts, whilst the vows and rules ofthe monks and friars debarred them in many cases from any sort ofsecular studies. They were so well qualified to lecture in theology thatit was often difficult to refuse their plea; and yet the statutes stoodin the way.

  As the boys reached the corner of Milk Street, they observed aFranciscan Friar of venerable aspect coming towards them, andinstinctively Leofric bent the knee as if to ask a blessing.

  The old man stood still, and smiled benignly. It was one of thecharacteristics of the Grey Friars that, in spite of the self-denial andausterity of their lives, they were more uniformly cheerful, kindly, andeven merry in their talk and ways than any other of the religiousorders. For this reason, perhaps, they were beloved above others; andthe great ones of the world, as well as the poor, came to love andvenerate them.

  "Peace be with you, my children," said the Friar. "Come you as strangersto this city? Methinks you have the air of the country clinging to youyet."

  "We did but arrive yesterday," answered Leofric; "and we have scarce theright to call ourselves clerks. But that is what we hope to be soon, soas we can make up our minds where we shall gain the best learning forsuch fee as our purse will enable us to give."

  "You must needs first study the _Trivium_ and _Quadrivium_ of Arts,"said the Friar, when he had questioned them a little more as to theirintended manner of life; "but since I hold that no learning is completethat doth not embrace the study of the Word of God, come ye both, if itplease you and ye have time, to the school of our order, where I striveto impart a few crumbs of knowledge to our clerks and younger brethren.Many lads like ye twain come without fee, and glad shall I be if anypoor words of mine can give help or comfort."

  The boys would have stammered out some words of thanks, but the Friarput them aside with a smile.

  "Nay, nay, lads, we are sent here not for our own but for others' good.Ask for the School of the Franciscans, and for Brother Angelus. Mostmornings from nine till eleven I am to be found there. You will bewelcome. Go in peace."

  "We will of a surety go," said Leofric, as they pursued their way. "Hehad the face of a saint. I trow that this is a right godly place. We getkindness from all we meet."

  "Methinks it is thy face that wins it for us," quoth Jack, with a laugh;"thou hast somewhat the face of a saint thyself."

  There was some shrewd truth in this remark. Leofric's was a countenancethat could not but attract; and at that time there were such numbers ofrude, rough, ill-mannered and ill-living clerks in the place, thatfavourable notice was often bestowed upon such as appeared of gentlernature and manners. All the religious brotherhoods were more or less onthe look-out for likely pupils, and though the more enlightened of theirmembers would not put pressure upon lads to make too early a choice ofthe cloister life, or of that of the friars, they gladly recruited theirranks from such promising students and clerks as they succeeded indrawing beneath their influence.

  As the boys stood looking down Milk Street, they continued to see theBlack Friars flitting busily to and fro, fetching and carrying theirsimple goods and chattels; and prompted by curiosity, they turned intothe Jewry, and were soon gazing with the greatest interest at the Jewishdenizens of that quarter.

  The Jews had had a footing in Oxford from the very early days; they hada synagogue in Fish Street, nearly opposite to St. Aldate's Church. (Itmay be noted that the old Fish Street is the present St. Aldate's.) Theywere, of course, the most moneyed class in the city, and they had theirown code and manner of life, were exempt from the operation of thecommon law, and were treated as serfs of the King. Had it not been thatthe Kings protected them from pillage by their neighbours, in order toplunder them themselves, the Jews would scarcely have continued toexist. The people hated and feared them, even whilst they borrowed fromthem at a rate of usury limited by statute. But they were too valuableto the Crown to be exterminated, and the Black Friars had settledamongst them in the hope of effecting their conversion.

  For many years they had considerable success, so much so that the Kingestablished a house called the Guild Hall for the reception of thebaptized Hebrews. It was not really their lack of success (althoughfewer conversions had taken place of late) but lack of room whichoccasioned the flitting of the Black Friars from the Jewry. They werenot all of them leaving immediately, even now; but their new buildingwas almost complete, and a number of the brothers were about to taketheir departure, hence the excitement prevailing in the locality of theJewry.

  When the lads had gazed their fill at the strange dress and dark facesof the Jews, and had listened to their talk, and their covert jests asthey secretly derided the Christian brothers who had dwelt so longamongst them, they turned southward down Fish Street, and then by St.Frideswyde's Street to the great group of beautiful and ancientbuildings comprising St. Frideswyde's Church and Abbey--the oldest inOxford--occupying the site where Christ Church now stands.

