'Yes. That I could!' I exclaimed. 'I have been used to riding from my babyhood. A man's saddle? Oh, yes, of course I can ride on that. I can ride without a saddle, if you like,' and I thought of the many gallops across the downs I had had in the old days with Hal and Jack.
'Hurrah! Bravo!' cried my lover triumphantly. 'Now we shall circumvent the enemy!' He was about to choose me a horse, when the sight of Betsy reminded him of her, and he asked, 'Your maid? Can she ride?'
'That I can, sir,' Betsy answered for herself. 'Am I not a farmer's daughter?'
'You will do well,' exclaimed Master Jack Fish, and with that, setting spurs to his horse, he galloped off, not caring for our pursuers to see him with us.
'He is a shrewd man and a good friend,' observed Sir Hubert. Then he quickly arranged that Betsy and I should ride two of his men's horses, whilst their owners rode behind two of the other men.
That done, the party broke up. Sir Hubert, accompanied by me and my woman, and followed by half his company, continuing straight forward on the road to London, whilst the other half of the men took the litter in the direction of Guildford.
In this way we fortunately escaped from our would-be captors, who, we afterwards heard, had a sharp encounter with the company escorting the litter, in which they were only beaten off with tremendous difficulty and the loss of the litter, which fell into their hands.
CHAPTER XX
A Trying Experience
By the time we reached the vicinity of the outlying suburbs of London City another danger menaced. It was impossible for so large a company of horsemen to approach the metropolis unchallenged, and we were brought to a standstill at Ditton by the cry from two police officials—