em as with the point
of a sword."

"But in that way you can hardly penetrate armour," one of the other
esquires said.

"No, it is only in a downright charge that we try to do so. When we are
fighting as I speak of, we thrust at the face, at the armpit, the
joints of the armour, which in truth seldom fits closely, or below the
breastplate. The Scotch use even less armour than do our borderers,
their breast pieces being smaller, and they seldom wear back pieces. It
is a question chiefly of the activity of the horses, as of the skill of
their riders, and our little moor horses are as active as young goats;
and although neither horse nor rider can stand a charge of a
heavily-armed knight or squire, methinks that if one of our troopers
brought him to a stand, he would get the better of him, save if the
knight took to mace or battle-axe."

"Have you your horse with you, Oswald?"

"Yes, it is in the stable. I have gone out with it, every morning, as
soon as the castle gates were opened, and have ridden for a couple of
hours before I began my exercises."

"Do you take him in hand first, Marsden," Allonby said to one of the
younger esquires, a young man of two or three and twenty.

Light steel caps with cheeks, gorgets, shoulder and arm pieces, and
padded leathern jerkins were put on; and then, with blunted swords,
they took their places facing each other. The squire took up a position
of easy confidence. He was a good swordsman, and good-naturedly
determined to treat the lad easily, and to play with him for a time
before scoring his first hit.

He soon, however, found that the game was not to be conducted on the
lines that he had laid down. Oswald, after waiting for a minute or two,
finding his opponent did not take the offensive, did so himself; and
for a time Marsden had all his work to do, to defend himself. Several
times, indeed, it was with the greatest difficulty that he guarded his
head. The activity of his assailant almost bewildered him, as he
continually shifted his position, and with cat-like springs leapt in
and dealt a blow, leaping back again before his opponent's arm had time
to fall.

Finding at last that, quick as he might be, Marsden's blade always met
his own, Oswald relaxed his efforts, as he was growing fatigued; and as
he did so Marsden took the offensive, pressing him backwards, foot by
foot. Every time, however, that he found himself approaching a barrier,
or other obstacle, that would prevent