Page:Tudor Jenks--The defense of the castle.djvu/217

 the interval the commanders of the castle forces held a consultation in the great hall upon the ground floor of the keep. Edgar, though the wound in his shoulder was painful, found himself not seriously disabled, and his victory over the Count de Ferrers seemed to him cheaply bought at so small a price. The Friar also was not dissatisfied with his efforts during that exciting afternoon, for he felt that the burning of the siege-tower was due greatly to his accurate marksmanship with the fire-darts. Hugh, alone, seemed depressed. It is true that his aid at a critical time had saved the men stationed at the inner gateway, and had enabled them to make good their retreat to a safer shelter, but this was rather the saving of a defeat than a victory.

It could not be denied that the afternoon had proved most fortunate for the besiegers. They had lost some men, but they were in possession of a large part of the castle; and if the Count had been overcome by Edgar's battle-ax, he had been 189