it not splendid? Look to it, friend
Saxon, look to it!'

It was no light matter which had so roused the soldier's admiration. Out
of the haze which still lay thick upon our right there twinkled here and
there a bright gleam of silvery light, while a dull, thundering noise
broke upon our ears like that of the surf upon a rocky shore. More and
more frequent came the fitful flashes of steel, louder and yet louder
grew the hoarse gathering tumult, until of a sudden the fog was rent,
and the long lines of the Royal cavalry broke out from it, wave after
wave, rich in scarlet and blue and gold, as grand a sight as ever the
eye rested upon. There was something in the smooth, steady sweep of so
great a body of horsemen which gave the feeling of irresistible power.
Rank after rank, and line after line, with waving standards, tossing
manes, and gleaming steel, they poured onwards, an army in themselves,
with either flank still shrouded in the mist. As they thundered along,
knee to knee and bridle to bridle, there came from them such a gust of
deep-chested oaths with the jangle of harness, the clash of steel, and
the measured beat of multitudinous hoofs, that no man who hath not stood
up against such a whirlwind, with nothing but a seven-foot pike in his
hand, can know how hard it is to face it with a steady lip and a firm
grip.

But wonderful as was the sight, there was, as ye may guess, my
dears, little time for us to gaze upon it. Saxon and the German flung
themselves among the pikemen and did all that men could do to thicken
their array. Sir Gervas and I did the same with the scythesmen, who had
been trained to form a triple front after the German fashion, one rank
kneeling, one stooping, and one standing erect, with weapons advanced.
Close to us the Taunton men had hardened into a dark sullen ring,
bristling with steel, in the centre of which might be seen and heard
their venerable Mayor, his long beard fluttering in the breeze, and his
strident voice clanging over the field. Louder and louder grew the roar
of the horse. 'Steady, my brave lads,' cried Saxon, in trumpet tones.
'Dig the pike-butt into the earth! Best it on the right foot! Give not
an inch! Steady!' A great shout went up from either side, and then the
living wave broke over us.

What hope is there to describe such a scene as that--the crashing of
wood, the sharp gasping cries, the snorting of horses, the jar when the
push of pike met with the sweep of sword! W