Middleton. Roaring Girl.
Prince John sat down impatiently before Arlingford castle in the hope of starving out the besieged2; but finding the duration of their supplies extend itself in an equal ratio with the prolongation of his hope, he made vigorous preparations for carrying the place by storm. He constructed an immense machine on wheels, which, being advanced to the edge of the moat, would lower a temporary bridge, of which one end would rest on the bank, and the other on the battlements, and which, being well furnished with stepping boards, would enable his men to ascend3 the inclined plane with speed and facility. Matilda received intimation of this design by the usual friendly channel of a blunt arrow, which must either have been sent from some secret friend in the prince’s camp, or from some vigorous archer4 beyond it: the latter will not appear improbable, when we consider that Robin5 Hood6 and Little John could shoot two English miles and an inch point-blank,
Come scrive Turpino, che non erra.
The machine was completed, and the ensuing morning fixed7 for the assault. Six men, relieved at intervals8, kept watch over it during the night. Prince John retired9 to sleep, congratulating himself in the expectation that another day would place the fair culprit at his princely mercy. His anticipations10 mingled12 with the visions of his slumber13, and he dreamed of wounds and drums, and sacking and firing the castle, and bearing off in his arms the beautiful prize through the midst of fire and smoke. In the height of this imaginary turmoil14, he awoke, and conceived for a few moments that certain sounds which rang in his ears, were the continuation of those of his dream, in that sort of half-consciousness between sleeping and waking, when reality and phantasy meet and mingle11 in dim and confused resemblance. He was, however, very soon fully15 awake to the fact of his guards calling on him to arm, which he did in haste, and beheld16 the machine in flames, and a furious conflict raging around it. He hurried to the spot, and found that his camp had been suddenly assailed17 from one side by a party of foresters, and that the baron’s people had made a sortie on the other, and that they had killed the guards, and set fire to the machine, before the rest of the camp could come to the assistance of their fellows.
The night was in itself intensely dark, and the fire-light shed around it a vivid and unnatural18 radiance. On one side, the crimson19 light quivered by its own agitation20 on the waveless moat, and on the bastions and buttresses22 of the castle, and their shadows lay in massy blackness on the illuminated23 walls: on the other, it shone upon the woods, streaming far within among the open trunks, or resting on the closer foliage24. The circumference25 of darkness bounded the scene on all sides: and in the centre raged the war; shields, helmets, and bucklers gleaming and glittering as they rang and clashed against each other; plumes27 confusedly tossing in the crimson light, and the messy light and shade that fell on the faces of the combatants, giving additional energy to their ferocious28 expression.
John, drawing nearer to the scene of action, observed two young warriors29 fighting side by side, one of whom wore the habit of a forester, the other that of a retainer of Arlingford. He looked intently on them both: their position towards the fire favoured the scrutiny30; and the hawk’s eye of love very speedily discovered that the latter was the fair Matilda. The forester he did not know: but he had sufficient tact31 to discern that his success would be very much facilitated by separating her from this companion, above all others. He therefore formed a party of men into a wedge, only taking especial care not to be the point of it himself, and drove it between them with so much precision, that they were in a moment far asunder32.
“Lady Matilda,” said John, “yield yourself my prisoner.”
“If you would wear me, prince,” said Matilda, “you must win me:” and without giving him time to deliberate on the courtesy of fighting with the lady of his love, she raised her sword in the air, and lowered it on his head with an impetus33 that would have gone nigh to fathom34 even that extraordinary depth of brain which always by divine grace furnishes the interior of a head-royal, if he had not very dexterously35 parried the blow. Prince John wished to disarm36 and take captive, not in any way to wound or injure, least of all to kill, his fair opponent. Matilda was only intent to get rid of her antagonist37 at any rate: the edge of her weapon painted his complexion38 with streaks39 of very unloverlike crimson, and she would probably have marred40 John’s hand for ever signing Magna Charta, but that he was backed by the advantage of numbers, and that her sword broke short on the boss of his buckler. John was following up his advantage to make a captive of the lady, when he was suddenly felled to the earth by an unseen antagonist. Some of his men picked him carefully up, and conveyed him to his tent, stunned41 and stupified.
