26 Philo M. Buck, Jr. 



forester summons his two brothers, and they meet at a ford, and 

 there He in wait to murder the youth. 



" Within that wood there was a covert glade, 



Foreny a narrow foord, to them well knowne, 



Through which it was uneath for wight to wade ; 



And now by fortune it was overflowne : 



By that same way they knew that Squyre unknowne 



Mote algates passe ; f orthy themselves they set 



There in await with thicke woods overgrowne, 



And all the while their malice they did whet 



With cruell threats his passage through the ford to let. 



It fortuned, as they devized had, 



The gentle Squyre came ryding that same way, 



Unweeting of their wile and treason bad, 



And through the ford to passen did assay; 



But that fierce foster, which late fled away. 



Stoutly foorth stepping on the further shore. 



Him boldy bad his passage there to stay, 



Till he had made amends, and full restore 



For all the damage which he had him doen afore." 



Such adventures were by no means uncommon with Raleigh. 

 I take the following from Martin Hume's Life of Ralegh. ^^ 



" On one occasion he rode to Dublin to urge Lord Grey and his 

 council to allow him to capture David, Lord Barry of Barrycourt, 

 whose loyalty was more than doubtful. He was given a free 

 hand; but spies were everywhere, and Barry was fully informed 

 of Ralegh's project. To anticipate the action of the English, he 

 burnt his own castle and wasted his lands, and one of Desmond's 

 vassals, Fitz-Edmond, lay in ambush for Captain Ralegh at a 

 ford he had to cross between Youghal and Cork. Ralegh's escort 

 was a small one, only six men, most of whom had straggled when 

 the ford was reached. Ralegh suddenly found himself face to 

 face in a dangerous place with a relatively large force of horse 

 and foot. Almost alone, he literally cut his way through to the 

 opposite bank of the river, accompanied by another young Devon- 

 ian named Moyle. In crossing the river, the latter twice found- 

 ered in deep water, and twice his life was rescued by Ralegh at 



'^ P. 28. 



•184 



