Noémi
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CHAPTER XXVI.
THE ELEVENTH CROSS.
OGIER DEL' PEYRA had returned to Le Peuch Ste. Soure. His appearancegreatly astonished the people, as his beard and moustachio had beenshaved, and his hair, usually worn very thick and long, had been clippedclose. So transformed was he in appearance that they could hardlyrecognise him. It was not till the story of the exploit of La Roque hadreached them in its entirety that this transformation was understood.
Ogier would say nothing about what he had done. He relapsed intoindifference and silence, and appeared morose and inaccessible. He tookno interest in anything connected with his lands, none whatever in thegreat political events that ensued.
On September 20th, 1452, John Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, disembarked onthe coast of Medoc and entered Bordeaux on the 22d. Several small townsand fortresses surrendered. Then a large French army descended intoGuyenne. On July 14th, 1453, the main body, under the command of theCount of Penthievre and the Admiral Jean de Bueil, encamped at LaMothe-Montravel, and prepared to lay siege to Castillon that was held bythe English. Talbot at once quitted Bordeaux, accompanied by betweeneight hundred and a thousand horsemen, and followed by from four to fivethousand foot soldiers. He arrived before Castillon on the 17th of July.
At the approach of the English the French withdrew to their camp, andwere followed by Talbot, who arrived breathless, his troops exhaustedwith a long march. Misinformed as to their numbers, believing that theFrench were retreating in alarm, without waiting to recruit his troops,the Earl of Shrewsbury resolved on storming the French camp.
The mistake was fatal. Not only did the French army vastly outnumber hisown, not only was it fresh, whilst his troops were fagged, but theircamp was well chosen and well defended with artillery that played uponthe English from every side with disastrous effect. The defeat wascomplete. Talbot and his gallant son fell, and their death has beenimmortalised by Shakespeare. Nor has the great dramatist failed to pointout the cause of the failure--the disunion among the English leaders.
This memorable battle prepared the way for the final deliverance ofGuyenne and of France, not from English arms only, but from the plagueof the Free Companies, which had grown and spread under the shadow ofthe English domination. At length the south--which as yet had not beenin name even French--was absorbed into the kingdom, and partook of thebenefits of union, and began to tingle with the lifeblood of the nation.
Ogier del' Peyra resigned all concern relative to his estates into thehands of his son, or rather the management was taken from him by Jean,because the old man could or would attend to nothing himself. Whetherhis mind had been affected by his imprisonment in the _oubliette_, orwhether the inactivity was constitutional, and when the necessity forexertion and the motive for revenge were passed he could no longer rousehimself to action, remained uncertain. He had expressed no surprise whenJean brought Noemi to Le Peuch as its mistress. He accepted whateverhappened as a matter of course.
For long he did absolutely nothing but sit in the sun and bite pieces oftwig and straw. If addressed, he replied only with a "Yes" or "No," andgave tokens of annoyance if anyone was persistent in forcing aconversation. Whether he was thinking of the past, or thinking ofnothing at all, none could say. Most certainly he gave no thought to thefuture, for he made no provision for the morrow and left everything toJean.
At last he became feeble, and when feeble suddenly took it into his headto absent himself for a good part of the day.
On inquiry, Jean learned that he crossed the river taking with him ahammer and chisel; and he was informed that the old man had been seenscrambling up the slope to the ruins of l'Eglise Guillem. One day,accordingly, Jean went after him, and on reaching the cave-habitationfound his father seated on the floor engaged in chipping with his tools.
"What are you doing, father?" asked Jean.
The old man did not answer with words, but pointed to the floor. He hadbeen trimming into shapeliness the crosses that marked the lives takenat the storming of l'Eglise.
"But there are eleven, father," said Jean, pointing to one larger thanthe rest, fresh cut.
The old man nodded. "For Le Gros Guillem," he said. "I killed him."
THE END.