Chapter-8
Robin was passing his days peacefully in the Sherwood Forest. After staying there for several days, he once again desired to visit Nottingham. So, one morning he rode on his horse and was on his way to Nottingham.
Reaching Nottingham he tied his horse to a pole. Then he decided to take a walk along the Nottingham Road. As he was walking along the road, he saw two men at some distance. They were talking to each other.
After some time, Robin saw that the two men were coming towards him. They seemed to be in a tearing hurry. When they got past, Robin stopped them and asked, “Friends, where are you going? You seem to be in a great hurry. May I be of any help to you?”
One of the men was filled with anger. He roared loudly at Robin and said, “Be off our way.”
But Robin was bent upon asking them the reason of their hurry. So, he again teased them saying, “Should I lend you my horse? You will reach your destination quickly.”
Now the two men flew into a rage. The man who had a message in his hand told thus, “Move out of our way, otherwise you will not be spared for this impudence. Don’t you know we are the messengers from the Bishop of Hereford? We have an urgent message for the Sheriff. We have to deliver him the message this very moment now. Don’t get into our way. We don’t want to talk to you.”
Saying these words they moved ahead. But Robin followed them and said,” But I want to talk to you this very moment: come along with me. You are not going to the Sheriff.”
Hearing the words of Robin one of the men shouted, “How dare you order us in this fashion?”
Before they could do anything Robin drew out his horn and blew it. Little John came out from behind the tree. He gagged the mouths of both the messengers and Robin caught hold of them. Then the two forcibly took both the messengers to the greenwood camp.
Reaching their Robin blew his horn. All his Merry Men appeared there in a trice. Robin said to them, “Here are our new guests. Serve them well and keep a tight watch on them.”
Saying these words Robin snatched the note that contained the message.
In the message the Bishop of Hereford was asking for a loan of two hundred pounds.
Robin thought for a while and said to himself, ‘I see. This is the message they were carrying to the Sheriff. Here is an opportunity once again to befool the Sheriff.’ Thinking so he chalked out a plan.
Next morning, he called Will Scarlet and Will Gamwell. When the two presented themselves, Robin said to them, “Dear friends! Can you do a dangerous job for me? You may lose your lives while doing this job.”
Both Will Gamwell and Scarlet said in chorus, “O chief! We are very much ready to do your bidding. Our life is yours. Order what you want us to do.”
Robin told them, “I have read the message these two messengers were carrying to the Sheriff. The Bishop has asked for a loan of two hundred pounds. Here we can do one thing which is very interesting. Can you pretend yourselves to be these messengers from the Bishop of Hereford. In this way we shall be able once more to make the Sheriff lick dust.”
Both Will Scarlet and Will Gamwell liked the plan of Robin. They appreciated it very much.
The Merry Men of Robin made the two messengers change their clothes with Will Scarlet and Will Gamwell. Now the two were really looking like the messengers from the Bishop of Hereford. They took the message and set out for the Sheriff’s castle. Before their departure Robin warned them to be cautious and vigilant.
After covering a long distance the two reached the entrance to the castle of the Sheriff. They told the guards of the entrance that they were the messengers from the Bishop of Hereford and wanted to meet the Sheriff at that very moment.
The guards informed the Sheriff of the arrival of the two messengers.
The Sheriff at once sent his private guards to fetch them. When the two messenger appeared in front of the Sheriff, they bowed low and paid their obeisance. Then they said to the Sheriff, “Your Highness! We are the messengers from the Bishop of Hereford. He has sent you a message. Here is the message.”
Saying so they handed the note to the Sheriff. After going through the letter the Sheriff thought for a moment. Then he said to the messengers, “O messengers! The Bishop has asked me for two hundred pounds which is a big amount. How shall I be able to loan him such a big amount? Even if I collect all my money together, I shall be able to amass only one hundred and fifty pounds. Still, I shall be short of fifty pounds.”
The two messengers remarked, “Your Highness! You need not worry on this count. But one thing is sure. If we return from here empty-handed, he shall be very much angry. You had better give us as much money as you can. Thus you will save yourself from incurring the wrath of the Bishop.”
The Sheriff thought hard and hard. After some minutes he decided to give them the money. He went to his store house and started counting the money. It took him some time to count all the money. The total amount came to one hundred and fifty pounds.
