The Dragon And The Raven: Or The Days Of King Alfred(Fiscle Part-3) by G. A. Henty (e book reading free TXT) 📕

The Northman,  Disdaining To Ask For Assistance From

One Of The Other Bands Against So Small A Foe,  Moved Out At

Once With 300 Of His Men Towards The Wood. The Saxons Had

Posted Guards,  Who On The Approach Of The Danes Roused

Edmund With The News That The Enemy Were Close At Hand.

The Saxons Were Soon On Their Feet.

"Now,  My Friends," Edmund Said To Them,  "Here Is The

Time For Trying What Benefit We Have Got From Our Exercise.

We Cannot Well Draw Off,  For The Danes Are As Fleet-Footed As

We; Therefore Let Us Fight And Conquer Them."

The Men Formed Up Cheerfully,  And The Little Body Moved

Out From The Wood To Meet The Danes. The Latter Gave A

Shout Of Triumph As They Saw Them. The Saxon Force,  From

Its Compact Formation,  Appeared Even Smaller Than It Was,

And The Norsemen Advanced In Haste,  Each Eager To Be The

First To Fall Upon An Enemy Whom They Regarded As An Easy

Prey. As They Arrived Upon The Spot,  However,  And Saw The

Thick Hedge Of Spears Which Bristled Round The Little Body Of

Saxons,  The First Comers Checked Their Speed And Waited Till

Haffa Himself Came Up,  Accompanied By His Principal Warriors.

Without A Moment's Hesitation The Jarl Flung Himself

Upon The Saxons. In Vain,  However,  He Tried To Reach Them

With His Long Sword. As He Neared Them The Front Line Of The

Saxons Dropped On One Knee,  And As The Danes With Their

Shields Dashed Against The Spears And Strove To Cut Through

Them,  The Kneeling Men Were Able With Their Pikes To Thrust

At The Unguarded Portions Of The Bodies Below Their Shields,

And Many Fell Grievously Wounded. After Trying For Some

Time In Vain,  Haffa,  Finding That Individual Effort Did Not

Suffice To Break Through The Saxon Spears,  Formed His Men

Up In Line Four Deep,  And Advanced In A Solid Body So As To

Overwhelm Them.

The Saxons Now Rose To Their Feet. The Spears,  Instead

Of Being Pointed Outwards,  Were Inclined Towards The Front,

And The Wedge Advanced Against The Danes. The Saxon War Cry

Rose Loud As They Neared The Danish Line,  And Then,  Still

Maintaining Their Close Formation,  They Charged Upon It. The

Assault Was Irresistible. The Whole Weight Was Thrown Upon

A Point,  And Preceded,  As It Was,  By The Densely-Packed Spears,

It Burst Through The Danish Line As If The Latter Had Been

Composed Of Osier Twigs,  Bearing Down All In Its Way.

With Shouts Of Surprise The Danes Broke Up Their Line

And Closed In A Thick Mass Round The Saxons,  Those Behind

Pressing Forward And Impeding The Motions Of The Warriors

Actually Engaged. The Saxons No Longer Kept Stationary. In

Obedience To Edmund's Orders The Triangle Advanced,  Sometimes

With One Angle In Front,  Sometimes With Another,  But

Whichever Way It Moved Sweeping Away The Danes Opposed

To It,  While The Archers From The Centre Shot Fast And Strong

Into The Mass Of The Enemy.

Haffa Himself,  Trying To Oppose The Advance Of The

Wedge,  Was Slain By A Blow Of Egbert's Axe,  And After Half An

Hour's Fierce Fighting,  The Danes,  Having Lost Upwards Of Fifty

Of Their Best Men,  And Finding All Their Efforts To Produce An

Impression Upon The Saxons Vain,  Desisted From The Attack

And Fled.

At Once The Wedge Broke Up,  And The Saxons Followed

In Hot Pursuit,  Cutting Down Their Flying Enemies. Obedient,

However,  To Edmund's Repeated Shouts They Kept Fairly Together,

And When The Danes,  Thinking Them Broken And Disordered,

Turned To Fall Upon Them,  A Single Note Of The Horn

Brought Them Instantly Together Again,  And The Astonished

Danes Saw The Phalanx Which Had Proved So Fatal To Them

Prepared To Receive Their Attack. This They Did Not Attempt To

Deliver,  But Took To Flight,  The Saxons,  As Before,  Pursuing,

And Twice As Many Of The Danes Were Slain In The Retreat As In

The First Attack.

The Pursuit Was Continued For Many Miles,  And Then,

Fearing That He Might Come Across Some Fresh Body Of The

Enemy,  Edmund Called Off His Men. Great Was The Triumph

Of The Saxons. A Few Of Them Had Suffered From Wounds

More Or Less Serious,  But Not One Had Fallen. They Had

Defeated A Body Of Danes Four Times Their Own Force,  And Had

Killed Nearly Half Of Them,  And They Felt Confident That The

Tactics Which They Had Adopted Would Enable Them In Future

To Defeat Any Scattered Bodies Of Danes They Might Meet.