When he recovered, he found Harpiton diligently42 assisting in his recovery, more in the fear of losing his place than in that of losing his master: the prince’s first inquiry43 was for the prisoner he had been on the point of taking at the moment when his habeas corpus was so unseasonably suspended. He was told that his people had been on the point of securing the said prisoner, when the devil suddenly appeared among them in the likeness44 of a tall friar, having his grey frock cinctured with a sword-belt, and his crown, which whether it were shaven or no they could not see, surmounted45 with a helmet, and flourishing an eight-foot staff, with which he laid about him to the right and to the left, knocking down the prince and his men as if they had been so many nine-pins: in fine, he had rescued the prisoner, and made a clear passage through friend and foe46, and in conjunction with a chosen party of archers47, had covered the retreat of the baron’s men and the foresters, who had all gone off in a body towards Sherwood forest.
Harpiton suggested that it would be desirable to sack the castle, and volunteered to lead the van on the occasion, as the defenders48 were withdrawn49, and the exploit seemed to promise much profit and little danger: John considered that the castle would in itself be a great acquisition to him, as a stronghold in furtherance of his design on his brother’s throne; and was determining to take possession with the first light of morning, when he had the mortification50 to see the castle burst into flames in several places at once. A piteous cry was heard from within, and while the prince was proclaiming a reward to any one who would enter into the burning pile, and elucidate51 the mystery of the doleful voice, forth52 waddled53 the little fat friar in an agony of fear, out of the fire into the frying-pan; for he was instantly taken into custody54 and carried before Prince John, wringing55 his hands and tearing his hair.
“Are you the friar,” said Prince John, in a terrible voice, “that laid me prostrate56 in battle, mowed57 down my men like grass, rescued my captive, and covered the retreat of my enemies? And, not content with this, have you now set fire to the castle in which I intended to take up my royal quarters?”
The little friar quaked like a jelly: he fell on his knees, and attempted to speak; but in his eagerness to vindicate58 himself from this accumulation of alarming charges, he knew not where to begin; his ideas rolled round upon each other like the radii59 of a wheel; the words he desired to utter, instead of issuing, as it were, in a right line from his lips, seemed to conglobate themselves into a sphere turning on its own axis60 in his throat: after several ineffectual efforts, his utterance61 totally failed him, and he remained gasping62, with his mouth open, his lips quivering, his hands clasped together, and the whites of his eyes turned up towards the prince with an expression most ruefully imploring63.
“Are you that friar?” repeated the prince.
Several of the by-standers declared that he was not that friar. The little friar, encouraged by this patronage64, found his voice, and pleaded for mercy. The prince questioned him closely concerning the burning of the castle. The little friar declared, that he had been in too great fear during the siege to know much of what was going forward, except that he had been conscious during the last few days of a lamentable65 deficiency of provisions, and had been present that very morning at the broaching66 of the last butt21 of sack. Harpiton groaned67 in sympathy. The little friar added, that he knew nothing of what had passed since till he heard the flames roaring at his elbow.
“Take him away, Harpiton,” said the prince, “fill him with sack, and turn him out.”
“Never mind the sack,” said the little friar, “turn me out at once.”
“A sad chance,” said Harpiton, “to be turned out without sack.”
But what Harpiton thought a sad chance the little friar thought a merry one, and went bounding like a fat buck26 towards the abbey of Rubygill.
An arrow, with a letter attached to it, was shot into the camp, and carried to the prince. The contents were these:—
“Prince John — I do not consider myself to have resisted lawful68 authority in defending my castle against you, seeing that you are at present in a state of active rebellion against your liege sovereign Richard: and if my provisions had not failed me, I would have maintained it till doomsday. As it is, I have so well disposed my combustibles that it shall not serve you as a strong hold in your rebellion. If you hunt in the chases of Nottinghamshire, you may catch other game than my daughter. Both she and I are content to be houseless for a time, in the reflection that we have deserved your enmity, and the friendship of Coeur-deLion.
“FITZWATER.”