He came out of the store-house and handed the money over to the messengers. After giving them the money the Sheriff warned them, “Robin Hood, the outlaw, has been staying in the Sherwood Forest. If any of his men comes to know that you are carrying money, you will surely be robbed of all your money. So, be careful. Put it safely in your pocket. If you so desire, my guards can accompany you to your place of destination.”
Hearing the words of the Sheriff the two messengers replied, “Your Highness! Don’t worry about it. As we are the messengers from the Bishop of Hereford, none can dare touch us. Moreover, we too have guns in our pockets. Rest assured we shall reach our destination safe and sound. Thanks for your cooperation and support.”
Saying these words they put the money in their money bags and came out of the castle. As soon as they reached the gate of the castle, they were shocked at what they saw.
At some distance they noticed the Bishop of Hereford was coming towards the castle.
In fact, the Bishop was in urgent need of the money. There was no message from his messengers. So, he had come there to meet the Sheriff personally and ask him for a loan.
By then the Sheriff too had reached the gate of the castle to see the two messengers off. When he saw the Bishop, he welcomed him with open arms. He told the Bishop everything what his two messengers had demanded.
Seeing the two men the Bishop grew suspicious when he came near them. The two men took to their heels. The Bishop shouted loudly,” Catch these two rascals. They are not my messengers. They are cheats.”
Hearing the words of the Bishop the Sheriff flew into a rage. He ordered his men to give a hot chase to the men. He instructed them to get hold of the men dead or alive.
Now the Sheriff’s soldiers followed the two men like their shadows. The two Wills soon ran with all their might to save their lives.
During the course of their run Will Scarlet said to Will Gamwell, “Sooner or later, we shall be caught. They are chasing us on horseback. We had better seek refuge in the castle of Sir Richard of Lea.”
Will Gamwell agreed to what Will Scarlet had said. So, they ran in the direction of the castle of Sir Richard of Lea.
By chance, Sir Richard was inside his castle. He welcomed the two Wills with great worthiness and brought them inside.
The Sheriff’s men chasing them reached the castle. The two Wills said to Sir Richard, “Sir, the Sheriff’s men are after us. Now they have reached the main gate. Do something to drive them back or the castle will be attacked by them.”
Sir Richard was very clever. He hit upon a plan. The Sheriff’s men had to cross the drawbridge to reach inside the castle. He at once called his soldiers and ordered them, “Loosen the planks of the drawbridge quickly. Now I see how they will cross over to us.”
Hearing the words of Sir Richard the soldiers at once loosened the planks of the drawbridge. Now the Sheriff’s men marched ahead and reached the drawbridge. Without losing a second all of them charged down the drawbridge.
Sir Richard sitting comfortable inside his compartment said to the soldiers, “Go quickly and raise the drawbridge to its fullest.”
The guards carried out the order to letter. As the Sheriff’s men walked on the drawbridge, the soldiers from inside raised it high in the air. Soon the drawbridge rose to its highest position. Now the Sheriff’s men once again balanced themselves. They fell one after another into the moat below. Great splashes of water were heard.
In the meantime, both the Sheriff and the Bishop too reached the end of the drawbridge. Somehow, they balanced themselves and were able to stick to the great iron gate. In this way, they saved themselves from falling into the moat below. They thanked their stars.
Now they were looking like monkeys hanging onto the branches of a tree. Seeing the two hanging Will Scarlet hit upon a plan to make fun of them. He took a bucket and some water. He took some sticky colours and made a thick paste. Then he went to the room which was above the drawbridge.
Both Will Gamwell and Will Scarlet lifted the bucket full of sticky paste and poured it down through the holes in the floor. The sticky paste fell right onto the heads of the Bishop and the Sheriff. No sooner did the sticky paste fall onto their heads than they were covered with it from head to toe. They didn’t know what to do. They were in awkward position.
Soon they lost their grip on the gate to which they were hanging on. The moment they slid down into the moat below, Will Scarlet and Will Gamwell burst into a peal of laughter. They came out of their compartment and said, “Hello Mr Sheriff, how do you feel there? Do you have anything to say? How is the sticky paste? Do you like it?”
