The White Company Read online

  CHAPTER XV. HOW THE YELLOW COG SAILED FORTH FROM LEPE.

  That night the Company slept at St. Leonard's, in the great monasticbarns and spicarium--ground well known both to Alleyne and to John, forthey were almost within sight of the Abbey of Beaulieu. A strange thrillit gave to the young squire to see the well-remembered white dress oncemore, and to hear the measured tolling of the deep vespers bell.At early dawn they passed across the broad, sluggish, reed-girtstream--men, horses, and baggage in the flat ferry barges--and sojourneyed on through the fresh morning air past Exbury to Lepe.Topping the heathy down, they came of a sudden full in sight of the oldsea-port--a cluster of houses, a trail of blue smoke, and a bristle ofmasts. To right and left the long blue curve of the Solent lapped in afringe of foam upon the yellow beach. Some way out from the town a lineof pessoners, creyers, and other small craft were rolling lazily on thegentle swell. Further out still lay a great merchant-ship, high ended,deep waisted, painted of a canary yellow, and towering above thefishing-boats like a swan among ducklings.

  "By St. Paul!" said the knight, "our good merchant of Southampton hathnot played us false, for methinks I can see our ship down yonder. Hesaid that she would be of great size and of a yellow shade."

  "By my hilt, yes!" muttered Aylward; "she is yellow as a kite's claw,and would carry as many men as there are pips in a pomegranate."

  "It is as well," remarked Terlake; "for methinks, my fair lord, thatwe are not the only ones who are waiting a passage to Gascony. Mine eyecatches at times a flash and sparkle among yonder houses which assuredlynever came from shipman's jacket or the gaberdine of a burgher."

  "I can also see it," said Alleyne, shading his eyes with his hand. "AndI can see men-at-arms in yonder boats which ply betwixt the vessel andthe shore. But methinks that we are very welcome here, for already theycome forth to meet us."

  A tumultuous crowd of fishermen, citizens, and women had indeed swarmedout from the northern gate, and approached them up the side of the moor,waving their hands and dancing with joy, as though a great fear had beenrolled back from their minds. At their head rode a very large and solemnman with a long chin and a drooping lip. He wore a fur tippet round hisneck and a heavy gold chain over it, with a medallion which dangled infront of him.

  "Welcome, most puissant and noble lord," he cried, doffing his bonnetto Black Simon. "I have heard of your lordship's valiant deeds, and insooth they might be expected from your lordship's face and bearing. Isthere any small matter in which I may oblige you?"

  "Since you ask me," said the man-at-arms, "I would take it kindly if youcould spare a link or two of the chain which hangs round your neck."

  "What, the corporation chain!" cried the other in horror. "The ancientchain of the township of Lepe! This is but a sorry jest, Sir Nigel."

  "What the plague did you ask me for then?" said Simon. "But if it isSir Nigel Loring with whom you would speak, that is he upon the blackhorse."

  The Mayor of Lepe gazed with amazement on the mild face and slenderframe of the famous warrior.

  "Your pardon, my gracious lord," he cried. "You see in me the mayor andchief magistrate of the ancient and powerful town of Lepe. I bid youvery heartily welcome, and the more so as you are come at a moment whenwe are sore put to it for means of defence."

  "Ha!" cried Sir Nigel, pricking up his ears.

  "Yes, my lord, for the town being very ancient and the walls as oldas the town, it follows that they are very ancient too. But there is acertain villainous and bloodthirsty Norman pirate hight Tete-noire, who,with a Genoan called Tito Caracci, commonly known as Spade-beard, hathbeen a mighty scourge upon these coasts. Indeed, my lord, they are verycruel and black-hearted men, graceless and ruthless, and if they shouldcome to the ancient and powerful town of Lepe then--"

  "Then good-bye to the ancient and powerful town of Lepe," quoth Ford,whose lightness of tongue could at times rise above his awe of SirNigel.

