About that time Father Merlin had news brought him. Runners came to the White Lodge1 in the forest, where Merlin was to be found sitting on a stool by the pond, fishing; or kneeling in the hall before a little wooden cross that he had hung on a peg2 in one of the oak posts. Every hour he might be found kneeling there, eyes closed, a smile on his harsh face, looking as though he had prayed for the souls of men and saw the Great Ones of Heaven descending3 instantly to succour the poor.
The runners came from north, east, and west. Each man had much the same message to give to Father Merlin, and he would listen with a rapt look and then return the fellow his blessing4.
“Peace to you, my son. Assuredly, God and St. Francis have remembered the poor.”
Merlin knew what he knew as he took his walks in the forest, a thin, grey figure in a great, green world. He would pause upon the hills, and look east and west, his hood5 turned back, his eyes gleaming, his broad nostrils6 sniffing7 the air. Father Merlin had been a villein’s son, and all the fierce, sneering8 spirit of the man sprang back with a snarl9 of hatred10 from those who ruled by right of birth. A hundred hungers and humiliations lay on him like a hair shirt. He chafed11 to tear the pomp from the lords’ shoulders and to fling it as a cape12 of freedom over the poor, though the noble’s purse might find its way into St. Francis’s wallet and his power into St. Francis’s hand.
He cried aloud as the west wind came up the slope of the hill, and blew his grey frock about his knotty13 knees.
Much such a cry as Merlin’s had gone through all the land, and the men of the fields had heard it and lifted their heads—brown waters running together in flood time from every ditch and stream. The carter had left his horses; the woodman had shouldered his axe15 and left the oak bark but half stripped for the tanner; the serf had set his scythe16 upon a pole; the smith had shouldered his hammer; the charcoal17 burner had forgotten his fire. Everywhere they gathered, these brown men, with a murmur18 like the rustling19 of dead leaves when a great host marches to battle along a woodland road in autumn. Their mouths were uttering strange new words, “The Commons and the King!”
A stupor20 of fear had seized on all those who ruled. The lords and gentry21 had shut themselves up in their castles and houses, or ridden off out of the way of the wind. Doors were barred, bridges raised, shutters23 bolted. Reeves, clerks, tax-gatherers, hid themselves in cellars and hay-lofts. Women shivered and lay awake at night. The suddenness of the thing had astonished the gentles as though the brown earth were heaving under their feet. Knights24 who had fought in the French wars sat sullenly26 at home, too proud, perhaps, to risk the pride of the sword against the insolence27 of a smith’s hammer or a labourer’s flail28. The ignoble29 many had risen against the arrogant30 few, and the arrogance31 was with the mob for the moment.
It was a wild May, both in wind and temper. The hawthorn32 bloom was scattered33 like snow, and late frosts nipped even the young bracken. The north wind roared out of a hard blue sky, making the green world shiver, and bringing Berserk steel into the painted pleasance of spring. The mood of the hind34 suited the mood of the weather. The fields were empty, and the men who should have laboured there were running like madmen hither and thither35. The cold spell out of the north seemed to have given a rougher edge to the boorish36 temper, making it remember the mud and rain in the winter fields, the sour food at home in the draughty clay-daubed cottage; while Master Gentleman sat in his stone house before the fire under the great chimney, and drank hot Spanish wines, and had furs to draw about him. The wolf spirit was abroad. These men of the fields were drunk with years of envy, hatred, and sullen25 anger; they raged through the country-side, plundering37 cellars and larders38, tearing down the banks of fish ponds, breaking mill wheels, cutting down orchard39 trees, emptying granaries and dovecots, killing40 deer, and harrying41 warrens. Pride of birth was taken by the beard, mocked, and treated to the savage42 horse-play of these men of the soil.
Where was then the gentleman?”
They howled these words in the villages, along the roads, and over the heaths and commons. The French Jacquerie seemed to have come again with its gibbering fury, its wild lust44 and blood spilling; and many a woman trembled for her honour, and many a gentleman dreamt of his bloody45 head dancing upon a pike.
Father Merlin knew what he knew. The runners came to him carrying news, and one May morning he sought Isoult. She had taken herself to one of the empty forest lodges46 where two sheep and their lambs fed in the deserted47 orchard and a cow came to the byre gate to be milked.
It was so cold that Isoult had brought in wood and kindled48 a fire, and Merlin found her in the dark, black oak hall, sitting on a stool, and staring at the flames. A loose shutter22 banged to and fro in the wind, and the twittering of the sparrows in the thatch49 sounded cold and thin.
Merlin’s eyes shone out from under the shadow of his cowl. He pulled up a stool, and, spreading his hands to the blaze, spoke50 of the roughness of the weather.
“And yet our Rose blooms,” said he; “and the young man of the quarry51, is he as cold as the wind out of the north?”
“He is—what he is.”
“Does the scent53 of the rose count for nothing in June? Come now, what have you seen, my daughter?”
She answered him slowly, almost grudgingly54.
“The third finger of the left hand is crooked55. A blow from a quarter-staff broke it. And over the right eyebrow56 there is a small brown mole57.”
“Good. You would know this apple from another?”
She nodded.
Merlin spread his arms dramatically, and then stared in silence at the fire. The eyes under the cowl glistened58, and the harsh face with its savage sagacity looked hungry and exultant59.
