Page 207 - the-merry-adventures-of-robin-hood

peeped through the casements at the fine show of young
men, until at last they came over beyond Alverton in Der-
byshire. By this time high noontide had come, yet they had
met no guest such as was worth their while to take back to
Sherwood; so, coming at last to a certain spot where a shrine
stood at the crossing of two roads, Robin called upon them
to stop, for here on either side was shelter of high hedge-
rows, behind which was good hiding, whence they could
watch the roads at their ease, while they ate their midday
meal. Quoth merry Robin, ‘Here, methinks, is good lodg-
ing, where peaceful folk, such as we be, can eat in quietness;
therefore we will rest here, and see what may, perchance,
fall into our luck-pot.’ So they crossed a stile and came be-
hind a hedgerow where the mellow sunlight was bright and
warm, and where the grass was soft, and there sat them
down. Then each man drew from the pouch that hung be-
side him that which he had brought to eat, for a merry walk
such as this had been sharpens the appetite till it is as keen
as a March wind. So no more words were spoken, but each
man saved his teeth for better use— munching at brown
crust and cold meat right lustily.
In front of them, one of the highroads crawled up the
steep hill and then dipped suddenly over its crest, sharp-
cut with hedgerow and shaggy grass against the sky. Over
the top of the windy hill peeped the eaves of a few hous-
es of the village that fell back into the valley behind; there,
also, showed the top of a windmill, the sails slowly rising
and dipping from behind the hill against the clear blue sky,
as the light wind moved them with creaking and labored

0 The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood