Wisconsin School for the Deaf - Tattler Yearbook (Delavan, WI)

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THE TATTLER riding at their leisure through the recedes of the forest, humming to their heart ’ content. Womb , who was ever ulert, spied someone behind the hushes not h great distance off and knew that trouble was at hand, so he took Lockaley'l horn and blew three times. When nearing the dunger-»pot three arrows dew pant them. As they pushed on into the thicket, they were met by six or seven armed men who ran against them with their lances. The knight stood behind a tree fighting the intruders; but the enemy pressed close and were about to kill him. when I.ockxley and his men appeared on the scene. The Black Knight demanded the leader of the fighting group to unmask und found that it was Fitxurse, n former loyal friend of King Richard, but then a follower of Prince John, who had won over a fow of King Richard's admirers during the king’s absence in the Holy Land where he had been fighting to recover Jerusalem. To the great surprise of the outlaws ,the Plack Knight, upon the removal of his ms-k. was found to be King Richard himself, who hud returned from the Crusade in disguise. Thus ended an eventful day with the outlaws in the forest MtA vA f sA f THE PEOPLE OF ENGLAND By GAILEN O'CONNELL The earliest inhabitants of England or Great Britain lived long before history was written. But men who have taken up the subject of English history have discovered scattered over the island small hills or burrow which resemble our Indnin mounds. In these barrows have been found bodies of men and unimal? and tools of stone and bronze. These tools have been carefully examined and they prove that the people were of two groups. Those with long, narrow heads and those with Mhort, round head . Of the two, the long, narrow-headed people were the oldest but more uncivilized or more primitive. These people lived in cave and ate the flesh of different animals and seemed to he very much like the Eskimo of today. It is not known exactly who these longheaded people were, hut historians tell us that they came from northern Spain or Iberin. The people with the round heads came at a later date und were larger, stronger and had fewer barbaric way . This is known by the fact that bronze tools were used by them. Theae tool were made of copper and tin. Bronze is a mixture of these two metal and is usually n reddish color. I think at that time it must have taken special ability to make these tool . The e people wove woolen cloth nnd were godo hands at making earthen pot . They were called Celt or Kelts. We know thut men of Celtic blood lived in England before history was written. Many of these people still live in different sections of Europe. The tribes known a Goidcls or Britons were the first that came to England. The Goidels passed over into Ireland where the Western Irish aro probably their descendant . The Welsh nre also of Celtic origin. The early inhabitants of the island became known to the rest of the world through the Roman who conquered them The Roman? in their books tell of their habit und home life of the Briton . The Briton were a tall and well-formed race. Their dres wo the skin of different animal nnd also woven cloth. They were brave warrior und uxuully fought from chariot drawn my horees. Whenever they went to war, they decorated and painted their faces and bodies like our American Indian did. The Roman found that the Britons wore not entirely civilized und taught them to make road and many other thing a well. Their religion was called Druidism and their priest , Druids. They worshipped in the open under oak trees where they offered human sacrifice to their God . If you were to visit England, you might see several huge stone structures. one of which h called Stonehenge on the Plains of Salisbury. This is supposed to have been built by the Druid . Early visitor to early England or Britain were more civilized than the Briton who were really barbaric. It is said that even the Greek and Phoenecians had visited the island. The Roman xay thi was true because they found Greek and Phocnccian customs nnd tools there. The first Roman invasion of Britain took place fifty-five year before the birth of Christ. Thi invasion is of importance because it made the island known to the Romans. Julius Caesar was at the head of this invasion. Later they came nnd captured Britain and made it a province of I'age thirty-one