  The knight, however, was too much intent upon the matter in hand to giveheed to the flippancy of his squire. "Have you then cause," he asked,"to think that these men are about to venture an attempt upon you?"

  "They have come in two great galleys," answered the mayor, "with twobank of oars on either side, and great store of engines of war andof men-at-arms. At Weymouth and at Portland they have murdered andravished. Yesterday morning they were at Cowes, and we saw the smokefrom the burning crofts. To-day they lie at their ease near Freshwater,and we fear much lest they come upon us and do us a mischief."

  "We cannot tarry," said Sir Nigel, riding towards the town, with themayor upon his left side; "the Prince awaits us at Bordeaux, and we maynot be behind the general muster. Yet I will promise you that on our waywe shall find time to pass Freshwater and to prevail upon these roversto leave you in peace."

  "We are much beholden to you!" cried the mayor "But I cannot see, mylord, how, without a war-ship, you may venture against these men. Withyour archers, however, you might well hold the town and do them greatscath if they attempt to land."

  "There is a very proper cog out yonder," said Sir Nigel, "it would be avery strange thing if any ship were not a war-ship when it had such menas these upon her decks. Certes, we shall do as I say, and that no laterthan this very day."

  "My lord," said a rough-haired, dark-faced man, who walked by theknight's other stirrup, with his head sloped to catch all that he wassaying. "By your leave, I have no doubt that you are skilled in landfighting and the marshalling of lances, but, by my soul! you will findit another thing upon the sea. I am the master-shipman of this yellowcog, and my name is Goodwin Hawtayne. I have sailed since I was as highas this staff, and I have fought against these Normans and against theGenoese, as well as the Scotch, the Bretons, the Spanish, and the Moors.I tell you, sir, that my ship is over light and over frail for suchwork, and it will but end in our having our throats cut, or being soldas slaves to the Barbary heathen."

  "I also have experienced one or two gentle and honorable ventures uponthe sea," quoth Sir Nigel, "and I am right blithe to have so fair a taskbefore us. I think, good master-shipman, that you and I may win greathonor in this matter, and I can see very readily that you are a braveand stout man."

  "I like it not," said the other sturdily. "In God's name, I like it not.And yet Goodwin Hawtayne is not the man to stand back when his fellowsare for pressing forward. By my soul! be it sink or swim, I shallturn her beak into Freshwater Bay, and if good Master Witherton, ofSouthampton, like not my handling of his ship then he may find anothermaster-shipman."

  They were close by the old north gate of the little town, and Alleyne,half turning in his saddle, looked back at the motley crowd whofollowed. The bowmen and men-at-arms had broken their ranks and wereintermingled with the fishermen and citizens, whose laughing facesand hearty gestures bespoke the weight of care from which this welcomearrival had relieved them. Here and there among the moving throng ofdark jerkins and of white surcoats were scattered dashes of scarlet andblue, the whimples or shawls of the women. Aylward, with a fishing lasson either arm, was vowing constancy alternately to her on the right andher on the left, while big John towered in the rear with a little chubbymaiden enthroned upon his great shoulder, her soft white arm curledround his shining headpiece. So the throng moved on, until at the verygate it was brought to a stand by a wondrously fat man, who came dartingforth from the town with rage in every feature of his rubicund face.

  "How now, Sir Mayor?" he roared, in a voice like a bull. "How now, SirMayor? How of the clams and the scallops?"

  "By Our Lady! my sweet Sir Oliver," cried the mayor. "I have had so muchto think of, with these wicked villains so close upon us, that it hadquite gone out of my head."

  "Words, words!" shouted the other furiously. "Am I to be put off withwords? I say to you again, how of the clams and scallops?"

  "My fair sir, you flatter me," cried the mayor. "I am a peaceful trader,and I am not wont to be so shouted at upon so small a matter."

  "Small!" shrieked the other. "Small!
Clams and scallops! Ask me to yourtable to partake of the dainty of the town, and when I come a barrenwelcome and a bare board! Where is my spear-bearer?"