The Sheriff was fuming with anger. Somehow, he along with the Bishop swam to the other bank. They waded out of the water quickly and hurried back to the castle.
The Sheriff had learnt a lesson that day. He came home drenched. Now he called his men and said, “Go and make an announcement in and around Nottingham that whosoever succeeds in catching hold of Robin will be rewarded a handsome prize.”
The Sheriff was determined to catch Robin by hook or by crook. The announcement was made throughout the entire Nottingham. Everyone heard the announcement. But none came forward, for each one loved his life dearly.
After some days, a group of men came forward. The men were very poor. They thought, ‘If we were able to pin down Robin we shall be relieved of our poverty.’
So, they went over to the Sheriff and said, “Your Highness! We are ready to catch hold of Robin. Give us your permission.”
Seeking permission from the Sheriff they decided to go to the forest in order to trace and capture Robin Hood, the outlaw.
One Sunday morning, they made an attack on the greenwood camp. Robin was away. He had gone with Maid Marian. He was expected to return late at night. They had all kinds of weapons in their hands. They were carrying bows and arrows, swords, quarterstaffs, and what not. They had attacked with full preparations.
Will Scarlet was in charge of the greenwood camp in the absence of Robin. It was his first and foremost duty to keep a close watch on the happenings.
The day the men attacked the greenwood camp, Will Scarlet was patrolling. He saw some men coming towards the camp. He at once blew the horn and yelled, “Come here, comrades. Some men are coming here. I doubt their coming here. Be ready to face them. Look, they are carrying weapons as well.”
Hearing the cry of Will Scarlet—a few men rushed to him. Some Merry Men had gone hunting. So, there were a few men to face the attackers. Whatever the few men there were they got ready with their bows and arrows and swords.
The attackers knew very well that they were no match for the Merry Men of Robin. As they reached the edge of the greenwood camp, they started shooting arrows at them. Their sharp arrows pierced the chests of three outlaws who were killed there and then.
Before the other outlaws could do anything, they rained arrow after arrow on them. This time, Will-the-Wrestler and his two brothers Lestu and Harry were badly wounded. They were not able to stand up even. The remaining outlaws ran back into the deep forest.
The men captured the wounded outlaws and tied their hands at their backs. Then they carried them to Nottingham. They met the Sheriff and presented the three captured outlaws in front of the Sheriff.
Seeing the outlaws of Robin the Sheriff was elated a lot. He said to the attackers, “Well done! You have done an excellent job. You will be handsomely rewarded for this brave act of yours. As regards these outlaws, they will be taken to the gallows tomorrow and will be hanged to death. Now I shall show Robin what I am and what I do.”
That night when Robin came back to the greenwood camp, he was told about the capture of the there brothers. He felt very upset. He took the pain of his men as his pain. But he was at his wits end. He did not know how to rescue the three brothers.
Just when he was thinking about the three brothers, an old lady came there to see Robin. She said to Robin, “My dear son, the three brothers who have been captured are my sons. I am their widowed mother. Please do something to save them, for God’s sake. They will be put to death tomorrow. They are my only bread-winner. I won’t be able to tolerate the pangs of separation from them.”
Saying these words the widowed mother fell at the feet of Robin and wept inconsolably.
Robin lifted up the widowed lady and said, “O mother, rest assured your three sons will be safe and sound. It is my promise to you. I won’t let the Death-god touch them even.”
Receiving assurance from Robin the old lady returned home. That night, Robin thought hard and hard as to how he would be able to rescue his three Merry Men.
Next morning, he rode on his horse and set out for Nottingham. On his way, he came across a palmer. He was quite old. Robin dismounted from his horse and said to the palmer, “O old man! May I know where you are heading for?”
The old man said very politely, “I am going to Nottingham. The Sheriff has sent me for. The three men are to be put to death today. Until and unless I pray for them, they shall not be hanged.”
Saying these words the palmer leaving Robin behind marched forward. All of a sudden, an idea struck Robin. He stopped the palmer and said to him most respectfully, “O holy Sir, I have to make a plea to you. The three men who are to be hanged today are my comrades. The Sheriff is an evil soul who has captured them by deceit. They are innocent. Only you can help me save them.”
Hearing the words of Robin the old man asked in astonishment, “Dear, how can I be any use to you? Tell me what I can do for you.”