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THE TATTLER A DAY IN THE FOREST WITH THE OUTLAWS By LORRAINE SZABLEWSKI Before rotating the experiences of n day in the forest with the outlaws, I should like to muke some explanation as to who they were. The well-known Robin Hood, the leader of these merry men of Sherwood Forest In England, is supposed to have been Robert, Earl of Huntington. During the time of the Third Crusade in Palestine, when England was trying to capture the Holy Lund, under the leadership of King Richard; and Prince John was ruling the country. Robert, Earl of Huntington, won a happy, wealth-y. generous, highly respected earl, owning a castle near Sherwood Forest. However, the time came when his joy was suddenly turned to sor-row, for he was obliged to sell his castle to pay his debts. At a big dinner to which he had inivted the few friends who were still faithful to him, there stood in the doorway n herald, telling him to appear at the king's court, where ho would he tried foi treason and debt. The messenger added that if he failed to follow those orders within six days, he would he made an outlaw. The earl, not knowing which choice to make, turned for help to his sweetheart Murian. daughter of Lord Fitz-wnlter, who, though unbidden, hud been brought in by Friar Tuck. She advised him to become an outlaw .explaining that, though the accusation was false, once in the king’s court, there would bo no escape lor him. As an outlaw, she was confident that he could outwit the king. (Jo and seek your own kingdom! she said firmly. He then usked some of his admirers to follow him into the forest. There were about a hundred men in all who joined him. Among them, who were of noble birth, were Friar Tuck, the priest. Little John, his trustworthy servant, and Allan-u Dale and Miller, his best friends. When they set off for the forest, they were clad in homespun; and instead of hows and arrows, they carried heavy quarterstaves. After taking up their abode in the greenwood, they wandered among the trees and thickets, killing the king's deer, and often going into the city in disguise. The place in Sherwood Forest where they dwelt was not very far from Torquilstonc Castle, a strong fortification, owned by Reginald Front de Reauf, a mightly but cruel Norman knight, who kept prisoners in the dungeons of his castle in order to extort huge sums of money a - ransom. On this particular day each prisoner of Tor- quiistonc Castle hud been put into a room and was waiting to meet his fate. Isaac, a Jewish money lender, had been thrown into the dungeon of the castle and was being forced to tell whore his money wo . He refused, and when Front de eauf was about to bum the Jew’s feet with n hot iron rod, he heurd the blast of a horn. Dropping the iron, Front de Iteauf hurried to sec what the excitement was. The guard at the castle gate informed him that n huge knight in black armor seemed to he lending a targe group of forest men on the caatlc. He proved to be the knight who had taken part in a tournament at Ashby the day before, where ho had designated himself os the Black Knight. He hud joined Robin Hood and his men and soon led them to victory; the castle was destroyed, and all the prisoners except the little Jew Isaac were rescued. After the fall of Torquilstone Castle, the out-taws entered the ruined fortress, and. after securing its treasures, carried them to their Trysl-ing Tree on Hnrthil! Walk whore they divided the spoils. The place of rendezvous was on aged oak under whose twisted branches sat the bold outlaws. Robin Hood assumed his seat, n silvan throne of turf erected near the ouk. He commanded the Black Knight to sit at his right; while Cedric, n wealthy Saxon noble, who had been rescued at Torquilstone by the outlaws, was placed nt his left Then Robin Hood, or Locksley ns he had been known at the tournament, declared that a tenth part of the spoils was for the church; a portion was next nlloted to a certain public treasury; another for the poor; and the rest wa to go to the members of the band according to their rank and merit After each had taken his portion of the booty, Robin Hood discovered the absence of Friar Tuck. While they were discussing his whereabout-:, a loud shout from the yeomen announced the arrival of the priest with the Jew. Isaac as his prisoner. The priest told of his return to the ruined castle in search of some wine and how he had found the Jew there. The Black Knight was about to leave for Con-ingsburgh Castle, where there was to be a burial feast; but before taking his departure, Robin Hood handed him hi horn to give warning when in danger. After he departed, Robin Hood and his men hud a merry feast consisting of stock-fish and ale. The Black Knight and his guide, Wamba. were 19 3 4 Page thirty

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THE TATTLER the Roman Empire. At first the Romans were able to subdue the Britons, but a brave woman chieftan named Boudicn led a rebellion and seemed about to succeed, but she was imprisoned and the Romans V-pt England. The Romans wont on and captured the island as far north a:i the border of Scotland then controlled by the Piets and Scots. Walls were built to keep these fierce people out. Then the Vikings came and nttneked the Roman sentries and the Komuns built some of their great roads and were able to send their men from place to place quite easily. During this period. Christianity was introduced into Britain by the Romans, and, in this way. the Britons became Christians. But Roman power began to decline and in the year 410 A. D Rome was taken by the Goths, northern European barbarians. Thnt same year the Romnn sentries were withdrawn from Britain, and the Britons were not quite strong enough to defend themselves from the Piets and Scots and other invaders of the island. Next the Jutes, a Teutonic tribe, came. These people landed about 440 on the shore of the Thames and settled in southeastern Britain— Cantium. so called by the Romans, but Kent by the Jutes. They called themselves Kcntsmcn, and the English people who first settled in America were direct descendants of this people. The Saxons invaded the land at a later date, and they were another branch of the Teutonic race. They settled in different sections of the island which still bear the names of Sussex. Wessex. Essex, and Middlesex. They arc said to have fought against King Arthur and his knights. Then the Angles or English came, and it is believed that the Island was named after them for the land was known as Angle-land and later England. The early Britons had dark hair while the Teutonic people had lighter hair and were hand-omcr. We should not forget that the early Teutons were not only uncivilized, but believed in sacrificing animals to their gods. The Christian religion gradually disappeared after the Romans left the island, for the invaders worshipped various gods, the chief of which was Wodin. Thor was another, and he was their god of war. The name Wednesday is derived from Wodin's day, and Thor's day became Thursday. The early rulers of the island were sup- posed to have been descended from Wodin, and thnt was why they thought it proper to name one day after him. The conquerors kept up their Teutonic custom by dividing the land among themselves for farming purposes. The farmers lived in villages os they hud on the Continent. They chose a louder to act for them. After Christianity was introduced into England again in the seventh century, the town board took charge of religious affairs under the name of parish. After the Teutons, came the Vikings or us we know them today, Dunes. They Inndcd in 827. They came in boats with turned up prow. and sterns, each having the head of u dragon or some other sacred animal. These boats were rowed by at least fifty men whose shields hung over the side so that the men could escape by swimming under them. These people were bold sea-rovers and it is believed that they reached America on their daring cruises. They landed in Ireland first. Christianity had made great headway there. The people fell before the great rush of the Vikings or Danes who went right on to England killing and plundering as they went. In King Alfred they met their cquul, and he defeated them after many hard battles. Alfred forced them to become civilized and accept Christianity. Then the Normans came and conqurered England. Under the leadership of William the Conqueror, they defeated Harold, a cousin of William. ut the Great Battle of Hastings in 1086. These people came from Normandy, then a part of France. They had come from Norway and settled in France at an curlier dote. The Normans introduced the Feudal System which was a sort of a military plan to help the king, but it kept England in a very unsatisfactory condition, especially the people of the lower classes. The Feudal System was destroyed during the Wars of the Roses which took place in the latter part of the fifteenth century. Today English-speaking people are found in every quarter of the globe, and they actually control one-fourth of the world. The few early Britons have grown from a tiny group on a small island to millions in the largest empire in the world. 1 think this proves that one never knows what will result from a small beginning. Page thirty-two 1331