Evening star., 1905-10-06
THE WHITE COMPANY
BY A. CONAN DOYLE.


| "Ay, truly would it, my fair son.
Then 1 am right glad that there were
| none who knew of 1t. The black death Is
| the best friend that ever the common FOLK
| had in England
How that. then?" asked Horde John.
"Why, friend, 1t is easy to see that you
| have not worked with your hands, or you
would not need to ask. When half the folk
| In the country were dead, 1t was then tnat
| the other half could pick and choose who
| they would work for. and for what wage.
| That is why 1 say that the murrain was the
best friend that the borel folk ever had"
True, Jenkin,' said another workman;
"but it is not all good that is brought by
II, either We well know that through II
corn land has been turned into pasture. SO
that flocks of sheep with perchance a SIN
gle shepherd wander now where once a
hundred men had work and wage"
There is no great harm in that" re-
| marked the tooth-drawer, 'for the sheep
give many folk their living. There is not
only the herd. but the shearer and brand
er. and then the dresser. the curer, the
dyer, the fuller, the webster, the merchant
and a score of others
''If 1t comes to that" said one Of the
| foresters. ''the tough meat of them will
wear folks teeth out, and there is a trade
! for the man who can draw them"
| A general laugh followed this sally at
| the dentists expense. in the midst OF
| which the gleeman placed his battered
| harp upon his knee and began to pick out
| a melody upon the frayed strings.
Elbow room for Floyting WilIi' cried
the woodmen. '"rwang us merry llt!''
| "Ay, ay. the Iasses of Lancaster. one
suggested.
| "Or st. Simeon and the Devil"
'.Or the Jest of Hendy Tobias
To all these suge es- --ons t. e jonglelr made
no response, but sat with his eye fixed ab-
stractedly upon the ceiling as one who calls
| his words to mind. Then. with a sudden
! sweep across the strings, he broke out
into a song so gross and so foul that ere he
| had finished verse the pure minded lad
| sprung to his feet with the blood tingEng
| in his face.
How can you sing such thngs?" he cried.
you, too, an old man who should be an
example to Others"
The wayfarers all gaZed in the utmost as.
tonishment at the interruption.
BY the holy Dicon of Hampole! our ST.
lent clerk has found his tongue" said one
of the woodmen. What is amiss with the
song, then? How has it offended your
babyship?"
"A milder and better-mannered song hath
never been heard within these WALSH cried
another What sort of talk is this for a
public inn?'
Shall it be a htany, my good clerk?"
shouted third: "or would hymn be good
enough to server"
The jongleur had put down his harp In
high dudgeon.
Am 1 to be preached to by a child?r he
cried, staring across at AMeyne with an in
named and angry countenance. lis hair
less infant to raise his tongue against me-
when l have sung In every fair from Tweed
to Trent, and have twice been named aloud
by the High Court of the Minstrels at Bey-
erley? shall sing no more tonight"
Nay, but you will So" SAID one of the
laborers. Hi, Dame Eliza bring a stoup
of your best to VIII to clear his throat. Go
forward with thy song, and II our girl
raced clerk does not love 1t he can take to
the road and go whence he came"
Nay, but not too fast" broke In Horde
u fJUn do tn hi
ter 1t may be that my little comrade has
been overquick In reproof, he having gone
early into the cloisters and seen little of
the rough ways and words of the world
Yet there is truth In what he saws for "a
you know we'll, the song was not of the
cleanest. l shall stand by him, therefore
and ne shall neither be put out on the road
nor shall his ears be offended indoors
Indeed your high and mighty grace"
sneered one of the yeomen, have you. in
sooth, SO ordained?"
BY the Virgin" said second, 'T think
upon the road before long"
And so belabored as to be scarce able
to crawl along it!' cried a third
,srna Nay; b, L shall go! I shall gol said AL
slowly roll up his sleeve, and bare an arm
like leg of mutton. II would NOT have
you brawl about me-"
Hush Iad! he whispered. II count them
not fly. They may find they have more
tow on their distafr than they know how
to spin. Stand thou clear and give me
space nav
Both the foresters and the laborers had
risen from their bench. and Dame Eliza.
ana the travelling doctor had flung them
serves between the two parties with soft
words and soothing gestures, when the
Goor OF the Pied Merlin was flung yio-
iently open. and the attention of the com
pany was drawn from their own quarrel to
the newcomer who had burst 80 uneere-
moniously upon them.
(To be continued tomorrow)