large as outlawed slayers thereof. But now get a feast ready, for I would fain see how ye live here in the leafy woodlands.”

So Robin bade his men make ready a grand feast; and straightway great fires were kindled and burned brightly, at which fires savory things roasted sweetly. While this was going forward, the King bade Robin Hood call Allan a Dale for he would hear him sing. So word was passed for Allan, and presently he came, bringing his harp.

“Marry,” said King Richard, “if thy singing match thy looks it is fair enough. Prythee strike up a ditty and let us have a taste of thy skill.”

Allan a Dale singeth before King Richard.

Then Allan touched his harp lightly, and all words were hushed while he sang thus:—“Oh where hast thou been, my daughter? Oh where hast thou been this day, Daughter, my daughter?’ ‘Oh, I have been to the river’s side, Where the waters lie all gray and wide, And the gray sky broods o‘er the leaden tide, And the shrill wind sighs a straining.’

“‘What sawest thou there, my daughter? What sawest thou there this day, Daughter, my daughter?’ ‘Oh, I saw a boat come drifting nigh, Where the quivering rushes hiss and sigh. And the water soughs as it gurgles by, And the shrill wind sighs a straining.’

“‘What sailed in the boat, my daughter? What sailed in the boat this day, Daughter, my daughter?’ ‘Oh, there was one all clad in white, And about his face hung a pallid light, And his eyes gleamed sharp like the stars at night, And the shrill wind sighed a straining’.

“‘And what said he, my daughter? What said he to thee this day, Daughter, my daughter?’ ‘Oh, said he nought, but did he this: Thrice on my lips did he press a kiss, And my heartstrings shrunk with an awful bliss, And the shrill wind sighed a straining.’

“‘Why growest thou so cold, my daughter? Why growest thou so cold and white, Daughter, my daughter?’ Oh never a word the daughter said, But she sat all straight with a drooping head, For her heart was stilled and her face was dead: And the shrill wind sighed a straining.”

All listened in silence; and when Allan a Dale had done King Richard heaved a sigh. “By the breath of my body, Allan,” quoth he, “thou hast such a wonderous sweet voice that it strangely moves my heart. But what doleful ditty is this for the lips of a stout yeomen? I would rather hear thee sing a song of love and battle than a sad thing like that. Moreover, I understand it not; what meanest thou by the words?”

“I know not, your majesty,” said Allan, shaking his head, “for ofttimes I sing that which I do not clearly understand mine own self.”

“Well, well,” quoth the King, “let it pass; only I tell thee this, Allan, thou shouldst turn thy songs to such matters as I spoke of, to wit, love or war; for in sooth thou hast a sweeter voice than Blondell, and methought he was the best minstrel that ever I heard.”

King Richard feasts in the forest.

But now one came forward and said that the feast was ready; so Robin Hood brought King Richard and those with him to where it lay all spread out on fair white linen cloths which lay upon the soft green grass. Then King Richard sat him down and feasted and drank, and when he was done he swore roundly that he had never sat at such a lusty repast in all his life before.

King Richard lieth in the forest over night.

That night he lay in Sherwood Forest upon a bed of sweet green leaves, and early the next morning he set forth from the woodlands for Nottingham Town, Robin Hood and all of his band going with him. You may guess what a stir there was in the good town when all these famous outlaws came marching into the streets. As for the Sheriff, he knew not what to say nor where to look when he saw Robin Hood in such high favor with the King, whilst all his heart was filled with gall because of the vexation that lay upon him.

The next day the King took leave of Nottingham Town; so Robin Hood and Little John and Will Scarlet and Allan a Dale shook hands with all the rest of the band, kissing the cheeks of each man, and swearing that they would often come to