“I am a freeholder,” I answered, in my
confusion, “ever since the time of King Alfred.
A Ridd was with him in the isle of Athelney, and we
hold our farm by gift from him; or at least people
say so. We have had three very good harvests
running, and might support a coat of arms; but for
myself I want it not.”
“Thou shalt have a coat, my lad,” said
the King, smiling at his own humour; “but it
must be a large one to fit thee. And more than
that shalt thou have, John Ridd, being of such loyal
breed, and having done such service.”
And while I wondered what he meant, he called to some
of the people in waiting at the farther end of the
room, and they brought him a little sword, such as
Annie would skewer a turkey with. Then he signified
to me to kneel, which I did (after dusting the board,
for the sake of my best breeches), and then he gave
me a little tap very nicely upon my shoulder, before
I knew what he was up to; and said, “Arise, Sir
John Ridd!”
This astonished and amazed me to such extent of loss
of mind, that when I got up I looked about, and thought
what the Snowes would think of it. And I said
to the King, without forms of speech,—
“Sir, I am very much obliged. But what
be I to do with it?”
NOT TO BE PUT UP WITH
[Illustration: 644.jpg Coat of Arms]
The coat of arms, devised for me by the Royal heralds,
was of great size, and rich colours, and full of bright
imaginings. They did me the honour to consult
me first, and to take no notice of my advice.
For I begged that there might be a good-sized cow
on it, so as to stamp our pats of butter before they
went to market: also a horse on the other side,
and a flock snowed up at the bottom. But the gentlemen
would not hear of this; and to find something more
appropriate, they inquired strictly into the annals
of our family. I told them, of course, all about
King Alfred; upon which they settled that one quarter
should be, three cakes on a bar, with a lion regardant,
done upon a field of gold. Also I told them that
very likely there had been a Ridd in the battle fought,
not very far from Plover’s Barrows, by the Earl
of Devon against the Danes, when Hubba their chief
was killed, and the sacred standard taken. As
some of the Danes are said to be buried, even upon
land of ours, and we call their graves (if such they
be) even to this day “barrows,” the heralds
quite agreed with me that a Ridd might have been there,
or thereabouts; and if he was there, he was almost
certain to have done his best, being in sight of hearth
and home; and it was plain that he must have had good
legs to be at the same time both there and in Athelney;
and good legs are an argument for good arms; and supposing
a man of this sort to have done his utmost (as the
manner of the Ridds is), it was next to certain that
he himself must have captured the standard. Moreover,