  Grave, stately looking men walked with slow, meditative steps about theenclosure in which stood those buildings. They were habited in a longwhite coat of cloth down to the heels, girt about with a leather girdle;over this was a short surplice of linen, and over that again a shortblack cape that reached to the elbows. On their shaven heads they wore ablack square steepled cap. These were the Canons Regular of St.Augustine--the same order as those of Osney.

  Here again the walls were broken down, and had crumbled to decay, grovesand meadows and fish ponds extending southward to Trill Mill Stream. Theboys looked about them in silent wonder, but nobody addressed them; andthough they would
have liked to steal into the church and see St.Frideswyde's shrine, they did not venture to do so, fearing that theywould be regarded as intruders in that sacred place.

  "Hugh le Barbier was telling me of notable miracles done at yon shrine,"said Leofric, as they turned away at length up St. Frideswyde's Lane."St. Frideswyde was a daughter of an ancient king, and she built anunnery here, and was herself a nun. Afterwards it became a place formonks, and now it is an Abbey; but the shrine of St. Frideswyde stillremains, and great wonders are wrought there."

  "Hark!" suddenly cried Jack, whose ears had been more attentive to somesound in the distance than to his companion's words, "I hear the noiseof a tumult. There is something stirring not far off. Let us e'en runand see what it be. Methinks I hear the sound of blows and shouts."

  Leofric heard the same sound which had attracted Jack's attention. Itseemed to proceed from a short distance off, and they hurried along tillthey reached the corner of Great Jewry Lane where it joins ShydyardStreet (now Oriel Street), where the shouting began to take morearticulate form, and the boys heard the words, "North, North!--South,South!" bawled and yelled from scores of throats.

  "It is some fray betwixt the clerks," said Jack, who had not listenedfor naught to Gilbert's tales during the night they camped by the firein the forest. "Did he not tell us that they were banded into two ormore great bodies, North and South, and that they were ofttimes comingto blows together? Haply we had better stand close in this doorway, andlet the rout go by. Clerks are killed by their fellows in the openstreets every year, if what we hear be true, for nothing worse thanbelonging to the adverse faction."

  Leofric, who though no coward was by nature placable, and adverse toblows, was ready enough to take this counsel, and set his back againstthe door in the little porch which offered shelter to the pair. Thefight seemed to be coming their way, and presently a few clerks scuddedby, yelling, laughing, cursing; brandishing their clubs and hurling allmanner of foul and derisive epithets at those behind them, from whom,however, they evidently thought it well to flee. Others followed, somehaving cut heads or bleeding noses, dishevelled, out of breath, angry,yet inclined to make game of themselves and others all the while.

  "North! North! North!" they shouted, interlarding their words with manyan oath and epithet that need not be transcribed. "Ye cowardSoutherners, ye only dare to attack when ye be ten to one. We will giveyou back as good as ye gave! North! North!"

  Plainly the pursuers were close behind the flying feet of the lastfugitive, when suddenly the rout was brought up short by the appearanceof a tall man in a long gown, with a weapon at his side, who came roundthe corner at a quick pace, and confronted the rioters with sternglances.

  "How dare you disturb the peace again, you good-for-nothing brawlers?"he cried in ringing accents. "Let me have such another scene within theweek, and I will have some of you to answer for it in the Chancellor'sCourt. As if it were not enough that you must be fighting the burgesses,fighting the citizens, fighting the Jews, but ye must be fighting oneanother too, and that in broad daylight, when you should be at yourstudies. To your Halls and lodgings, every man of you; and if I hear ofsuch another brawl as ye come from lecture, I will deal differently withsome of you."

  The clerks, who had pulled up suddenly at sight of this stalwartfunctionary, now began to slink away this way and that. Many of themwere mere lads, led on by the boyish instinct of fighting; a few wereevilly-disposed rogues, who were always to be found in the streets,ready for any brawl; others, again, were scholars who had followed inthe wake of the crowd, with an idle interest in anything that savouredof a fight rather than with any particular desire to take part in it.

  These sorts of frays were of almost daily occurrence in old Oxford, andonly when they became too numerous or too severe was any particularnotice taken of them. The students for the most part lived and brawled,studied and played, very much as it pleased them, and a fight, with manyor with few, was part of the day's work.

  Jack espied Gilbert at the edge of the crowd, and made for him quickly.

  "What is the matter? and who is he that stayed the fight?" he asked,with eager curiosity; and Gilbert answered, laughing,--

  "There is naught the matter; the fight was but a bit of play as the mencame out from lecture. We have such almost every day, and they seldomcome to more than a few cracked crowns. Yon man of the gown is theProctor of the South. There be two such in the University, one for theNorth and one for the South; and I trow they have their hands full tokeep order sometimes! But come along, let us to dinner, and ye shalltell your news."