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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Of Orders Somewhat Resembling Those Of Modern Drill.
King Alfred Had Once, In Speaking To Him, Described The
Manner In Which The Thebans, A People Of Northern Greece,
Had Fought, Placing Their Troops In The Form Of A Wedge. The
Formation He Now Taught His Men. From Morning To Night
They Were Practised At Rallying From Pursuit Or Flight, Or
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 47Changing From A Line Into The Form Of A Wedge. Each Man Had
His Appointed Place Both In The Line And Wedge. Those Who
Formed The Outside Line Of This Formation Were Armed With
Large Shields Which Covered Them From Chin To Foot, And With
Short Spears; Those In The Inner Lines Carried No Shields, But
Bore Spears Of Increasing Length, So That Four Lines Of Spears
Projected From The Wedge To Nearly The Same Distance. Inside
The Four Lines Were Twenty Men Armed With Shields, Bows,
And Arrows. The Sides Of The Wedge Were Of Equal Length, So
That They Could March Either Way.
Egbert's Place Was At The Apex Of The Wedge Intended
Generally For Attack. He Carried No Spear, Nor Did Those At
The Other Corners, As They Would Be Covered By Those Beside
And Behind Them; He Was Armed With A Huge Battle-Axe. The
Other Leaders Were Also Chosen For Great Personal Strength.
Edmund's Place Was On Horseback In The Middle Of The Wedge,
Whence He Could Overlook The Whole And Direct Their Movements.
In Three Weeks The Men Could Perform Their Simple
Movements To Perfection, And At A Sound From Edmund's
Horn Would Run In As When Scattered In Pursuit Or Flight,
Or Could Form From Line Into The Wedge, Without The Least
Confusion, Every Man Occupying His Assigned Place.
The Men Were Delighted With Their New Exercises, And
Felt Confident That The Weight Of The Solid Mass Thickly
Bristling With Spears Would Break Through The Danish Line
Without Difficulty, Or Could Draw Off From The Field In Perfect
Order And Safety In Case Of A Defeat, However Numerous Their
Foes. The Two Front Lines Were To Thrust With Their Pikes, The
Others Keeping Their Long Spears Immovable To Form A Solid
Hedge. Each Man Carried A Short Heavy Sword To Use In Case,
By Any Fatality, The Wedge Should Get Broken Up.
When Assured That His Band Were Perfect In Their New
Exercise Edmund Marched And Joined The King. He Found
On His Arrival That The Summons To Arms Had Been Everywhere
Disregarded. Many Men Had Indeed Come In, But These
Were In No Way Sufficient To Form A Force Which Would Enable
Him To Take The Field Against The Danes.
Edmund Therefore Solicited And Obtained Permission To
March With His Band To Endeavour To Check The Plundering
Bands Of Danes, Who Were Already Committing Devastations
Throughout The Country.
"Be Not Rash, Edmund," The Monarch Said, "You Have
But A Handful Of Men, And I Should Grieve Indeed Did Aught
Of Harm Befall You. If You Can Fall Upon Small Parties Of
Plunderers And Destroy Them You Will Do Good Service, Not
Only By Compelling Them To Keep Together But By Raising The
Spirits Of The Saxons; But Avoid Conflict With Parties Likely To
Defeat You."
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 48
"You Shall Hear Of Us Soon, I Promise You," Edmund Replied,
"And I Trust That The News Will Be Good."
The Little Party Set Out Towards The Border, And Before
Long Met Numbers Of Fugitives, Weeping Women Carrying Children,
Old Men And Boys, Making Their Way From The Neighbourhood Of
The Danes. The Men Had For The Most Part Driven Their
Herds Into The Woods, Where They Were Prepared To Defend Them
As Best They Could Against Roving Parties. They Learned That
Haffa, A Danish Jarl, With About 600 Followers, Was Plundering
And Ravaging The Country About Twelve Miles Away. The Force
Was A Formidable One, But After Consultation With Egbert,
Edmund Determined To Advance, Deeming That He Might Find
The Danes Scattered And Cut Off Some Of Their Parties.
As They Neared The Country Of Which The Danes Were In
Possession The Smoke Of Burning Villages And Homesteads
Was Seen Rising Heavily In The Air. Edmund Halted For The
Night In A Wood About A Mile Distant From A Blazing Farm,
And The Band Lay Down For Some Hours.
Before Daybreak Three Or Four Of The Swiftest-Footed Of
The Men Were Sent Out To Reconnoitre. They Learned, From
Badly Wounded Men Whom They Found Lying Near The Burning
Farms, That The Danes Had Been Plundering In Parties Of
Twenty Or Thirty, But That The Main Body Under Haffa Lay Five
Miles Away At The Village Of Bristowe.
A Consultation Was Held, And It Was Agreed That The Party
Should Remain Hidden In The Wood During The Day, And That
Upon The Following Night They Should Fall Upon The Danes,
Trusting To The Surprise To Inflict Much Damage Upon Them,
And To Be Able To Draw Off Before The Enemy Could Recover
Sufficiently To Rally And Attack Them.
