The House of Walderne Part 19

"My lord, is it a duty to tell all we know, even if it is against a companion?"

"It is under such circ.u.mstances, when the innocent may be suspected."

"Then, my lord, I saw Hubert shoot that deer, as I was in the West Woods."

"Saw him! Did he see you?"

"It is a lie, my lord," cried Hubert indignantly. "I cast the lie in his teeth, and challenge him to prove his words by combat in the lists, when I will thrust the slander down his perjured throat."

The earl had his own doubts as to this new piece of evidence, for he was aware of Drogo's feelings towards Hubert, and therefore he welcomed the indignant denial of the younger boy. Still, he could not permit mortal combat at their age. They were not ent.i.tled to claim 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 occurred at Warkworth Castle when I was there: a page gave another the direct lie as this one has done, and the earl permitted them to run a course with blunted lances and fight it out; adjudging the dismounted page to be in the wrong, as indeed he afterwards proved to be."

"Let it be so," said Earl Simon, who had a devout belief in the ordeal, as manifesting the judgment of the Unerring One. "We allow the appeal, and it shall be decided this afternoon in the tilt yard."

Blunted lances! Not very dangerous, our readers may think at first thought. But the shock and the violent fall from the horse was really the more dangerous part of the tournament. The point of the lance seldom penetrated the armour of proof in which combatants were encased.

The pages separated in great excitement. Most of them held with Hubert--for Drogo's arrogant manners had not gained him many friends. Much advice was given to the younger boy how to "go in and win," and the poor lad was eager for the fight whereby his honour was to be vindicated, as though victory and reputation were quite secured, as indeed in his belief they were.

The ordeal! it seems full of superst.i.tion to us, unaccustomed to believe in, or to realise, G.o.d's direct dealing with the world. But men then thought that G.o.d must show the innocence of the accused who thus appealed to Him, whether by battle or by the earlier forms of ordeal {18}.

But was not the casting of lots in the Old Testament akin to the idea, and are there not pa.s.sages in the Levitical books prescribing similar usages with the object of detecting innocence or guilt?

At all events, the ordeal was allowed to be decisive, and if it were a capital charge, the headsman was at hand to behead the convicted 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, and received, what to one was probably his last Communion; and thus avowing in the most solemn way their innocence before G.o.d and man, they came to the lists. In cases where one of the party must of necessity be perjured, the sin of thus profaning the Sacraments of the Church was supposed to ensure his downfall the more certainly, for would not G.o.d the rather be moved to avenge Himself?

But in the case of these pages, both under the degree of knighthood, such solemn sanction was not invoked, yet the affair was sufficiently impressive. The tilt yard was a wide and level sward, bordered on one side by the moat, surrounded by a low hedge, within which was erected a covered pavilion, not much unlike the stands on race courses in general design, only glittering with cloth of gold or silver, with flags and pennons fair.

In the foremost rank of seats sat the earl and his countess, with other guests of rank then residing in the castle, behind were other privileged members of the household, and around the course were grouped such of the retainers and garrison of the castle as the piquant pa.s.sage of arms between two boys had enticed from their ordinary posts or duties. But perhaps it was only the same general appet.i.te for excitement which gathers the whole ma.s.s of boys in our public schools (or did gather in rougher days), to witness a "mill."

But one essential ceremonial was not omitted. The two combatants being admitted to the lists, each stood in turn before the earl, seated in the pavilion, and thus cried:

"Here stands Drogo of HarenG.o.d, who maintains that he saw Hubert (of Nowhere) shoot the earl's deer, and will maintain the same on the body of the said Hubert, soi-disant of Walderne."

These additions to Hubert's name were insults, and made the earl frown, while it spoke volumes as to the true cause of the animosity. Then Hubert stood up and spoke.

"Here stands Hubert of Walderne, who avows that Drogo of HarenG.o.d lies, and will maintain his own innocence on the body of the said Drogo, so help him G.o.d."

