hot
as if they issued from a furnace; our mounts are exhausted. I decry
yonder, at our feet, a thick forest; could you not lead us to it? We
could then take rest in the shade."

Karouer, the guide, shook his head, and answered, pointing with his
_pen-bas_ in the direction of the dense woods: "To reach them we would
have to make a leap of two hundred feet, or a circuit of nearly three
leagues over the mountains. Which shall it be?"

"Let us, then, pursue our route, my trusty guide. But tell us how long
will it take us to arrive in the valley of Lokfern?"

"Look yonder, below, away below, close to the horizon. Do you see the
last of those bluish crests? That is the Menez-c'Hom, the highest peak
of the Black Mountains. The other peak towards the west, and lying
somewhat nearer, is Lach-Renan. It is between those two peaks that lies
the valley of Lokfern, where Morvan, the husbandman and Chief of
Brittany lives."

"Are you certain that he will be at his farm-house?"

"A husbandman always returns to his farm-house after sunset. We shall
find him there."

"Do you know Morvan personally?"

"I am of his tribe. I fought under him at the time of our last struggles
against the Franks, when Charles, the Emperor, lived."

"Is this Morvan married, do you know?"

"His wife Noblede is the worthy spouse of Morvan. She is of the stock of
Joel. That says everything. We honor and venerate her."

"Who is that Joel, whom you mentioned?"

"One of the worthiest men, whose memory Armorica has preserved green.
His daughter, Hena, the Virgin of the Isle of Sen, offered her own life
in sacrifice for the safety of Gaul when the Romans invaded these
parts."

"I have been told that your people apprehend an invasion of the Franks
in Brittany, and that you are making ready for a declaration of war from
Louis the Pious, son of the great Charles."

"Have you seen any preparations for war since you crossed our frontier?"

"I have seen the husbandmen in the fields, the shepherds leading their
flocks, the cities open and tranquil. But it is known that in your
country, woodmen, husbandmen, shepherds and town folks transform
themselves into soldiers at a moment's notice."

"Yes, when our country is threatened with invasion."

"And do you apprehend such an invasion?"

Karouer looked at the abbot fixedly, smiled sarcastically, made no
answer, whistled, and presently broke out into a Breton song,
mechanically whirling his _pen-bas_ as he s