She rested her chin on her fist.
“I have nothing to tell. I will wager61 that you cannot take the hood from that hawk62 and make him fly as you please.”
“Say you so! But a young man may be persuaded, and you—my daughter——”
“Am I a fool? But what have you done? How have you played with him?”
He looked at her intently, and then, leaning forward, began to speak with a whispering eagerness, his voice sounding like the blowing of a wind through a crack in a shutter. Isoult sat back, rigid65, her eyes staring at the fire, her throat stiffening66, her lips pressed together. She was very white when he uttered the first words, but a slow surge of blood rose into her face, and her eyes glittered like water touched by the sun at dawn.
Suddenly she started up, and her face flamed.
“Enough! Am I to listen to this?”
Merlin stroked the air with his hands.
“My daughter, I speak advisedly. Is it not a glory to any woman for her to make and unmake kings? And this Fulk is not unworthy. The blood of a great prince runs in him.”
She walked to and fro, and then stood and looked down at him with a scorn that she did not dissemble.
“No. I sing no such song for you, Master Merlin. By my troth, I bid you beware.”
He waved his hands with the same smoothing motion, and dared to meet her eyes.
“My daughter, you are in too hot a hurry. The King of the Commons will not have to wed67 a princess out of France or Spain. She who is comely68 and proud and valiant69 can sit by such a king. Come now—consider.”
“Merlin, I know that tongue of yours.”
“In that I must find my comfort.”
He sat awhile beside the fire, brooding and fingering his chin. Isoult had gone out into the orchard, but when he sought her there she was not to be found. Merlin crossed himself, and turned back towards the White Lodge.
“A woman’s anger is not to be trusted,” he said to himself, “for oftentimes it rises out of the passion it pretends to scorn. I must feel how that young man’s heart beats. Hot blood is very helpful.”
Isoult, hidden among some yew72 trees on the side of the hill above the orchard, watched Merlin’s grey frock disappear into the green of the woods. Her face shone white and hard, but in her eyes there was something of wonder, even of fear.
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1
lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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2
peg
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| n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定 | |
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3
descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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4
blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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5
hood
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| n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖 | |
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6
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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7
sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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sneering
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| 嘲笑的，轻蔑的 | |
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9
snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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10
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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11
chafed
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| v.擦热（尤指皮肤）( chafe的过去式 )；擦痛；发怒；惹怒 | |
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12
cape
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| n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风 | |
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13
knotty
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| adj.有结的，多节的，多瘤的，棘手的 | |
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14
trample
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| vt.踩，践踏；无视，伤害，侵犯 | |
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15
axe
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| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
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scythe
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| n. 长柄的大镰刀，战车镰； v. 以大镰刀割 | |
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17
charcoal
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| n.炭，木炭，生物炭 | |
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18
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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19
rustling
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| n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的 | |
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20
stupor
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| v.昏迷；不省人事 | |
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21
gentry
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| n.绅士阶级，上层阶级 | |
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22
shutter
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| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
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23
shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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24
knights
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| 骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马 | |
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25
sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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sullenly
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| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 | |
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insolence
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| n.傲慢；无礼；厚颜；傲慢的态度 | |
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28
flail
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| v.用连枷打；击打；n.连枷（脱粒用的工具） | |
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29
ignoble
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| adj.不光彩的，卑鄙的；可耻的 | |
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30
arrogant
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| adj.傲慢的，自大的 | |
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31
arrogance
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| n.傲慢，自大 | |
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32
hawthorn
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| 山楂 | |
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33
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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34
hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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35
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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36
boorish
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| adj.粗野的，乡巴佬的 | |
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37
plundering
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| 掠夺，抢劫( plunder的现在分词 ) | |
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38
larders
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| n.（家中的）食物贮藏室，食物橱( larder的名词复数 ) | |
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39
orchard
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| n.果园，果园里的全部果树，(美俚)棒球场 | |
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40
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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41
harrying
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| v.使苦恼( harry的现在分词 )；不断烦扰；一再袭击；侵扰 | |
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42
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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43
delved
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| v.深入探究，钻研( delve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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44
lust
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| n.性(淫)欲；渴(欲)望；vi.对…有强烈的欲望 | |
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45
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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46
lodges
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| v.存放( lodge的第三人称单数 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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47
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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48
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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49
thatch
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| vt.用茅草覆盖…的顶部；n.茅草(屋) | |
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50
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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51
quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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52
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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53
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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54
grudgingly
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55
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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56
eyebrow
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| n.眉毛，眉 | |
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57
mole
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| n.胎块；痣；克分子 | |
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58
glistened
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| v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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59
exultant
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| adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的 | |
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60
strings
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| n.弦 | |
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61
wager
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| n.赌注；vt.押注，打赌 | |
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62
hawk
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| n.鹰，骗子；鹰派成员 | |
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63
falcon
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| n.隼，猎鹰 | |
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64
tempt
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| vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣 | |
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65
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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66
stiffening
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| n. (使衣服等)变硬的材料, 硬化 动词stiffen的现在分词形式 | |
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67
wed
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| v.娶，嫁，与…结婚 | |
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68
comely
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| adj.漂亮的，合宜的 | |
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69
valiant
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| adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人 | |
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70
dame
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| n.女士 | |
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71
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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72
yew
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| n.紫杉属树木 | |
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