Robin requested the old palmer, “O holy Sir, would you like to change your clothes with mine? It will do the trick.”
The old palmer understood everything. He happily agreed to the suggestion of Robin. After changing the clothes Robin straightaway went to Nottingham. He reached there in less than an hour. As he pretended himself to be the palmer, he was taken to the place where the three brothers were to be put to death.
He met the Sheriff who welcomed him with open arms. He said to the Sheriff, “Your Highness! Let them say their prayers before their deaths.”
The Sheriff observed, “O holy Sir, they are free to say their prayers. But I doubt there is nobody to hang them. What would I do now?”
Hearing the words of the Sheriff Robin turned palmer stated, “Don’t worry, Your Highness. Let me do the work of hanging. It is said that justice delayed, justice denied.”
Hearing the words of the palmer the Sheriff felt very elated. He let him step on the platform where the three brothers were to be hanged.
Reaching near the three brothers, Robin whispered to one of them, “Dear, look at me carefully. I am Robin Hood, your leader. I have come here to save your lives. Don’t lose heart. I am with you. The Merry Men are waiting for my signal.”
Seeing their chief in front of them the three brothers felt extremely happy. The very next moment, Robin threw off his palmer’s robes and blew the horn three times.
At once, several Merry Men reached there. They had bows and arrows, swords and quarterstaffs in their hands.
When the Sheriff saw Robin and his Merry Men he was startled. It seemed as if ground had slipped out from under his feet. He turned pale with fear. He at once shouted, “Soldiers, catch Robin and his Merry Men; come quickly.”
Before the Sheriff’s men could take action Robin and his Merry Man loosened the chains of the three brothers and ran with them to the Sherwood Forest. The Sheriff’s men gave them a hot chase. But all their efforts proved an exercise in futility.
Reaching the greenwood camp Robin handed the three brothers over to the old lady whose name was Widow Hardlock. She was very grateful to Robin for his heroic deed.
Robin was fond of living an adventurous life. He always got himself engaged in one act or the other.
One morning, he was hunting a deer in the forest. After much struggle, he was able to kill one deer. All of a sudden, the Bishop of Hereford chanced to visit there. He saw Robin kill the deer.
He said to Robin, “O chief! Raise your hands. Today I have caught you red-handed while killing the king’s deer. Once you robbed me of my money. Do you remember it? You are under arrest.”
The intention of the Bishop of Hereford was ominous. Realizing it Robin took to his heels and ran towards the house of Widow Hardlock. Her house was at a little distance. As the Bishop was on horseback, he quickly caught up with Robin.
Somehow, Robin reached the house earlier and sought refuge in it. After some minutes the Bishop reached the house and gave a loud knock at the door. The old widow answered the knock and said, “Come in. I am working on a loom.”
Entering the cottage the Bishop asked the lady, “Have you seen an outlaw dressed in green? He is Robin Hood, the leader of outlaws. He has come here, I suspect.”
Hearing the words of the Bishop the old widow told him confidently, “No Sir, It is not so. If you doubt you can ransack my cottage.”
All of a sudden, he saw something moving inside one of the cupboards. He went there and moved some clothes away.
Lo and behold! Robin Hood was hidden there. He at once captured Robin and took him away with him. Widow Hardlock grew worried with the capture of Robin. She at once rushed to the greenwood camp.
Reaching there she told everything to Will Scarlet and Little John. Both of the outlaws became tense. Then a hand boxed the ears of Little John and Will Scarlet. As they turned back, they saw Robin in front of them. By then Robin had pulled off his widow’s clothes. The two outlaws burst out laughing. Soon they became serious and asked Robin how it happened.
Robin told them thus, “I was chased by the Bishop. Running hard I took shelter in the widow’s house. I also changed my clothes with hers. When the Bishop searched her cottage, he mistook the old widow for me and took her away with him. This is how it all happened.”
Hearing the words of Robin the two outlaws were convulsed with laughter.
After taking a very short cut Robin along with the two outlaws caught up with the Bishop and Widow Headlock.
Seeing the Bishop Robin burst into a peal of laughter. The Bishop could not believe his eyes when he saw Robin in front of him. Before they could utter anything, Robin said, “Hello Bishop, where are you going with this old widow? What do you want to show catching hold of the poor old lady by force?”
