دو راهب و کیسه های طلا

CHAPTER 12 - The Two Churchmen and the Bags of Gold

Another winter came and went. There was not much snow on the ground and people could again use the Great North Road.

‘One day, Sir Richard of Lee will pay us the abbot’s money,’ said Robin to Little John and Will Scarlet. ‘But perhaps we can get the money back from the church first.’

‘A good plan, Robin,’ answered Little John. ‘I will find a rich churchman and invite him to a forest dinner. Then he can pay us five hundred pounds. That is not too expensive for our best forest deer, our whitest bread and our finest wine!’

♦

The next evening, Little John went to the road and waited at the robbers’

usual place behind a tree. He didn’t have to wait long. Two churchmen on beautiful white horses were on the road. The two men wore expensive clothes. They were afraid, and they often looked into the forest.

Little John came out of the forest and moved to the middle of the road.

‘Good evening, brothers,’ he called. ‘Are you going to St Mary’s Abbey?’

They stopped their horses and the younger churchman answered, ‘Yes, we are going to visit the abbot. Are we near the abbey? We don’t want to be on this road at night. People say robbers live in the forests near here!’

‘I am the abbot’s man,’ said Little John. ‘I can show you a quick way to the abbey. Follow me!’

So the two men followed Little John into the forest. After a few minutes they saw smoke and then a fire. Robin’s men were there. ‘Where are we?’ cried the churchmen. ‘Who are these men? This is not the abbey!’

‘Good evening, brothers!’ said Robin. ‘Don’t be afraid, we will not hurt you. We hope you will stay for dinner!’

The two churchmen were very unhappy but they could not leave. So they got down from their horses and sat at Robin’s table. Robin’s men brought them meat, wine and bread. The food was very good, but the churchmen couldn’t eat. They were too afraid.

‘Not hungry ?’ asked Robin. ‘Please eat more because we will ask you to pay something for your dinner. With a little church gold, we can help the abbot’s villagers. On the abbot’s land there are many poor families.’

The men’s faces were very white. ‘We are only poor churchmen,’ they answered, ‘and we have no money. Please don’t kill us!’ Little John went to the churchmen’s horses and looked in their bags.

Then he called to Robin Hood.

‘They are right, Robin. There is no money in their bags.’ ‘We told you that,’ said one of the men. ‘Please — it is very late and we want to get to the abbey. My Lord Abbot is waiting for us.’ ‘Wait!’ answered Robin. ‘You are wearing some fine clothes. You can pay for your dinner with those. Take them off!’ ‘What ? Here, in the forest?’ asked the men. ‘The night is very cold!’ ‘Take them off,’ Robin repeated, ‘or do you want me to help you?’ He took out his sword. The two men slowly took off all their clothes.

The robbers looked at the churchmen and began to laugh… Under their clothes, each man had five large money bags.

‘Look at that,’ said Little John. ‘What do we have here? Aha! There is gold in these bags! One hundred pounds in each bag.’ ‘We will take this gold,’ said Robin Hood. ‘It is not yours because you didn’t have any money. Perhaps somebody put the gold there! Go now and tell the good abbot. Robin Hood found one thousand pounds!’ The two men began to put on their clothes again.

‘No, no,’ said Robin. ‘You can give us your clothes too - and your horses. You can wear our old clothes, and walk to the abbey.’ The two men ran away and Robin Hood’s men laughed for a long time.

‘I would like to see the abbot’s face tomorrow!’ said Little John.

‘This is more money than we gave him. He will not be a happy man.’