  "Nay, Sir Oliver, Sir Oliver!" cried Sir Nigel, laughing.

  "Let your anger be appeased, since instead of this dish you come upon anold friend and comrade."

  "By St. Martin of Tours!" shouted the fat knight, his wrath all changedin an instant to joy, "if it is not my dear little game rooster of theGaronne. Ah, my sweet coz, I am right glad to see you. What days we haveseen together!"

  "Aye, by my faith," cried Sir Nigel, with sparkling eyes, "we haveseen some valiant men, and we have shown our pennons in some nobleskirmishes. By St. Paul! we have had great joys in France."

  "And sorrows also," quoth the other. "I have some sad memories of theland. Can you recall that which befell us at Libourne?"

  "Nay, I cannot call to mind that we ever so much as drew sword at theplace."

  "Man, man," cried Sir Oliver, "your mind still runs on nought but bladesand bassinets. Hast no space in thy frame for the softer joys. Ah,even now I can scarce speak of it unmoved. So noble a pie, such tenderpigeons, and sugar in the gravy instead of salt! You were by my sidethat day, as were Sir Claude Latour and the Lord of Pommers."

  "I remember it," said Sir Nigel, laughing, "and how you harried the cookdown the street, and spoke of setting fire to the inn. By St. Paul! mostworthy mayor, my old friend is a perilous man, and I rede you that youcompose your difference with him on such terms as you may."

  "The clams and scallops shall be ready within the hour," the mayoranswered. "I had asked Sir Oliver Buttesthorn to do my humble boardthe honor to partake at it of the dainty upon which we take some littlepride, but in sooth this alarm of pirates hath cast such a shadow on mywits that I am like one distrait. But I trust, Sir Nigel, that you willalso partake of none-meat with me?"

  "I have overmuch to do," Sir Nigel answered, "for we must be aboard,horse and man, as early as we may. How many do you muster, Sir Oliver?"

  "Three and forty. The forty are drunk, and the three are but indifferentsober. I have them all safe upon the ship."

  "They had best find their wits again, for I shall have work for everyman of them ere the sun set. It is my intention, if it seems good toyou, to try a venture against these Norman and Genoese rovers."

  "They carry caviare and certain very noble spices from the Levant aboardof ships from Genoa," quoth Sir Oliver. "We may come to great profitthrough the business. I pray you, master-shipman, that when you go onboard you pour a helmetful of sea-water over any of my rogues whom youmay see there."

  Leaving the lusty knight and the Mayor of Lepe, Sir Nigel led theCompany straight down to the water's edge, where long lines of flatlighters swiftly bore them to their vessel. Horse after horse was slungby main force up from the barges, and after kicking and plunging inempty air was dropped into the deep waist of the yellow cog, where rowsof stalls stood ready for their safe keeping. Englishmen in those dayswere skilled and prompt in such matters, for it was so not long beforethat Edward had embarked as many as fifty thousand men in the portof Orwell, with their horses and their baggage, all in the space offour-and-twenty hours. So urgent was Sir Nigel on the shore, and soprompt was Goodwin Hawtayne on the cog, that Sir Oliver Buttesthorn hadscarce swallowed his last scallop ere the peal of the trumpet and clangof nakir announced that all was ready and the anchor drawn. In the lastboat which left the shore the two commanders sat together in the sheets,a strange contrast to one another, while under the feet of the rowerswas a litter of huge stones which Sir Nigel had ordered to be carried tothe cog. These once aboard, the ship set her broad mainsail, purplein color, and with a golden St. Christopher bearing Christ upon hisshoulder in the centre of it. The breeze blew, the sail bellied, overheeled the portly vessel, and away she plunged through the smooth bluerollers, amid the clang of the minstrels on her poop and the shouting ofthe black crowd who fringed the yellow beach. To the left lay the greenIsland of Wight, with its long, low, curving hills peeping over eachother's shoulders to the sky-line; to the right the wooded Hampshirecoast as far as eye could reach; above a steel-blue heaven, with awintry sun shimmering down upon them, and enough of frost to set thebreath a-smoking.

