ror which went before and the weeping that
bided after that flag were yet to come.

The next thing was that from the haven rode swiftly half a dozen
mounted men toward us, and the first glance told us that here were
warriors whose very war gear was new to us. Three of them had
close-fitting coats of ring mail, and wore burnished round helms of
bronze or steel; while the others, who were also helmed, had
jerkins of buff leather, gilded and cut in patterns on the edges of
the short sleeves and skirts. Their arms were bare, save that one
had heavy golden bracelets above the elbow; and they all wore white
trousers, girt to the leg loosely with coloured cross-gartering,
which reached higher than ours. I had never seen such mail as
theirs, and straightway I began to wonder if I might not buy a suit
from them.

But most different from any arming of ours was that each had a
heavy axe either in his hand or slung to his saddle, and that their
swords were longer, with very handsome hilts. Only two had spears,
and these were somewhat shorter than ours and maybe heavier. They
were better armed warriors than ever I had seen before, even at
Winchester.

Some word passed among these men as they saw us; but they came on,
making no sign of enmity of any sort. Perhaps that was because,
being in hunting gear and with naught more than the short sword and
seax one always wears, we had no weapons, and were plainly on
peaceful business.

And as in spite of their arms they seemed peaceful enough also, my
cousin and I waited for them, so that they pulled up to speak to
us, that man who wore the bracelets being at their head.

"Friends," said my cousin quietly, as they stared at him, "there is
no war in the land, and we are wont to welcome strangers. No need
for all this weapon wearing."

"Faith, I am glad to hear it," said the leader, with a grim smile.
"We thought there might be need. There mostly is when we come
ashore."

One could understand him well enough, if his speech was rougher
than ours. The words were the same, if put together somewhat
differently and with a new way of speaking them. It was only a
matter of thinking twice, as it were, and one knew what he meant.
Also he seemed to understand us better than we him, doubtless by
reason of years of travelling and practice in different tongues of
the northern lands.

"The arms somewhat terrify our folk," said my cousin, not heeding
the meaning which might lie in the words of t