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1 amorous | |
adj.多情的;有关爱情的 | |
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2 besieged | |
包围,围困,围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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3 ascend | |
vi.渐渐上升,升高;vt.攀登,登上 | |
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4 archer | |
n.射手,弓箭手 | |
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5 robin | |
n.知更鸟,红襟鸟 | |
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6 hood | |
n.头巾,兜帽,覆盖;v.罩上,以头巾覆盖 | |
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7 fixed | |
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的 | |
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8 intervals | |
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息 | |
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9 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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10 anticipations | |
预期( anticipation的名词复数 ); 预测; (信托财产收益的)预支; 预期的事物 | |
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11 mingle | |
vt.使混合,使相混;vi.混合起来;相交往 | |
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12 mingled | |
混合,混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 ); 混进,与…交往[联系] | |
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13 slumber | |
n.睡眠,沉睡状态 | |
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14 turmoil | |
n.骚乱,混乱,动乱 | |
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15 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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16 beheld | |
v.看,注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 );瞧;看呀;(叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现)哎哟 | |
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17 assailed | |
v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 );困扰;质问;毅然应对 | |
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18 unnatural | |
adj.不自然的;反常的 | |
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19 crimson | |
n./adj.深(绯)红色(的);vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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20 agitation | |
n.搅动;搅拌;鼓动,煽动 | |
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21 butt | |
n.笑柄;烟蒂;枪托;臀部;v.用头撞或顶 | |
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22 buttresses | |
n.扶壁,扶垛( buttress的名词复数 )v.用扶壁支撑,加固( buttress的第三人称单数 ) | |
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23 illuminated | |
adj.被照明的;受启迪的 | |
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24 foliage | |
n.叶子,树叶,簇叶 | |
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25 circumference | |
n.圆周,周长,圆周线 | |
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26 buck | |
n.雄鹿,雄兔;v.马离地跳跃 | |
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27 plumes | |
羽毛( plume的名词复数 ); 羽毛饰; 羽毛状物; 升上空中的羽状物 | |
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28 ferocious | |
adj.凶猛的,残暴的,极度的,十分强烈的 | |
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29 warriors | |
武士,勇士,战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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30 scrutiny | |
n.详细检查,仔细观察 | |
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31 tact | |
n.机敏,圆滑,得体 | |
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32 asunder | |
adj.分离的,化为碎片 | |
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33 impetus | |
n.推动,促进,刺激;推动力 | |
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34 fathom | |
v.领悟,彻底了解 | |
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35 dexterously | |
adv.巧妙地,敏捷地 | |
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36 disarm | |
v.解除武装,回复平常的编制,缓和 | |
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37 antagonist | |
n.敌人,对抗者,对手 | |
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38 complexion | |
n.肤色;情况,局面;气质,性格 | |
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39 streaks | |
n.(与周围有所不同的)条纹( streak的名词复数 );(通常指不好的)特征(倾向);(不断经历成功或失败的)一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 );使布满条纹 | |
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40 marred | |
adj. 被损毁, 污损的 | |
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41 stunned | |
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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42 diligently | |
ad.industriously;carefully | |
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43 inquiry | |
n.打听,询问,调查,查问 | |
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44 likeness | |
n.相像,相似(之处) | |
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45 surmounted | |
战胜( surmount的过去式和过去分词 ); 克服(困难); 居于…之上; 在…顶上 | |
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46 foe | |
n.敌人,仇敌 | |
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47 archers | |
n.弓箭手,射箭运动员( archer的名词复数 ) | |
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48 defenders | |
n.防御者( defender的名词复数 );守卫者;保护者;辩护者 | |
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49 withdrawn | |
vt.收回;使退出;vi.撤退,退出 | |
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50 mortification | |
n.耻辱,屈辱 | |
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51 elucidate | |
v.阐明,说明 | |
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52 forth | |
adv.向前;向外,往外 | |
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53 waddled | |
v.(像鸭子一样)摇摇摆摆地走( waddle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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54 custody | |
n.监护,照看,羁押,拘留 | |
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55 wringing | |
淋湿的,湿透的 | |
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56 prostrate | |
v.拜倒,平卧,衰竭;adj.拜倒的,平卧的,衰竭的 | |
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57 mowed | |
v.刈,割( mow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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58 vindicate | |
v.为…辩护或辩解,辩明;证明…正确 | |
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59 radii | |
n.半径;半径(距离)( radius的名词复数 );用半径度量的圆形面积;半径范围;桡骨 | |
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60 axis | |
n.轴,轴线,中心线;坐标轴,基准线 | |
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61 utterance | |
n.用言语表达,话语,言语 | |
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62 gasping | |
adj. 气喘的, 痉挛的 动词gasp的现在分词 | |
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63 imploring | |
恳求的,哀求的 | |
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64 patronage | |
n.赞助,支援,援助;光顾,捧场 | |
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65 lamentable | |
adj.令人惋惜的,悔恨的 | |
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66 broaching | |
n.拉削;推削;铰孔;扩孔v.谈起( broach的现在分词 );打开并开始用;用凿子扩大(或修光);(在桶上)钻孔取液体 | |
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67 groaned | |
v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 );发牢骚;抱怨;受苦 | |
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68 lawful | |
adj.法律许可的,守法的,合法的 | |
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