"Silence in Court—I mean cease thy gluttonous wailing after venison pasty. By my halidom, humble-pie is fitter fare for such carrion as thou. For the last time, from whom didst thou glean the details of the fistic bout?"
"My father saw it, if you must know."
"Thy father, eh? Scullion and knave and thrice dirty dog! Who and what is thy sire that his word should be taken before that of a gentleman of Foxenby? Didst, then, thy low-born father vow to thee that Forge made a punching-ball of a crackpot yokel who could not defend himself?"
"Yes, he did—and don't you call my father names, either, Robin!"
"But I shall call him names, thou caitiff, and to his face if I get the chance. He is a liar and a knave, and by the shaven crown of Friar Tuck I swear that, should he ever defile Foxenby with his obnoxious presence, I and my Merry Men will split his mean carcass with arrows. What say ye, Merry Men?"
"Ay, ay, Robin Hood," was the joyful chorus.
"I tell ye, Merry Men," went on Robin, who was most thoroughly enjoying himself in the imaginary limelight, "that the doughty opponent of our Captain was none other than the notorious Juddy Stockgill, a six-foot-high horseman, four stones heavier (more or less) than Forge to start with. Forge caught this hefty horseman torturing Fluffy Jim, the village idiot, and forthwith dotted him one on the beak—that is, I should say, Forge valiantly took the—side of the downtrodden and the Oppressed, and with his trusty quarterstaff—I mean to say, his good right arm—laid the tyrant low!"
"Bravo! Three cheers for Forge of Foxenby!" cried the delighted Merry Men.
"Gimme me my biscuits and things, and let's be going," whined Peter, ungrammatically and fearfully.
"The fat-producing provender, scoundrel, with which thou camest boastfully back to school, is easy enough of access to one of thy elegant figure and nimbleness of foot. If thou so delightest in eating, thou wilt gladly climb for thy food. Thou wilt find it dangling from the topmost bough of yonder sycamore tree, whither the Forest nymphs, disgusted by thy swinish greed, spirited it."