  "By St. Paul!" said Sir Nigel gayly, as he stood upon the poop andlooked on either side of him, "it is a land which is very well worthfighting for, and it were pity to go to France for what may be had athome. Did you not spy a crooked man upon the beach?"

  "Nay, I spied nothing," grumbled Sir Oliver, "for I was hurried downwith a clam stuck in my gizzard and an untasted goblet of Cyprus on theboard behind me."

  "I saw him, my fair lord," said Terlake, "an old man with one shoulderhigher than the other."

  "'Tis a sign of good fortune," quoth Sir Nigel. "Our path was alsocrossed by a woman and by a priest, so all should be well with us. Whatsay you, Edricson?"

  "I cannot tell, my fair lord. The Romans of old were a very wise people,yet, certes, they placed their faith in such matters. So, too, didthe Greeks, and divers other ancient peoples who were famed for theirlearning. Yet of the moderns there are many who scoff at all omens."

  "There can be no manner of doubt about it," said Sir Oliver Buttesthorn."I can well remember that in Navarre one day it thundered on the leftout of a cloudless sky. We knew that ill would come of it, nor had welong to wait. Only thirteen days after, a haunch of prime venison wascarried from my very tent door by the wolves, and on the same day twoflasks of old vernage turned sour and muddy."

  "You may bring my harness from below," said Sir Nigel to his squires,"and also, I pray you, bring up Sir Oliver's and we shall don it here.Ye may then see to your own gear; for this day you will, I hope, make avery honorable entrance into the field of chivalry, and prove yourselvesto be very worthy and valiant squires. And now, Sir Oliver, as to ourdispositions: would it please you that I should order them or will you?"

  "You, my cockerel, you. By Our Lady! I am no chicken, but I cannot claimto know as much of war as the squire of Sir Walter Manny. Settle thematter to your own liking."

  "You shall fly your pennon upon the fore part, then, and I upon thepoop. For foreguard I shall give you your own forty men, with two-scorearchers. Two-score men, with my own men-at-arms and squires, will serveas a poop-guard. Ten archers, with thirty shipmen, under the master, mayhold the waist while ten lie aloft with stones and arbalests. How likeyou that?"

  "Good, by my faith, good! But here comes my harness, and I must to work,for I cannot slip into it as I was wont when first I set my face to thewars."

  Meanwhile there had been bustle and preparation in all parts of thegreat vessel. The archers stood in groups about the decks, new-stringingtheir bows, and testing that they were firm at the nocks. Among themmoved Aylward and other of the older soldiers, with a few whisperedwords of precept here and of warning there.

  "Stand to it, my hearts of gold," said the old bowman as he passed fromknot to knot. "By my hilt! we are in luck this journey. Bear in mind theold saying of the Company."

  "What is that, Aylward?" cried several, leaning on their bows andlaughing at him.

  "'Tis the master-bowyer's rede: 'Every bow well bent. Every shaft wellsent. Every stave well nocked. Every string well locked.' There, withthat jingle in his head, a bracer on his left hand, a shooting glove onhis right, and a farthing's-worth of wax in his girdle, what more doth abowman need?"

  "It would not be amiss," said Hordle John, "if under his girdle he hadfour farthings'-worth of wine."

  "Work first, wine afterwards, mon camarade. But it is time that wetook our order, for methinks that between the Needle rocks and the Alumcliffs yonder I can catch a glimpse of the topmasts of the galleys.Hewett, Cook, Johnson, Cunningham, your men are of the poop-guard.Thornbury, Walters, Hackett, Baddlesmere, you are with Sir Oliver on theforecastle. Simon, you bide with your lord's banner; but ten men must goforward."

