"So that the only foul play I can see is, that my master shoved the fellow
over after he had stabbed him, instead of leaving him to stand upright
there, like one of your Cornish Dolmens, till his flesh should fall off
his bones."
Hereward saw the effect of Martin's words, and burst out in Danish
likewise.
"Look at me!" he said; "I am Hereward the outlaw, I am the champion, I am
the Berserker, I am the Viking, I am the land thief, the sea thief, the
ravager of the world, the bear-slayer, the ogre-killer, the
raven-fattener, the darling of the wolf, the curse of the widow. Touch me,
and I will give you to the raven and to the wolf, as I have this ogre. Be
my men, and follow me over the swan's road, over the whale's bath, over
the long-snake's leap, to the land where the sea meets the sun, and golden
apples hang on every tree; and we will freight our ships with Moorish
maidens, and the gold of Cadiz and Algiers."
"Hark to the Viking! Hark to the right earl's son!" shouted some of the
Danes, whose blood had been stirred many a time before by such wild words,
and on whom Hereward's youth and beauty had their due effect. And now the
counsels of the ruffians being divided, the old priest gained courage to
step in. Let them deliver Hereward and his serving man into his custody.
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