Like a fiend he ever loves to
do evil, and when there is neither man, woman, nor child to
destroy, he will lame cattle, drive them into the water, break
their backs, or otherwise destroy them."
"But does not William ever administer justice, according to the
oath he swore at his coronation?"
"Not when the case is Englishman against Norman; then these
foreigners stick together like the scales on the dragon's back, one
overlapping the other. But we must waste no more time; it is just
possible, although unlikely, owing to the unfrequented route we
have taken, that your old enemy may be upon our track, with five
hundred Norman horse to back him."
They rejoined their comrades, and all were soon again in the
saddle--horses and men alike refreshed by the halt; with great
knowledge of the country their guide led them by unfrequented
routes towards the fenny country; in the distance they beheld the
newly rising castles, and heard from time to time an occasional
trumpet; more frequently they passed ruined villages, burnt houses
and farms, and saw on every side the evidence of the ferocity of
their conquerors.
Nightfall came and still they continued their route; Leofric
enlivening the way with many a tale of the exploits of the great
hero, whom he looked upon with confidence as the future deliverer
of England.
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