Page 315 - the-merry-adventures-of-robin-hood

then, foolishly cling to a promise so hastily given? Suppose
that I had promised to do Her Majesty’s bidding, where-
upon she bade me to slay myself; should I, then, shut mine
eyes and run blindly upon my sword? Thus would I argue
within myself. Moreover, I would say unto myself, a woman
knoweth nought of the great things appertaining to state
government; and, likewise, I know a woman is ever prone
to take up a fancy, even as she would pluck a daisy from the
roadside, and then throw it away when the savor is gone;
therefore, though she hath taken a fancy to this outlaw, it
will soon wane away and be forgotten. As for me, I have
the greatest villain in all England in my grasp; shall I, then,
open my hand and let him slip betwixt my fingers? Thus,
Your Majesty, would I say to myself, were I the King of Eng-
land.’ So the Bishop talked, and the King lent his ear to his
evil counsel, until, after a while, he turned to Sir Robert Lee
and bade him send six of the yeomen of the guard to take
Robin Hood and his three men prisoners.
Now Sir Robert Lee was a gentle and noble knight, and he
felt grieved to the heart to see the King so break his prom-
ise; nevertheless, he said nothing, for he saw how bitterly
the King was set against Robin Hood; but he did not send
the yeomen of the guard at once, but went first to the Queen,
and told her all that had passed, and bade her send word to
Robin of his danger. This he did not for the well-being of
Robin Hood, but because he would save his lord’s honor if
he could. Thus it came about that when, after a while, the
yeomen of the guard went to the archery field, they found
not Robin and the others, and so got no cakes at that fair.

1 The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood