The Dragon And The Raven: Or The Days Of King Alfred(Fiscle Part-3), G. A. Henty [top business books of all time .txt] 📗
- Author: G. A. Henty
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Against The African Pirates. They Are Fast And Roomy, And
Have Plenty Of Accommodation For The Crews. One Of Them
Well Manned And Handled Should Be A Match For Six At Least
Of The Danish Galleys, Which Are Much Lower In The Water And
Smaller In All Ways. But It Will Cost A Good Deal Of Money To
Build Such A Ship."
"I Will Devote All The Revenues Of My Land To It Until It Is
Finished," Edmund Said. "I Will Place A Hundred Serfs At Your
Service, And Will Leave It To You To Hire As Many Craftsmen As
May Be Needed. I Intend To Build Her In A Quiet Place In A
Deep Wood On The River Parrot, So That She May Escape The
Eyes Of The Danes."
"I Shall Require Seasoned Timber," The Shipwright Urged.
"That Will I Buy," Edmund Replied, As You Shall Direct,
And Can Have It Brought Up The River To The Spot."
"Being So Large And Heavy," The Shipwright Said, "She Will
Be Difficult To Launch. Methinks It Were Best To Dig A Hole Or
Dock At Some Little Distance From The River; Then When She Is
Finished A Way Can Be Cut To The River Wide Enough For Her To
Pass Out. When The Water Is Turned In It Will Float Her Up
Level To The Surface, And As She Will Not Draw More Than Two
Feet Of Water The Cut Need Not Be More Than Three Feet Deep."
"That Will Be The Best Plan By Far," Edmund Agreed, "For
You Can Make The Hole So Deep That You Can Build Her Entirely
Below The Level Of The Ground. Then We Can, If Needs Be, Fill
Up The Hole Altogether With Bushes, And Cover Her Up, So That
She Would Not Be Seen By A Danish Galley Rowing Up The River,
Or Even By Any Of The Enemy Who Might Enter The Wood, Unless
Part 3 Chapter 4 (The Invasion Of Wessex) Pg 43They Made Special Search For Her; And There She Could Lie
Until I Chose To Embark."
The Shipwright At Once Set To Work To Draw Out His Plans,
And A Week Later Sent To Edmund A Messenger With An Account
Of The Quantity And Size Of Wood He Should Require.
This Was Purchased At Once. Edmund And Egbert With Their
Serfs Journeyed To The Spot They Had Chosen, And Were Met
There By The Shipwright, Who Brought With Him Twenty Craftsmen
From Exeter. The Wood Was Brought Up The River, And
While The Craftsmen Began To Cut It Up Into Fitting Sizes, The
Serfs Applied Themselves To Dig The Deep Dock In Which The
Vessel Was To Be Built.
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 44
The Construction Of The Ship Went On Steadily. King
Alfred, Who Was Himself Building Several War Vessels
Of Ordinary Size, Took Great Interest In Edmund's Craft
And Paid Several Visits To It While It Was In Progress.
"It Will Be A Fine Ship," He Said One Day As The Vessel Was
Approaching Completion, "And Much Larger Than Any In These
Seas. It Reminds Me, Edmund, Not Indeed In Size Or Shape,
But In Its Purpose, Of The Ark Which Noah Built Before The
Deluge Which Covered The Whole Earth. He Built It, As You
Know, To Escape With His Family From Destruction. You, Too,
Are Building Against The Time When The Deluge Of Danish
Invasion Will Sweep Over This Land, And I Trust That Your
Success Will Equal That Of The Patriarch."
"I Shall Be Better Off Than Noah Was," Edmund Said, "For
He Had Nothing To Do, Save To Shut Up His Windows And Wait
Till The Floods Abated, While I Shall Go Out And Seek My
Enemies On The Sea."
The Respite Purchased By The King From The Danes Was
But A Short One. In The Autumn Of 875 Their Bands Were
Again Swarming Around The Borders Of Wessex, And Constant
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 45Again Swarming Around The Borders Of Wessex, And Constant
Irruptions Took Place. Edmund Received A Summons To Gather
His Tenants, But He Found That These No Longer Replied
Willingly To The Call. Several Of His Chief Men Met Him And
Represented To Him The General Feeling Which Prevailed.
