The Poniard's Hilt Part 43

"But what is the meaning of that other word--_Ghilde?_"

"It is a Saxon word; it means a.s.sociation, fraternity. In the northern country where the word comes from there is a custom, the origin of which is lost in the remotest ages, according to which all the members of a _ghilde_ pledge to one another with a mysterious oath friendship, mutual support and solidarity in all things. If the house of one of the a.s.sociates burns down, all the others help him in rebuilding it; if his crops are destroyed by a storm or any other accident, all the a.s.sociates contribute their share to indemnify him for his loss; likewise if his vessel is lost at sea. Is anyone of them afraid to undertake a long voyage alone, one, two or several of his a.s.sociates accompany him; is any member of the _ghilde_ the victim of some iniquity, all the others take his part in order to secure justice; is he insulted, all the others rally around him to aid him in obtaining reparation or vengeance. Our community has put into practice the virtues of that custom. We say there, as once we said in Vagrery: _All for each, each for all_."

"And my brother Karadeucq, did he long enjoy that peaceful life after a life of so many hardships?"

"He lived happy in my house unto the day of his death, and he was able to bless my first-born child."

"Tell us the circ.u.mstances of my brother's death."

"From the written narrative that I delivered to you, you must have seen what kind of a man was Chram, the son of King Clotaire. His projects of revolt having failed in Poitou and Auvergne, he made a raid into Burgundy at the head of a few troops in the expectation of raising the country against his father. The counts and dukes of the reign considered it in their interest to take the field against Chram in this new civil war. Nevertheless, he laid part of the country waste. One of the bands of Chram arrived near our valley. Foreseeing the need thereof in these disturbed times, my father and Loysik had the unprotected accesses of the valley fortified with fosses and entrenchments made of felled trees.

Our colonists and the men of the monastery took turns in mounting guard at these places the moment the invasion of Burgundy by Chram was known.

My father was in command of one of the advanced posts when Chram's warriors approached our valley for the purpose of ravaging it."

"I presume an armed encounter took place between Chram's soldiers and the inhabitants of Charolles, and my poor brother Karadeucq--"

"Was mortally wounded as he drove the Franks back at the head of his men. My father died after giving me the orders that I stated to you. He wore during the combat the Saxon poniard that belonged to Loysik, and which the Master of the Hounds had picked up as he fled from the field of carnage at the fastness of Allange. The Master of the Hounds returned the poniard to my brother after our flight from the burg of Neroweg.

Loysik afterwards presented the weapon to my father. He wore it on the day of the encounter with the Franks. He ordered me to bring it to you, in order that it be joined to our family relics."

"My brother's death was brave, like his life. A curse upon that Chram, son of Clotaire! Had he not raided Burgundy, my brother Karadeucq might still be alive!"

"Like you, Kervan, I say a curse upon Chram! But, at any rate, he met on the frontiers of our Brittany the merited punishment for his criminal life."

CHAPTER III.

THE DEATH OF CHRAM.

"Oh, Kervan," Ronan the Vagre proceeded after a short respite, "it almost looks as if these Frankish Kings and all their family are predestined to become the subjects of horror to the whole world. I shall now narrate to you the manner of Chram's death.

"My father had made me promise him at the last moments of his life that I would repair hither, to the cradle of our family, so soon as I wrote the chronicle that I delivered to you, but which I could not finish for the reasons that I shall state.

"There is nothing more difficult or more perilous than a long journey in these disastrous days. The traveler runs at every step the risk of being captured on the road and led away a prisoner by the armed bands of the dukes, the counts, the seigneurs or the bishops who are in perpetual feuds with one another, plundering or raiding one another's domains, ever intent upon enlarging their possessions. As a consequence, whoever is compelled to undertake a journey never ventures outside of the cities except with considerable numbers, so as to be in condition to repel the armed bands. I learned that a company of travelers was to leave the city of Marcigny for Moulins. That was exactly my route. I left the valley and joined the caravan. We left Marcigny in a body of nearly three hundred persons--men, women and children--some on foot, others mounted, all bound to Moulins as the first station. At that city other travelers were expected to proceed to Bourges. At Bourges I counted upon being able to join a third body and reach Tours, and in that way to proceed upon my journey to Saumur and then to Nantes, which would bring me to the very frontier of Brittany. On the stretch between Marcigny and Tours, our troop of travelers were repeatedly compelled to drive off marauding bands of armed men. In one of these encounters I was wounded, but only slightly; but several of my traveling companions were killed, while some others were captured and carried, together with their families, into slavery. The bulk of our troop, however, myself included, were fortunate enough to arrive safely at Tours, and there to rest in security."

"What horrible days these are! It would not be any more dangerous to travel in a hostile country."

"Oh, Kervan, if you could see the ravages of the conquest! Ruins everywhere, fresh and old ones. Our former Gallic roads and highways, so beautifully wide and carefully kept, with their relays of post horses and inns, are now all wild and heaps of ruins. Communication, once so easy from one end of Gaul to the other, is now wholly broken up. In one place the road breaks off because it crosses over the domain of some Frankish seigneur or of some abbey; at another place the bridges have been broken down by some armed band, that, being closely pursued, sought to protect its retreat. Thus we were compelled to make wide detours in order to arrive at our journey's end. Several nights were spent on the open fields. We were at times compelled to fell trees near the banks of a river and build a raft to effect a crossing, there being none other practicable.

"Upon my arrival in Tours, I learned that King Clotaire was there gathering troops in order to march in person against his son Chram, who had just crossed Touraine and was moving in the direction of the frontiers of Brittany. I thought the chances favorable to finish my journey in safety. I followed in the wake of the royal troops, which consisted of leudes and soldiers, the latter of whom were furnished to the King by the beneficiary seigneurs, and also of impressed colonists.

