And with that he bade them adieu and departed alone, having with him his bow and the arrows in his quiver. And passing shortly over a brook by a 15 long bridge, he met at the middle a stranger. And neither of the two would give way to the other. And Robin Hood being angry fitted an arrow to his bow and made ready to fire.

"Truly," said the stranger at this, "thou art a 20 fine fellow that you must draw your long bow on me who have but a staff by me."

"That is just, truly," said Robin; "and so I will lay by my bow and get me a staff to try if your deeds be as good as your words." And with that he went 25 into a thicket and chose him a small ground oak for a staff and returned to the stranger.

"Now," said he, "I am a match for you, so let us play upon this bridge, and if one should fall in the stream the other will have the victory."

"With all my heart," said the stranger; "I shall not be the first to give out."

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And with that they began to make great play with their staves. And Robin Hood first struck the stranger such a blow as warmed all his blood, and from that they rattled their sticks as though they had been threshing corn. And finally the stranger gave Robin such a crack on his crown that he broke his head and the blood flowed. But this only urged him the more, so that he attacked the stranger with 40 such vigor that he had like to have made an end of him. But he growing into a fury finally fetched

Robin such a blow that he tumbled him from the bridge into the brook.

Whereat the stranger laughed loudly and long, and cried out to him, "Where art thou now, I prythee, my good fellow?"

And Robin replied, "Thou art truly a brave soul, and I will have no more to do with thee to-day; so our battle is at an end, and I must allow that thou 50 hast won the day." And then wading to the bank he pulled out his horn and blew a blast on it so that the echoes flew throughout the valley.

And at that came fifty bold bowmen out of the wood, all clad in green, and they made for Robin Hood, and said William Stukely, "What is the matter, my master? You are wet to the skin."

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"Truly, nothing is the matter," said Robin, "but that the lad on the bridge has tumbled me into the stream." And on that the archers would have seized 60 the stranger to duck him as well, but Robin Hood forbade them. "No one shall harm thee, friend," said he. "These are all my bowmen, threescore and nine, and if you will be one of us you shall straightway have my livery and accouterments, fit for a man. 65 What say you?"

"With all my heart," said the stranger; “here is my hand on it. My name is John Little, and I will be a good man and true to you."

"His name shall be changed," said William Stukely 70 on this. "We will call him Little John, and I will be his godfather."

So they fetched a pair of fat does and some humming strong ale, and there they christened their babe 75 Little John, for he was seven feet high and an ell round at his waist.

From "Age of Chivalry."

GLOSSARY. Robin Hood; long bow; staff; vigor; livery; accou

terments; god-father; humming; ell.

STUDY. Tell the story of Robin Hood's first meeting with Little John. How do you explain Robin's liking for him? What was the origin of his name? What is there humorous in giving him such a name?

10

THE ARCHERY CONTEST

THOMAS BULFINCH

Robin Hood on one occasion sent a present to Queen Katherine with which she was so pleased that she swore she would be a friend to the noble outlaw as long as she might live. So one day the queen went s to her chamber and called to her a page of her company and bade him make haste and prepare to ride to Nottinghamshire to find Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest; for the queen had made a match with the king, her archers against his archers, and the queen proposed to have Robin Hood and his band to shoot on her side against the king's archers.

Now as for the page, he started for Nottingham and posted all the way, and inquired on the road for Robin Hood, where he might be, but he could not find any 15 one who could let him know exactly. So he took up

his quarters at an inn at Nottingham. And in the room of the inn he sat him down and called for a bottle of Rhenish wine, and he drank the queen's health out of it.

Now at his side was sitting a yeoman of the 20 country, clad in Lincoln green, with a long bow in his hand. And he turned to the page and asked him, "What is thy business, my sweet boy, so far in the north country, for methinks you must come from London?"

So then the page told him that it was his business to find Robin Hood the outlaw, and for that he asked every yeoman that he met. And he asked his friend if he knew anything which might help him.

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"Truly," said the yeoman, "that I do. And if you will get to horse early to-morrow morning I will 30 show you Robin Hood and all his gay yeomen.

So the next morning they got them to horse and rode out into the forest, and the yeoman brought the page to where were Robin Hood and his yeomen. And the page fell down on his knee and said to Robin 35 Hood, "Queen Katherine greets you well by me, and hath sent you this ring as a token. She bids you post up to London town, for that there shall be some sport there in which she has a mind you shall have a hand." And at this Robin took off his mantle of 40 Lincoln green from his back and sent it by the page to Queen Katherine with a promise that he and his band would follow him as soon as they might.

So Robin Hood clothed all his men in Lincoln green and himself in scarlet, and each man wore a 45