"The Men Say," Their Spokesman Explained, "That It Is
Useless To Fight Against The Danes. In 872 There Were Ten
Pitched Battles, And Vast Numbers Of The Danes Were Slain,
And Vast Numbers Also Of Saxons. The Danes Are Already Far
More Numerous Than Before, For Fresh Hordes Continue To
Arrive On The Shores, And More Than Fill Up The Places Of Those
Who Are Killed; But The Places Of The Saxons Are Empty, And
Our Fighting Force Is Far Smaller Than It Was Last Year. If We
Again Go Out And Again Fight Many Battles, Even If We Are
Victorious, Which We Can Hardly Hope To Be, The Same Thing
Will Happen. Many Thousands Will Be Slain, And The Following
Year We Shall In Vain Try To Put An Army In The Field Which Can
Match That Of The Danes, Who Will Again Have Filled Up Their
Ranks, And Be As Numerous As Ever. So Long As We Continue To
Fight, So Long The Danes Will Slay, Burn, And Destroy
Wheresoever They March, Until There Will Remain Of Us But A
Few Fugitives Hidden In The Woods. We Should Be Far Better
Off Did We Cease To Resist, And The Danes Become Our Masters,
As They Have Become The Masters Of Northumbria, Mercia,
And Anglia.
"There, It Is True, They Have Plundered The Churches And
Thanes' Houses And Have Stolen All That Is Worth Carrying Away;
But When They Have Taken All That There Is To Take They Leave
The People Alone, And Unmolested, To Till The Ground And To
Gain Their Livelihood. They Do Not Slay For The Pleasure Of
Slaying, And Grievous As Is The Condition Of The Angles They
And Their Wives And Children Are Free From Massacre And Are
Allowed To Gain Their Livings. The West Saxons Have Showed
That They Are No Cowards; They Have Defeated The Northmen
Over And Over Again When Far Outnumbering Them. It Is No
Dishonour To Yield Now When All The Rest Of England Has
Yielded, And When Further Fighting Will Only Bring Ruin Upon
Ourselves, Our Wives, And Children."
Edmund Could Find No Reply To This Argument. He Knew
That Even The King Despaired Of Ultimately Resisting The Danish
Invasion, And After Listening To All That The Thanes Had To
Say He Retired With Egbert Apart.
"What Say You, Egbert? There Is Reason In The Arguments
That They Use. You And I Have Neither Wives Nor Children,
And We Risk Only Our Own Lives; But I Can Well Understand
That Those Who Have So Much To Lose Are Chary Of Further
Effort. What Say You?"
"I Do Not Think It Will Be Fair To Press Them Further,"
Egbert Answered; "But Methinks That We Might Raise A Band
Consisting Of All The Youths And Unmarried Men In The Earldom.
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 46These We Might Train Carefully And Keep Always Together,
Seeing That The Lands Will Still Be Cultivated And All
Able To Pay Their Assessment, And May Even Add To It, Since
You Exempt Them From Service. Such A Band We Could Train
And Practise Until We Could Rely Upon Them To Defeat A Far
Larger Force Of The Enemy, And They Would Be Available For
Our Crew When We Take To The Ship."
"I Think The Idea Is A Very Good One, Egbert; We Will Propose
It To The Thanes." The Proposition Was Accordingly Made
That All Married Men Should Be Exempt From Service, But
That The Youths Above The Age Of Sixteen And The Unmarried
Men Should Be Formed Into A Band And Kept Permanently
Under Arms. Landowners Who Lost The Services Of Sons Or
Freemen Working For Them Should Pay The Same Assessment
Only As Before, But Those Who Did Not Contribute Men To The
Levy Should Pay An Additional Assessment. Edmund Said He
Would Pay The Men Composing The Band The Same Wages They
Would Earn In The Field, And Would Undertake All Their
Expenses. "So Long As The King Continues The Struggle,"
He Said, "It Is Our Duty To Aid Him, Nor Can We Escape From
The Dangers And Perils Of Invasion. Should The Danes Come
Near Us All Must Perforce Fight, But So Long As They Continue
At A Distance Things Can Go On Here As If We Had Peace
In The Land."
The Proposal Was, After Some Discussion, Agreed To, And
The News Caused Gladness And Contentment Throughout The
Earldom. The Younger Men Who Had Been Included In The
Levy Were Quite Satisfied With The Arrangement. The Spirit Of
The West Saxons Was Still High, And Those Without Wives And
Families Who Would Suffer By Their Absence Or Be Ruined By
Their Death Were Eager To Continue The Contest. The Proposal
That They Should Be Paid As When At Work Was Considered
Perfectly Satisfactory.
The Men Of Sherborne Had Under Their Young Leader
Gained Great Credit By Their Steadiness And Valour In The
Battles Four Years Before, And They Looked Forward To Fresh
Victories Over The Invader. The Result Was That Ninety Young
Men Assembled For Service. Edmund Had Sent Off A Messenger To
The King Saying That The People Were Utterly Weary Of War And
Refused To Take Up Arms, But That He Was Gathering A Band Of
Young Men With Whom He Would Ere Long Join Him; But He
Prayed For A Short Delay In Order That He Might Get Them Into
A Condition To Be Useful On The Day Of Battle.
After Consultation With
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