The Bishop understood everything. He could do nothing but to look sideways. He was once again humiliated by Robin.
Leaving the old lady there the Bishop was on his way. He was fuming with anger in his heart of hearts. Robin had made a fool of him. When the Bishop arrived home, he decided to take his revenge on Robin. He thought, ‘If the Sheriff is not able to pin down Robin, I with the help of my men shall try to capture the outlaw!’
Thinking so, he called his fifty odd men and said to them, “Get ready to fight a ferocious battle. We have to catch Robin, the leader of the outlaws living in the Sherwood Forest. He is very cunning and brave. By hook or by crook, we have to lure him into our trap. So, sharpen your weapons for the onslaught.”
Within an interval of week the Bishop at the head of fifty-odd men marched towards the Sherwood Forest to make an attack on Robin and his Merry Men. But he was totally unaware of the exact location of the greenwood camp of Robin. He did not lose heart. He kept on marching towards the road that led to the forest.
All of a sudden, he came across two vagabonds. He dismounted from his horse and went up to them. Then he remarked, “Do you know where the greenwood camp of Robin is located? I am in search of Robin and his Merry Men. If you show me the way, I shall give each of you a gold coin as reward.”
The two vagabonds kept mum for some time. After some time, they looked at the Bishop and laughed loudly. They were, in fact, Will Scarlet and Little John who were patrolling there in disguise.
Little John said to the Bishop, “Sir! Robin the outlaw lives over there in the deep forest. There is a brook near by his camp. So, you take this course and you will reach there soon.”
The Bishop gave each of them a gold coin and was on his way. After receiving the gold coin the two outlaws ran back to Robin and informed him about the Bishop and his fifty odd men.
Hearing the words of Little John and Will Scarlet Robin said, “I see. But don’t worry. We shall make him lick dust this time as well. He doesn’t know about our manpower.”
Saying so Robin blew his horn. At once fifty to sixty men gathered there. They had different weapons in their hands. Robin said to them, “Comrades, show once again today that we can’t be intimidated into hiding in our camp. The Bishop with his fifty odd men is roaming the forest to attack us. Let us wage a war on him before he attacks us.”
Robin at the head of his Merry Men set out. He led them in the direction of the Bishop. Soon he overtook the Bishop who was riding straight towards the boggy land.
Seeing the Bishop and his men Robin said to his men, “Can’t we put the bog to our use? We shall circle round the edge of the bog and shout at the Bishop and his men. He will definitely make an attack on us. This will be the sign of our victory.”
As per the plan, Robin made a circle of his men around the bog. As soon as the Bishop saw them, he ordered his men to attack them. But the Bishop was more excited. He moved forward swiftly to attack Robin.
Hardly had he gone some yards forward when his horse got stuck in the mud. The horse threw the Bishop off. Now the Bishop realized that he had stuck in the bog. His men had not moved forward as yet.
They were attacked by Robin’s Merry Man. A fierce battle took place. But Robin’s men were more than a match for the Bishop’s man. Soon the Bishop’s men surrendered their arms and ran back to save their lives.
The Bishop was trying very hard to wade out of the bog. But it was not so easy. The more he tried to run forward, the deeper he sank into the mud. He was in awkward position.
Soon the mud reached his armpits. Now his head was above the mud. The rest of his body had completely sunk in the mud. The Bishop turned pale with fear. He thought of losing his life. He yelled at the top of his voice, “Robin Hood, save me from here. I beg your pardon. Please save me for God’s sake.”
Now Robin decided to lend a helping hand to the Bishop. He called two of his men and ordered thus, “Bring logs of wood and place them on the bog. Then crawl up to the Bishop and pull him out.”
The men did as they were ordered. The Bishop had been pulled out of the mud. His life had been saved. He thanked Robin for his timely help and promised that he would not cause any trouble to him in future.
Robin’s men carried the Bishop to the greenwood camp and bathed him thoroughly. His clothes had been soiled. So, Robin gave him his green dress to put on. Then, the Bishop was invited to a grand feast. He ate to his heart’s content and praised Robin to the skies. Now the Bishop had become a friend of Robin and his Merry Men.
