And with these they returned to Dirk’s castle, there to hold high revel and have good cheer. On the way they fought the peasants, taking whatever women and girls were at all comely, and did with them what they pleased. In this way they passed their lives fighting, pillaging, robbing the helpless, and caring nothing at all for either God or devil.
Dirk the Crow became exceedingly powerful and got very much worship, both by reason of his prowess in battle and from the fact that My Lord the Count gave him after his victories the demesne of Halewyn, with powers of seigneury, both of the higher and the lower order.
And he had a fine escutcheon made for himself, wherein was a crow sable on a field or, with this device: The pieces are for the Crow.
III. Of Sir Halewyn and how he carried himself in his youth.
But to this strong Crow were born children of a quite other kind.
For they were all, strangely enough, men of the quill and writing-desk, caring nothing for the fine arts of war, and despising all arms.
These great clerks lost a good half of their heritage. For each year some stronger neighbour would rob them of a piece of it.
And they begot puny and miserable children, with pale faces, who passed their time, as clerks are wont, lurking in corners, sitting huddled on stools, and whining chants and litanies in a melancholy fashion.
Thus came to an end the good men of the line.