Then both knelt, and the chaplain prayed that G.o.d, who alone knew the 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, where a horse and headless lance were awaiting him, under the care of two friends--fratres consociati. Percy, and Alois from Blois, were the friends of Hubert. The chronicler has forgotten who befriended or seconded Drogo, and hopes he found it hard to find any one to do so.

The earl rose up in the pavilion, and bade the herald sound the charge. The two combatants galloped against each other at full speed, and met with a dull heavy shock. Drogo's lance had, whether providentially or otherwise, just grazed the helmet of his opponent and glanced off. Hubert's came so full on the crest of his enemy that he went down, horse and all.

Had this been a mortal combat, Hubert would at once have been expected to dismount, and with his sword to compel a confession from his fallen foe, on the pain of instant death in the case of refusal. But this combat was limited to the tourney--and a loud acclaim hailed Hubert as Victor.

Drogo was stunned by his fall, and borne by the earl's command to his chamber.

"G.o.d hath spoken, and vindicated the innocent," said the earl.

"Rise, my son," he added to Hubert, who knelt before him. "We believe in thy truth, and will abide by the event of the ordeal; but as thou art saved from expulsion, it is fitting that Drogo should 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 too deeply injured by the lie.

But his innocence was not left to the simple test of the trial by combat, in which case many modern unbelievers might feel inward doubts. That night the forester sought the earl again, and brought with him a verdurer or under keeper. This man had seen the whole affair, had seen Drogo pick up Hubert's arrow after the latter was gone, and stand as if musing over it, when a deer came that way, and Drogo let fly the shaft at once. Then he discovered the spectator, and bribed him with all the money he had about him to keep silence, which the fellow did, until he heard of the trial by combat and the accusation of the innocent, whereupon his conscience gave him no rest until he had owned his fault, and bringing the bribe to his chief, the forester, had made full reparation.

There was another gathering of the pages in the great hall on the following day. The earl and chaplain were there, the chief forester and his subordinate. Drogo, still suffering from his fall, and by no means improved in appearance, was brought before them.

"Drogo de HarenG.o.d," said the earl, "I should have doubted of G.o.d's justice, had the ordeal to which thou didst appeal gone otherwise.

But since yesterday the right has been made yet more clear. Dost thou know yon verdurer?"

Drogo looked at the man.

"My lord," he said. "I accept the decision of the combat. Let me go from Kenilworth."

"What, without reparation?"

"I have my punishment to bear in expulsion from this place"--("if punishment it be," he muttered)--"as for my soi-disant cousin, it will 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! thou liar and false accuser! GO, amidst the contempt and scorn of all who know thee."

And, amidst the hisses of his late companions, Drogo left Kenilworth for ever--expelled.

Chapter 11: The Early Franciscans.

We are afraid that some of our youthful readers will wonder what cause Martin had for such extreme self reproach, and why he should make such a serious matter of a little dissipation--such as we described in our former chapter.

But Martin had received a higher call, and although the old Adam within him would have its way, at times, yet his whole heart was set on serving G.o.d. To Hubert this dissipation would have seemed a small thing; to Martin such drinking, dicing, and brawling was simply selling his birthright for a mess of pottage.

So, with the early dawn, he went to ma.s.s at the Franciscan house, and wept all through the service, devoutly offering at the same time the renewed oblation of his heart to G.o.d, and praying that through the great sacrifice there commemorated and mystically renewed, the oblation of self might be sanctified.

Then he sought the good prior, Adam de Maresco, and obtaining an audience after the dejeuner or breakfast, poured out all his sorrows and sin.

The good prior almost smiled at the earnestness of the self rebuke.

He was not at all shocked. It was just what he had expected; he was only too delighted to find that the young prodigal loathed so speedily the husks which the swine do eat.

"Ah, my son, did I not bid thee not to trust too much to thyself?

and now my words have been verified by thy own experience, as it was perhaps well they should be."

"Well! that I should become a drunkard, dicer, and brawler."