  Quietly and promptly the men took their places, lying flat upon theirfaces on the deck, f
or such was Sir Nigel's order. Near the prow wasplanted Sir Oliver's spear, with his arms--a boar's head gules upon afield of gold. Close by the stern stood Black Simon with the pennon ofthe house of Loring. In the waist gathered the Southampton mariners,hairy and burly men, with their jerkins thrown off, their waists bracedtight, swords, mallets, and pole-axes in their hands. Their leader,Goodwin Hawtayne, stood upon the poop and talked with Sir Nigel, castinghis eye up sometimes at the swelling sail, and then glancing back at thetwo seamen who held the tiller.

  "Pass the word," said Sir Nigel, "that no man shall stand to arms ordraw his bow-string until my trumpeter shall sound. It would be wellthat we should seem to be a merchant-ship from Southampton and appear toflee from them."

  "We shall see them anon," said the master-shipman. "Ha, said I not so?There they lie, the water-snakes, in Freshwater Bay; and mark the reekof smoke from yonder point, where they have been at their devil's work.See how their shallops pull from the land! They have seen us and calledtheir men aboard. Now they draw upon the anchor. See them like ants uponthe forecastle! They stoop and heave like handy ship men. But, my fairlord, these are no niefs. I doubt but we have taken in hand more thanwe can do. Each of these ships is a galeasse, and of the largest andswiftest make."

  "I would I had your eyes," said Sir Nigel, blinking at the pirategalleys. "They seem very gallant ships, and I trust that we shall havemuch pleasance from our meeting with them. It would be well to pass theword that we should neither give nor take quarter this day. Have youperchance a priest or friar aboard this ship, Master Hawtayne?"

  "No, my fair lord."

  "Well, well, it is no great matter for my Company, for they were allhouseled and shriven ere we left Twynham Castle; and Father Christopherof the Priory gave me his word that they were as fit to march to heavenas to Gascony. But my mind misdoubts me as to these Winchester men whohave come with Sir Oliver, for they appear to be a very ungodly crew.Pass the word that the men kneel, and that the under-officers repeat tothem the pater, the ave, and the credo."

  With a clank of arms, the rough archers and seamen took to their knees,with bent heads and crossed hands, listening to the hoarse mutter fromthe file-leaders. It was strange to mark the hush; so that the lappingof the water, the straining of the sail, and the creaking of the timbersgrew louder of a sudden upon the ear. Many of the bowmen had drawnamulets and relics from their bosoms, while he who possessed somemore than usually sanctified treasure passed it down the line of hiscomrades, that all might kiss and reap the virtue.

  The yellow cog had now shot out from the narrow waters of the Solent,and was plunging and rolling on the long heave of the open channel. Thewind blew freshly from the east, with a very keen edge to it; and thegreat sail bellied roundly out, laying the vessel over until the waterhissed beneath her lee bulwarks. Broad and ungainly, she floundered fromwave to wave, dipping her round bows deeply into the blue rollers, andsending the white flakes of foam in a spatter over her decks. On herlarboard quarter lay the two dark galleys, which had already hoistedsail, and were shooting out from Freshwater Bay in swift pursuit, theirdouble line of oars giving them a vantage which could not fail to bringthem up with any vessel which trusted to sails alone. High and bluff theEnglish cog; long, black and swift the pirate galleys, like two fiercelean wolves which have seen a lordly and unsuspecting stag walk pasttheir forest lair.

  "Shall we turn, my fair lord, or shall we carry on?" asked themaster-shipman, looking behind him with anxious eyes.

  "Nay, we must carry on and play the part of the helpless merchant."

  "But your pennons? They will see that we have two knights with us."

  "Yet it would not be to a knight's honor or good name to lower hispennon. Let them be, and they will think that we are a wine-ship forGascony, or that we bear the wool-bales of some mercer of the Staple. Mafoi, but they are very swift! They swoop upon us like two goshawks on aheron. Is there not some symbol or device upon their sails?"

  "That on the right," said Edricson, "appears to have the head of anEthiop upon it."

