in his eyes and the lines of starvation on
his face.

"Sirs," he said, "valiant knights you are, as I well know. As for me, I
have obeyed the command of the king, my master, by doing all that lay in
my power to hold for him this town. Now succor has failed us, and food
we have none. We must all die of famine unless your noble and gentle
king will have mercy on us, and let us go free, in exchange for the town
and all the goods it contains, of which there is great abundance."

"We know something of the intention of our master," answered Sir Walter.
"He will certainly not let you go free, but will require you to
surrender without conditions, some of you to be held to ransom, others
to be put to death. Your people have put him to such despite by their
bitter obstinacy, and caused him such loss of treasure and men, that he
is sorely grieved against them."

"You make it too hard for us," answered the governor. "We are here a
small company of knights and squires, who have served our king to our
own pain and misery, as you would serve yours in like case; but rather
than let the least lad in the town suffer more than the greatest of us,
we will endure the last extremity of pain. We beg of you to plead for us
with your king for pity, and trust that, by God's grace, his purpose
will change, and his gentleness yield us pardon."

The envoys, much moved by the wasted face and earnest appeal of the
governor, returned with his message to the king, whom they found in an
unrelenting mood. He answered them that he would make no other terms.
The garrison must yield themselves to his pleasure. Sir Walter answered
with words as wise as they were bold,--

"I beg you to consider this more fully," he said, "for you may be in the
wrong, and make a dangerous example from which some of us may yet
suffer. We shall certainly not very gladly go into any fortress of yours
for defence, if you should put any of the people of this town to death
after they yield; for in like case the French will certainly deal with
us in the same fashion."

Others of the lords present sustained Sir Walter in this opinion, and
presented the case so strongly that the king yielded.

"I will not be alone against you all," he said, after an interval of
reflection. "This much will I yield. Go, Sir Walter, and say to the
governor that all the grace I can give him is this. Let him send me six
of the chief burgesses of the town, who shall come out bareheaded,
barefooted, a