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BB2017
: Lord Anthony and the Pestilence
Wednesday
27th May 2020
In days of yore there dwelt, in
a castle overlooking the town called Kirkbie Kentdale, the noble Lord
Anthony. Each Wednesday he would set up his
midday court on the limestone ridge that separates the Kent Valley from the
Lyth Valley. There, outside the auld Helsington
kirk, he would invite his loyal subjects to partake luncheon with him.
On this particular Wednesday,
the last before Whitsuntide, a great pestilence had swept through the land. The villeins sought his advice and
protection. These included Bryan the Greene
Man, Domnauld of Crakehalle,
Martyn of the High Wood, Mikael av Natalund, Micah the Howe, Stefen de Lefuenes
and
Stigweard of the Long Howe with his faithful
hound, Maisie. It is believed that Stanleigh the Archer
would have been with them had he not suffered
an injury in a recent tourney.
Lord Anthony decreed that they would
only be permitted to appear within his sight singly and separated from him
at great distance. If he should then deem one of them
sufficiently worthy, that villein would be invited, at noon, to approach him, alone
and remaining at not less than a rod’s distance away*. All others would be required to disperse,
individually and without mutual communication, and return to their humble
dwellings. Meanwhile, Lord Anthony would
partake of his lunch whilst listening to the fortunate supplicant’s request.
He sat at the
appointed place. One by one his subjects
approached, each arriving from a different direction and each separated by
considerable time and distance. Once the
villein was sufficiently close to be within earshot, the Lord would announce
his decision. Each was hoping to hear “Good
Sir, pray come feast with me”. Each was distraught
instead to be summarily informed that they were not to be chosen and that they should "Be Gone"
back to their disparate homesteads, directly and without speaking to any living
soul. Anxious not to displease their
Lord, they did as instructed with no audible complaint passing their lips though
one can imagine their inner turmoil and distress.
The business of the day now
complete, the Lord Anthony ate his venison and ale pie whilst reflecting on how well he
had managed to avoid the pestilence. Once
sated, he mounted his trusty steed and returned to his castle where slumber
engulfed him.
This sad episode in the nation’s
history was faithfully re-enacted today by the BOOTboys
travelling players using similarly disparate routes
and times to and from Helsington Church.
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The
Lord Anthony
Martyn of the High Wood
Stefen de Lefuenes
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Bryan the Greene
Man
Mikael av Natalund
Stigweard of the Long Howe
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Domnauld of Crakehalle
Micah the Howe
His faithful
hound Maisie
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One
additional, unexpected item of note is that
outside the church, a photo-shoot was taking
place for the Classic Cars magazine featuring
a very smart Ford Capri Mark 1. I was asked
not to put a picture of the car on social
media until the article has been published.
So here it isn't. Apart from
the wheels.
Something
else to discuss in the ZOOMbar?
Don,
Wednesday 27th May 2020
*
The
unit of measurement known as a "rod"
is equivalent to about 5 metres
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