"
The fight began,--and quickly ended. Hardrada fought like a giant, but
an arrow in his throat brought him dead to the ground. Tostig fell also,
and many other chiefs. The Northmen, disheartened, yielded. Harold gave
them easy terms, bidding them take their ships and sail again to the
land whence they had come.
This warlike picture on the land may be matched by one upon the sea.
Over the waves of the English Channel moved a single ship, such a one as
had rarely been seen upon those waters. Its sails were of different
bright colors; the vanes at the mast-heads were gilded; the three lions
of Normandy were painted here and there; the figure-head was a child
with a bent bow, its arrow pointed towards the land of England. At the
mainmast-head floated a consecrated banner, which had been sent from
Rome.
It was the ship of William of Normandy, alone upon the waves. Three
thousand vessels in all had left with it the shores of France, six or
seven hundred of them large in size. Now, day was breaking, and the
king's ship was alone. The others had vanished in the night.
William ordered a sailor to the mast-head to report on what he could
see.
"I see nothing but the water and the sky," came the lookout's cry from
above.
Pages:
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60