consequently, still regard himself as in the king's service until he
had finally determined to renounce it, which would probably not be
until at least his term of leave had expired. The remarkable
expression in the record, 'because he could no longer work,' seems, as
Mr Hunter remarks, to correspond with Robin's declarations in the
ballad, that he could neither eat, drink, nor sleep; and if he
remained longer at court, sorrow would kill him. This apparent
coincidence, the author adds, 'may be but imagination; but it looks
like a reality.' It must be admitted, that if the Robyn Hod, or Robert
Hood, of the Exchequer records be not Robin Hood the outlaw, then all
these singular agreements of names, of dates, and of circumstances,
will make together a far greater marvel than any that is to be found
in the ballad-story itself, which some sceptics would require us to
disbelieve.

This, however, is only the commencement of Mr Hunter's researches,
which we cannot here follow in the same detail. The ballads relate
that Robin Hood, after continuing twenty-two years in the greenwood,
died--through some foul play--at the convent of Kirklees, the prioress
of which was nearly related to him. On this hint, Mr Hunter seeks to
discover, through this relationship, the original social position and
family connections of the outlaw. He finds reason for believing, that
the prioress of Kirklees at that period was a certain Elizabeth de
Staynton, a member of a family of some note, established near
Barnesdale. The Stayntons were tenants in chief of both the 'honours'
of Tickhill and Pontefract. One of them was prior of Monk Bretton, and
two were incumbents of churches in that vicinity. If Robin Hood was
nearly related to this family, the connection would raise him somewhat
above the rank of an ordinary yeoman; it might, as the author
observes, 'give him that kind of generous air in which he is invested,
and qualify him for his station among the valets of the crown.'

But if Robin Hood was a person of good condition, his name might
perhaps be found in the law-records of the local courts; and, in fact,
Mr Hunter has found, in the court-rolls of the manor of Wakefield, the
name of 'Robertus Hood,' as that of the defendant in a suit relative
to a small piece of land, in the ninth year of Edward II. He again
appears in a subsequent year, when he is described as being of
Wakefield; and the name of his wife, Matilda, is mentioned. Here is
another