till he came to where the wood and the trees ended,
and the hills were lower and longer, well grassed with short grass, a
down country fit for the feeding of sheep; and indeed some sheep he
saw, and a shepherd or two, but far off. At last, after he had left
the stream awhile, because it seemed to him to turn and wind round over
much to the northward, he came upon a road running athwart the down
country, so that he deemed that it must lead one way down to the
Swelling Flood; so he followed it up, and after a while began to fall
in with folk; and first two Companions armed and bearing long swords
over their shoulders: he stopped as they met, and stared at them in the
face, but answered not their greeting; and they had no will to meddle
with him, seeing his inches and that he was well armed, and looked no
craven: so they went on.

Next he came on two women who had with them an ass between two
panniers, laden with country stuff; and they were sitting by the
wayside, one old and the other young. He made no stay for them, and
though he turned his face their way, took no heed of them more than if
they were trees; though the damsel, who was well-liking and somewhat
gaily clad, stood up when she saw his face anigh, and drew her gown
skirt about her and moved daintily, and sighed and looked after him as
he went on, for she longed for him.

Yet again came two men a-horseback, merchants clad goodly, with three
carles, their servants, riding behind them; and all these had weapons
and gave little more heed to him than he to them. But a little after
they were gone, he stopped and said within himself: "Maybe I had better
have gone their way, and this road doubtless leadeth to some place of
resort."

But even therewith he heard horsehoofs behind him, and anon came up a
man a-horseback, armed with jack and sallet, a long spear in his hand,
and budgets at his saddle-bow, who looked like some lord's man going a
message. He nodded to Ralph, who gave him good-day; for seeing these
folk and their ways had by now somewhat amended his mind; and now he
turned not, but went on as before.

At last the way clomb a hill longer and higher than any he had yet
crossed, and when he had come to the brow and looked down, he saw the
big river close below running through the wide valley which he had
crossed with Roger on that other day. Then he sat down on the green
bank above the way, so heavy of heart that not one of the things he saw
gave him a