For A Week After The Battle They Rested,  Spending Their

Time In Further Improving Themselves In Their Drill,

Practicing Especially The Alterations Of The Position Of

The Spears Requisite When Changing From A Defensive Attitude,

With The Pikes At Right Angles To Each Face,  To That Of An

Attack,  When The Spears Of Both Faces Of The Advancing Wedge

Were All Directed Forward. A Messenger Arrived From The King,

To Whom Edmund Had Sent The News Of His Various Successes,

And Alfred Sent His Warmest Congratulations And Thanks For

The Great Results Which Had Been Gained With So Small A Force,

The King Confessing That He Was Unable To Understand How With

Such Disproportionate Numbers Edmund Could So Totally Have

Routed The Force Of So Distinguished A Leader As Haffa.

For Some Weeks Edmund Continued The Work Of Checking

The Depredations Of The Danes,  And So Successful Was He

That The Freebooters Became Seized With A Superstitious Awe

Of His Band. The Rapidity Of Its Maneuvering,  The Manner In

Which Men,  At One Moment Scattered,  Were In Another Formed

In A Serried Mass,  Against Which All Their Efforts Broke As

Waves Against A Rock,  Seemed To Them To Be Something

Superhuman. In That Part Of Wessex,  Therefore,  The Invaders

Gradually Withdrew Their Forces Across The Frontier; But In

Other Parts Of The Country,  The Tide Of Invasion Being

Unchecked,  Large Tracts Of Country Had Been Devastated,  And

The West Saxons Could Nowhere Make Head Against Them. One Day

A Messenger Reached Edmund Telling Him That A Large Danish

Army Was Approaching Sherborne,  And Urging Him To Return

Instantly To The Defence Of His Earldom.

With Rapid Marches He Proceeded Thither,  And On Arriving

At His House He Found That The Danes Were But A Few Miles

Away,  And That The Whole Country Was In A State Of Panic. He

At Once Sent Off Messengers In All Directions,  Bidding The

People Hasten With Their Wives And Families,  Their Herds And

Valuables,  To The Fort. His Return To Some Extent Restored

Confidence. The News Of The Victories He Had Gained Over

The Danes Had Reached Sherborne,  And The Confidence Of

Their Power To Defeat The Invaders Which His Followers

Expressed As They Scattered To Their Respective Farms Again

Raised The Courage Of The People.

All Through The Night Bands Of Fugitives Poured Into The

Fort,  And By Morning The Whole Of The People For Many Miles

Round Were Assembled There. Egbert And Edmund Busied

Themselves In Assigning To Each His Duty And Station. All The

Men Capable Of Bearing Arms Were Told Off To Posts On The

Walls. The Old Men And Young Boys Were To Draw Water And

Look After The Cattle; The Women To Cook And Attend To The

Wounded. The Men Of His Own Band Were Not Placed Upon

The Walls,  But Were Held In Readiness As A Reserve To Move To

Any Point Which Might Be Threatened,  And To Take Part In

Sorties Against The Enemy.

Soon Smoke Was Seen Rising Up In Many Directions,  Showing

That The Enemy Were At Their Accustomed Work. Cries

Broke From The Women,  And Exclamations Of Rage From The

Men,  As They Recognized By The Direction Of The Smoke That

Their Own Homesteads And Villages Were In The Hands Of The

Spoilers. About Mid-Day A Party Of Mounted Danes Rode Up

Towards The Fort And Made A Circuit Of It. When They Had

Satisfied Themselves As To The Formidable Nature Of Its

Defences They Rode Off Again,  And For The Rest Of The Day

None Of The Enemy Approached The Fort.

A Strict Watch Was Kept All Night,  And Several Scouts

Were Sent Out. These On Their Return Reported That

The Danes Were Feasting,  Having Slain Many Cattle And

Broached The Casks Of Mead Which They Found In The Cellars

Of Edmund's House. This They Had Not Burned Nor The Houses

Around It,  Intending,  As The Scouts Supposed,  To Make It Their

Headquarters While They Attacked The Fort.

Edmund And Egbert Agreed That It Would Be Well To Show

The Danes At Once That They Had An Active And Enterprising

Foe To Deal With; They Therefore Awakened Their Band,  Who

Were Sleeping On Skins Close To The Gate,  And With Them Started

Out.

It Was Still Two Hours Before Dawn When They Approached

The House. Save A Few Men On Watch,  The Great Danish Host,

Which The Messengers Calculated To Amount To Ten Thousand

Men,  Were Asleep. Cautiously Making Their Way So As To Avoid

Stumbling Over The Danes,  Who Lay Scattered In Groups Round

The House,  The Saxons Crept Forward Quietly Until Close To The

Entrance,  When A Sleepy Watchman Started Up.

"Who Are Ye?"

The Answer Was A Blow From Egbert's Battle-Axe. Then

The Leaders With Twenty Of Their Men Rushed Into The House,

While The Rest Remained On Guard At The Entrance.

The Combat Was Short But Furious,  And The Clashing Of

Arms And Shouts Of The Danes Roused Those Sleeping Near,