Accordingly About Nine O'clock In The Evening They
Started, And Marching Rapidly Approached Bristowe An Hour
And A Half Later. They Could See Great Fires Blazing, And Round
Them The Danes Were Carousing After Their Forays Of The Day.
Great Numbers Of Cattle Were Penned Up Near The Village.
Edmund And Egbert Having Halted Their Men Stole Forward
Until Close To The Village In Order To Learn The Nature Of
The Ground And The Position Of The Danes. Upon Their Return
They Waited Until The Fires Burned Low And The Sound Of
Shouting And Singing Decreased. It Was Useless To Wait Longer,
For They Knew That Many Of The Danes Would, According To
Their Custom, Keep Up Their Revelry All Night. Crawling Along
The Ground The Band Made For The Great Pen Where Were
Herded The Cattle Which The Danes Had Driven In From The
Surrounding Country, And Over Which Several Guards Had Been
Placed. Before Starting Egbert Assigned To Each Man The
Special Duties Which He Was To Fulfil.
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 49
The Saxons Crept Up Quite Close To The Danish Guards
Unobserved. To Each Of These Three Or Four Bowmen Had
Been Told Off, And They, On Nearing The Sentries Lay Prone On
The Ground With Bows Bent And Arrows Fixed Until A Whistle
From Edmund Gave The Signal. Then The Arrows Were Loosed,
And The Distance Being So Short The Danish Sentries Were All
Slain. Then A Party Of Men Removed The Side Of The Pen
Facing The Village; The Rest Mingled With The Cattle, And Soon
With The Points Of Their Spears Goaded Them Into Flight. In A
Mass The Herd Thundered Down Upon The Village, The Saxons
Keeping Closely Behind Them And Adding To Their Terror By
Goading The Hindermost.
The Danes, Astonished At The Sudden Thunder Of Hoofs
Bearing Down Upon Them, Leaped To Their Feet And
Endeavoured To Turn The Course Of The Herd, Which They
Deemed To Have Accidentally Broken Loose, By Loud Shouts
And By Rattling Their Swords Against Their Shields. The Oxen,
However, Were Too Terrified By Those In Their Rear To Check
Their Course, And Charged Impetuously Down Upon The Danes.
Numbers Of These Were Hurled To The Ground And
Trampled Under Foot, And The Wildest Confusion Reigned In
The Camp. This Was Increased When, As The Herds Swept Along,
A Number Of Active Men With Spear And Sword Fell Suddenly
Upon Them. Scores Were Cut Down Or Run Through Before
They Could Prepare For Defence, Or Recover From Their
Surprise At The Novel Method Of Attack.
At Last, As The Thunder Of The Herd Died Away In The Distance,
And They Became Aware Of The Comparative Fewness Of
Their Foes, They Began To Rally And Make Head Against Their
Assailants. No Sooner Was This The Case Than The Note Of A
Horn Was Heard, And As If By Magic Their Assailants Instantly
Darted Away Into The Night, Leaving The Superstitious Danes
In Some Doubt Whether The Whole Attack Upon Them Had Not
Been Of A Supernatural Nature.
Long Before They Recovered Themselves, And Were Ready
For Pursuit, The Saxons Were Far Away, No Less Than 200 Of The
Danes Having Been Slain Or Trampled To Death, While Of
Edmund's Band Not One Had Received So Much As A Wound.
The Saxons Regained The Wood In The Highest State Of
Exultation At Their Success, And More Confident Than Before
In Themselves And Their Leader.
"I Am Convinced," Edmund Said, "That This Is The True
Way To Fight The Danes, To Harry And Attack Them By Night
Assaults Until They Dare Not Break Up Into Parties, And Become
So Worn Out By Constant Alarms That They Will Be Glad To
Leave A Country Where Plunder And Booty Are Only To Be Earned
At So Great A Cost."
Part 3 Chapter 5 (A Disciplined Band) Pg 50
Knowing That Haffa's Band Would For Some Time Be Thoroughly
On The Alert Edmund Moved His Party To Another Portion Of
The Country, Where He Inflicted A Blow, Almost As Heavy
As He Had Dealt Haffa, Upon Sigbert, Another Of The Danish
Jarls. Three Or Four More Very Successful Night Attacks Were
Made, And Then The Danes, By This Time Thoroughly Alarmed,
Obtained From Some Saxon Country People Whom They Took
Prisoners News As To The Strength Of Edmund's Band.
Furious At The Heavy Losses Which Had Been Inflicted
Upon Them By So Small A Number, They Determined To Unite
In Crushing Them. By Threats Of Instant Death, And By The
Offers Of A High Reward, They Succeeded In Persuading Two
Saxon Prisoners To Act As Spies, And One Day These Brought In
To Haffa The News That The Band Had That Morning, After
Striking A Successful Blow At The Danes Ten Miles Away,
Entered At Daybreak A
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