"Now then, don't you be long," cried the young swineherd, and he raised his stick threateningly, and made another thrust at Robin, which was avoided; and feeling desperate now as well as hungry, feeling too, that it would be better to fall into any other hands, the little fellow ran on, following a faint track in and out among the trees, till he came suddenly into an opening, face to face with a group of fifty or sixty people busily engaged around a heap beneath a spreading beech tree.  
Robin's first act was to stand and stare, for the heap consisted of bales similar to those with which he had seen the mules laden a couple of days back, and tied up together a few yards away were the very mules, while the little crowd of men who were busy bore a very strong resemblance to those by whom the attack was made on the previous day.
 
Robin knew nothing in those days about the old proverb of jumping out of the frying-pan into the fire, but he felt something of the kind as he found himself face to face with the marauders who had seized upon the bales of cloth and put his aunt's servants to flight, and without a moment's hesitation he turned and began to hurry back, but ran into the arms of a huge fellow who caught him up as if he had been a baby.
 
[Illustration: Robin ran into the arms of a huge fellow, who caught him up as if he had been a baby.]
 
"Hullo, giant!" cried the big man, "who are you?" And the party of men with him, armed with long bows and arrows, began to laugh merrily.
 
"Let me go—let me go!" cried the boy, struggling angrily.
 
"Steady, steady, my little Cock Robin," said the man, in his big bluff way; "don't fight, or you'll ruffle your feathers."
 
The boy ceased struggling directly.
 
"How did you know my name was Robin?" he said.
 
"Guessed it, little one. There, I shan't hurt you. Where do you come from?"
 
"Ellton," said the boy.
 
"But what are you doing here in the forest?"
 
"You came and fought David, and frightened him and the men away, and those are our mules and the cloth."
 
Robin stopped short, for the big man broke out into a loud whistle, and then laughed.
 
"Oh, that's it, is it?" he said; "and so your name's Robin, is it?"
 
The little fellow nodded. "Yes," he said. "What's yours?"
 
"John," said the great fellow, laughing heartily; "and they call me little because I'm so big. What do you think of that?"
 
"I think it's very stupid," said the boy. "I thought you must be
Robin Hood."
 
"Then you thought wrong. But if you thought that this one was you would be right. Here he comes." The boy looked in wonder at a tall man who looked short beside Little John, as he came up in coat of green with brown belt, a sword by his side, quiver of arrows hung on his back, and longbow in his hand.
 
"What woodland bird have you got here, John?" he said. And the boy saw that he smiled pleasantly and did not look fierce or threatening.
 
"A young Robin," said the big fellow; "part of yesterday's plunder."
 
"I want to find my way home," said the boy. "Will you please show me?"
 
"But you did not come here into the forest in shirt and hose, did you, my little man?" said the great outlaw.
 
"No; someone took my cap and doublet away, sir."
 
Robin Hood frowned.
 
"Who was it?" he cried angrily. "Find out, John, and he shall have a bowstring about his back. Point out the man who stripped you, my little lad," he continued, turning to the boy.
 
"It wasn't a man," said the little fellow, "but a boy who minds pigs."
 
"What, a young swineherd!" cried the outlaw, laughing. "Why did you let him? Why didn't y............