“Quick, men, seize the vile Miller!” cried Stutely, who was nigh choking with laughter as were the rest; whereupon several ran upon the stout fellow and seizing him, bound his arms behind his back with bowstrings.

“Ha!” cried Robin, when they brought the trembling Miller to him.  “Thou wouldst murder me, wouldst thou?  By my faith”—­Here he stopped and stood glaring upon the, Miller grimly.  But Robin’s anger could not hold, so first his eyes twinkled, and then in spite of all he broke into a laugh.

Now when they saw their master laugh, the yeomen who stood around could contain themselves no longer, and a mighty shout of laughter went up from all.  Many could not stand, but rolled upon the ground from pure merriment.

“What is thy name, good fellow?” said Robin at last to the Miller, who stood gaping and as though he were in amaze.

“Alas, sir, I am Midge, the Miller’s son,” said he in a frightened voice.

“I make my vow,” quoth merry Robin, smiting him upon the shoulder, “thou art the mightiest Midge that e’er mine eyes beheld.  Now wilt thou leave thy dusty mill and come and join my band?  By my faith, thou art too stout a man to spend thy days betwixt the hopper and the till.”

“Then truly, if thou dost forgive me for the blows I struck, not knowing who thou wast, I will join with thee right merrily,” said the Miller.

“Then have I gained this day,” quoth Robin, “the three stoutest yeomen in all Nottinghamshire.  We will get us away to the greenwood tree, and there hold a merry feast in honor of our new friends, and mayhap a cup or two of good sack and canary may mellow the soreness of my poor joints and bones, though I warrant it will be many a day before I am again the man I was.”  So saying, he turned and led the way, the rest following, and so they entered the forest once more and were lost to sight.

So that night all was ablaze with crackling fires in the woodlands, for though Robin and those others spoken of, only excepting Midge, the Miller’s son, had many a sore bump and bruise here and there on their bodies, they were still not so sore in the joints that they could not enjoy a jolly feast given all in welcome to the new members of the band.  Thus with songs and jesting and laughter that echoed through the deeper and more silent nooks of the forest, the night passed quickly along, as such merry times are wont to do, until at last each man sought his couch and silence fell on all things and all things seemed to sleep.

But Little John’s tongue was ever one that was not easy of guidance, so that, inch by inch, the whole story of his fight with the Tanner and Robin’s fight with Will Scarlet leaked out.  And so I have told it that you may laugh at the merry tale along with me.

Robin Hood and Allan a Dale

It has just been told how three unlucky adventures fell upon Robin Hood and Little John all in one day bringing them sore ribs and aching bones.  So next we will tell how they made up for those ill happenings by a good action that came about not without some small pain to Robin.