  "'Tis the badge of Tete-noire, the Norman," cried a seaman-mariner. "Ihave seen it before, when he harried us at Winchelsea. He is a wondrouslarge and strong man, with no ruth for man, woman, or beast. They saythat he hath the strength of six; and, certes, he hath the crimes of sixupon his soul. See, now, to the poor souls who swing at either end ofhis yard-arm!"

  At each end of the yard there did indeed hang the dark figure of a man,jolting and lurching with hideous jerkings of its limbs at every plungeand swoop of the galley.

  "By St. Paul!" said Sir Nigel, "and by the help of St. George and OurLady, it will be a very strange thing if our black-headed friend doesnot himself swing thence ere he be many hours older. But what is thatupon the other galley?"

  "It is the red cross of Genoa. This Spade-beard is a very noted captain,and it is his boast that there are no seamen and no archers in the worldwho can compare with those who serve the Doge Boccanegra."

  "That we shall prove," said Goodwin Hawtayne; "but it would be well,ere they close with us, to raise up the mantlets and pavises as a screenagainst their bolts." He shouted a hoarse order, and his seamen workedswiftly and silently, heightening the bulwarks and strengthening them.The three ship's anchors were at Sir Nigel's command carried into thewaist, and tied to the mast, with twenty feet of cable between, eachunder the care of four seamen. Eight others were stationed with leatherwater-bags to quench any fire-arrows which might come aboard, whileothers were sent up the mast, to lie along the yard and drop stones orshoot arrows as the occasion served.

  "Let them be supplied with all that is heavy and weighty in the ship,"said Sir Nigel.

  "Then we must send them up Sir Oliver Buttesthorn," quoth Ford.

  The knight looked at him with a face which struck the smile from hislips. "No squire of mine," he said, "shall ever make jest of a beltedknight. And yet," he added, his eyes softening, "I know that it is buta boy's mirth, with no sting in it. Yet I should ill do my part towardsyour father if I did not teach you to curb your tongue-play."

  "They will lay us aboard on either quarter, my lord," cried the master."See how they stretch out from each other! The Norman hath a mangonelor a trabuch upon the forecastle. See, they bend to the levers! They areabout to loose it."

  "Aylward," cried the knight, "pick your three trustiest archers, and seeif you cannot do something to hinder their aim. Methinks they are withinlong arrow flight."

  "Seventeen score paces," said the archer, running his eye backwards andforwards. "By my ten finger-bones! it would be a strange thing if wecould not notch a mark at that distance. Here, Watkin of Sowley, Arnold,Long Williams, let us show the rogues that they have English bowmen todeal with."

  The three archers named stood at the further end of the poop, balancingthemselves with feet widely spread and bows drawn, until the heads ofthe cloth-yard arrows were level with the centre of the stave. "Youare the surer, Watkin," said Aylward, standing by them with shaft uponstring. "Do you take the rogue with the red coif. You two bring down theman with the head-piece, and I will hold myself ready if you miss. Mafoi! they are about to loose her. Shoot, mes garcons, or you will be toolate."

  The throng of pirates had cleared away from the great wooden catapult,leaving two of their number to discharge it. One in a scarlet capbent over it, steadying the jagged rock which was balanced on thespoon-shaped end of the long wooden lever. The other held the loop ofthe rope which would release the catch and send the unwieldy missilehurtling through the air. So for an instant they stood, showing hard andclear against the white sail behind them. The next, redcap had fallenacross the stone with an arrow between his ribs; and the other, struckin the leg and in the throat, was writhing and spluttering upon theground. As he toppled backwards he had loosed the spring, and the hugebeam of wood, swinging round with tremendous force, cast the corpse ofhis comrade so close to the English ship that its mangled and distortedlimbs grazed their very stern. As to the stone, it glanced off obliqu
elyand fell midway between the vessels. A roar of cheering and of laughterbroke from the rough archers and seamen at the sight, answered by a yellof rage from their pursuers.

  "Lie low, mes enfants," cried Aylward, motioning with his left hand."They will learn wisdom. They are bringing forward shield and mantlet.We shall have some pebbles about our ears ere long."