coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of
the camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.

The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it
for his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.

When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights
of the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at
the scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline
of modern times was then absolutely unknown.

A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with
their goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and
troubadours flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the
spirits of the soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen
and women came in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their
friends in camp; knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned
horses through the crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases
composed of woodmen and peasants who had not in the course of their
lives wandered a league from their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected
wonder at the sights around them; while last, but by no means least, the
maidens and good wives of the neighborhood, fond then as now of brave
men and gay dresses, thronged the streets of the camp, and joined in,
and were the cause of, merry laughter and jest.

Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the
soldier lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the
strains. Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud
shouts, and perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly