“Fellow, why doste thou stop peaceful travellers? Thou arte but one manne and I another, and a staffe in my hande is as goode as one in thine. Have at thee, knave!” and straightway he dyd springe before Robyn, quarter-staffe in hande. Whereat Robyn set an arrow to his bowe, makyng as if he would shoote, at the which Baldrow dyd cry out, “A knave! a coward knave!!” Then dyd Robyn droppe his bow and to it they went right merrile. My manne Baldrow’s bloode was uppe, and eke was it downe, for Robyn dyd give him such sounding thwacks, that the bloode did run adoune his cheekes and drippe from his chin. Robyn, too, got manie a knock which was harde, and his blacke bearde was rede with blode alsoe. Bothe dyd swat greatlie, and blowe them like unto oxen, till Robyn by a swingyne blowe, did bring Baldrow downe upon the grounde, where he did crye lustelie for mercie. While thys fighte dyd last, many great and lyttle men dyd hedge us arounde, till there were quite a score and a halfe of them, and he who appeared to be their leader was in stature ye largest man my eyen dyd ever lite upon. When he stode besyde Robyn, his shoulder was a fulle ynch taller than Robyn hys head; nor was he a thin wastreyl of a manne, but proper and strong withall, and of about ye same age as Robyn Hode, who dyd say he had y’seen thirty and fyve summers. While the fighte dyd last, my four serving men, who be doubtless arrant knaves, dyd steal away with four of ye mules layden with sundrie goodes, which Robyn percevyng, he dyd secretly send hys men in searche of them, and in goode time they dyd bring them backe, and deliver them bound to Robyn. Then Robyn swore a gret othe, that he had never met such scurvy knaves, and did cause them to be bound with cordes to the trunks of fallen trees, with their faces downwards. Then did foure of hys men belabour their breeches with pliable saplings of ye ashe tree, till their strength gave out, when the gret giant, whose name I did afterward find to be Lytell John, did tell the whipped varlets to begone. But so sore were their hams that they dyd but stir at the snail hys pace, makynge y’while loud and sundry bemoanings, and walking in muche variety of postures for they were sore hurte. My mules were meantyme kindly treated, for their burdeyns were released from them, at which I dyd not much joie, for I dyd knowe right well ye character of myne hoste. The food stuffe for our sustenance was taken by ye robber band, and putte in gret yron potts, beneath which fires were lighted, and in but smalle tyme a goode meale was spred before us alle. They were a motley crew, and many of them dyd looke like unto beggars (for tatters and dyrt) their clothes being very ragged and olde. Many wore gret bands of hay round their legges to keepe them warme, and to fend off ye wet from ye bracken and underwode.