When the King's army put itself in march, I followed. Alas, Kervan! The enemy's forces themselves could not have been more merciless towards the people than were the royal troops. Upon their arrival in a town the Franks would drive the residents from their houses, they would then take possession, consume the provisions, beat the men, outrage the women, and destroy everything that they could not carry with them. Clotaire joined his troops with his bodyguard at Nantes. It was there that I saw the monster for the first time. He wore a long blood-colored dalmatica embroidered in gold; over the costly vestment he had a hooded fur jacket, with the hood half drawn over his forehead. From under his coif his eyes glistened like those of a wild cat. The King's cadaverous visage was set in long locks of grey hair that reached almost to his waist. He rode a large war steed, black of coat and caparisoned in red.

At his left rode his constable; at his right the bishop of Nantes.

"Being left with only a few troops, Chram had fled before the superior forces of his father. His plan was to enter Brittany. But he found Kando on guard at the frontier."

"Kando is one of the bravest and alertest warriors of Armorica."

"Accompanied by his worthy friend Spatachair--the Lion of Poitiers, the renegade Gaul of whom mention is made in the written narrative that I delivered to you, died insane--Chram proceeded to Kando's camp and proposed to him that he join his Breton troops to the Franks in order to make head against his father, Clotaire.

"'I am always delighted to see the Franks cutting one another's throats,' Kando answered Chram; 'nevertheless the horror that your parricidal projects inspire me with is such that, although your father himself is a monster after your own kind, I refuse to enter into any alliance with you. My own troops are enough to fight Clotaire if he should take it into his head to invade our territory, which, until now no Frank has attempted with impunity.'

"Feeling at least certain of Kando's neutrality, but nevertheless crowded into a corner at the frontier of Armorica, Chram now stood at bay and prepared for a desperate combat on the morrow. He imagined that if the worst were to befall him, his escape would in any event be certain, seeing that he had taken the precaution of keeping a vessel ready to embark in near the little port of Croisik.

"I had arrived safely at the boundary of Brittany; I cared little for the issue of the impending battle. I had met two Bretons by accident near Nantes. The two Armoricans were bound for Vannes. From that city to the sacred stones of Karnak I knew the distance was short. We three departed before sunrise on the morning of the battle that Clotaire was to deliver against his son. In order to shorten our route and also to avoid finding ourselves entangled in the pending melee, we walked to the seash.o.r.e intending to proceed to the bay of Morbihan.

"We had walked a good portion of the day, and were skirting the sh.o.r.e in the neighborhood of the port of Croisik when we noticed a fisherman's hut raised against a projecting rock. We turned towards it, intending to rest a few hours, when, to my great astonishment I saw near the hut several traveling mules and richly caparisoned horses in charge of some slaves. Three of the animals, one of which was a palfrey, bore women's saddles."

"A strange spectacle in that solitary place. And to whom did the mounts belong?"

"To Chram. His wife and two daughters were in the hut. A boat was moored at the sh.o.r.e, and at a distance of about three bows' shots, a light vessel rode at anchor, ready to set sail."

"You mentioned before the means of escape that Clotaire's son had prepared in case his troops were beaten--the vessel, I presume, waited for him and his family?"

"My two companions, as well as myself, hesitated whether or not to enter the hut, when its door opened and a richly dressed young woman stepped to the threshold; two little girls were with her. One of them, a child of about five or six years of age, clung to the folds of her mother's robe, while the latter held another girl of about twelve by the hand.

The young woman looked depressed; her eyes were in tears; behind her I saw a warrior, whom I readily recognized as one of the three favorites of Chram, Imnachair, the identical warrior who witnessed the torture to which I was subjected at the burg of Neroweg."

"Were that woman and children Chram's family? It has always seemed strange to me that such monsters should at all have families."

"Those were my very thoughts, Kervan, when the young woman, noticing our traveling bags on our shoulders, asked us with marked anxiety whether we came from Nantes, and whether we had any news of a battle that must have been fought there."

"'We can give you no information upon that, madam,' we answered her, 'we did not even know that there were any armies drawn up for battle.'

"Suddenly one of the slaves who must have been stationed on the lookout over the crest of the rock, ran towards the hut crying: 'Hors.e.m.e.n! We see far away, in a cloud of dust, a number of hors.e.m.e.n riding at full gallop in this direction!'

"'Death and fury!' cried Imnachair stamping the ground and growing pale.

'It is Chram--the battle is lost!'

"At these words the poor young woman fell down upon her knees, clasped her two daughters to her heart, and I could hear but the moans and sobs of the mother and her children.

"'Quick! Quick! To the boat!' shouted Imnachair. 'Slaves, unload the mules; take to the boat the cases that they carry; and you, madam, hold yourself ready to embark!"

"The precipitate tramp of galloping horses was heard approaching, also the clank of armors, and even voices, that, although confused, sounded furious.

"'It is my husband!' cried Chram's wife, growing deadly pale. 'But his father is pursuing him! Do you not hear those cries of death?'

"Imnachair listened. 'Yes,' said he; 'it is the voice of King Clotaire!

Flee, madam; flee, you and your children! Let us run to the boat--we shall soon row ourselves out of danger. It will soon be too late!'

"'Flee without my husband--never!' answered the young woman convulsively pressing her two children to her heart.

"Cries of 'Kill him!' 'Kill him!' 'Death!' 'Death!' grew more distinct every instant. Those who uttered them were now no more than three hundred paces from the hut. King Clotaire headed the pursuers.

"'Come, madam!' shrieked Imnachair seizing the young woman by the arm.

"'No!' she answered resolutely.

"'If you are determined to wait for Clotaire, I must leave you!' cried Imnachair. 'Adieu, madam!' saying which he ran to the boat.