A yell of rage and indignation replied, and a volley of stones was thrown.  Harry fearlessly drew his sword, and cut at some of those who were in the foreground.  These retaliated with sticks, and Harry was forced backward into the lane.  This was too narrow to enable him to turn, his horse, and his position was a critical one.  Finding that he was a mark for stones, he leaped from the saddle, thereby disappearing from the sight of those in the ranks behind, and sword in hand, barred the way to the foremost of his assailants.  The contest, however, would have been brief had not a party of young students come up the lane, and seeing from Harry’s attire that he was a gentleman, and likely to be of Cavalier opinions, they at once, without inquiring the cause of the fray, threw themselves into it, shouting “Gown! gown!” They speedily drove the assailants back out of the lane; but these, reinforced by the great body beyond, were then too strong for them.  The shouts of the young men, however, brought up others to their assistance, and a general melee took place, townsmen and gownsmen throwing themselves into the fray without any inquiry as to the circumstances from which it arose.  The young students carried swords, which, although contrary to the statutes of the university, were for the time generally adopted.  The townspeople were armed with bludgeons, and in some cases with hangers, and the fray was becoming a serious one, when it was abruptly terminated by the arrival of a troop of horse, which happened to be coming into the town to join the royal forces.  The officer in command, seeing so desperate a tumult raging, ordered his men to charge into the crowd, and their interference speedily put an end to the fight.

Harry returned to their rooms with some of his protectors and their wounds were bound up, and the circumstances of the fight were talked over.  Harry was much blamed by the college men when he said that he had been drawn into the fray by protecting a Puritan.  But when his new friends learned that he was as thoroughly Royalist as themselves, and that his father had gone with a troop to Nottingham, they took a more favorable view of his action, but still assured him that it was the height of folly to interfere to protect a rebel from the anger of the townspeople.

“But, methinks,” Harry said, “that it were unwise in the extreme to push matters so far here.  In Oxford the Royalists have it all their own way, and can, of course, at will assault their Puritan neighbors.  But it is different in most other towns.  There the Roundheads have the upper hand and might retort by doing ill to the Cavaliers there.  Surely it were better to keep these unhappy differences out of private life, and to trust the arbitration of our cause to the arms of our soldiers in the field.”

There was a general agreement that this would indeed be the wisest course; but the young fellows were of opinion that hot heads on either side would have their way, and that if the war went on attacks of this kind by the one party on the other must be looked for.