Then spake Stephen again: "Lord, since thou wilt fight
afoot with our friends of the Shepherds, we of the Dry Tree
are minded to fare in like wise and to forego our horses;
but if thou gainsay it----"
"Champion," said Ralph, "I do gainsay it. Thou seest how many of them
be horsed, and withal ye it is who must hold the chase of them;
for I will that no man of them shall escape."
They laughed joyously at his word, and then he said:
"Go now, and give your leaders of scores and tens the word
that I have said, and come back speedily for a little while;
for now I see three men sundering them from their battle,
and one beareth a white cloth at the end of his spear;
these shall be the challengers."
So they did after his bidding, and by then they had come
back to Ralph those three men were at the foot of the hill,
which was but low. Then Ralph said to his captains:
"Stand before me, so that I be not seen of them until one of you
hath made answer, 'Speak of this to our leader and captain.'"
Even so they did; and presently those three came so nigh
that they could see the whites of their eyes. They were all
three well armed, but the foremost of them was clad in white
steel from head to foot, so that he looked like a steel image,
all but his face, which was pale and sallow and grim.
He and his two fellows, when they were right nigh,
rode slowly all along the front of Ralph's battles thrice,
and none spake aught to them, and they gave no word to any;
but when they came over against the captains who stood before
Ralph for the fourth time, they reined up and faced them,
and the leader put back his sallet and spake in a great
and rough voice:
"Ye men! we have heard these three hours that ye were coming,
wherefore we have drawn out into the meads which we have taken,
that ye might see how many and how valiant we be, and might fear us.
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