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The day was crisp, cold, and bright, and the gayety of the Earl's soldiers was contagious. On they rode as if to a junketing, rather than to a battlefield, and Edgar and young Henry of Huntingdon rode ahead full of the joy of youth, and with hearts beating high. They did not ride very rapidly, but at a steady pace that ate up the distance, and were approaching the bridge when they saw one of the scouts coming toward them. Riding up to the Earl, the scout saluted and reported