‘If we are defeated again, all will be up with every DON’T.
one of us,’ said the princes. KNOW
‘Don’t know,’ answered Dan.
Now as soon as they had marched out of London,
Dan shook the bridle, whereupon his own little
horse came trotting up to him, and he had on his
back three portmanteaus. He said to his master:
‘See, take these portmanteaus. In one is an army
of soldiers, in another are munitions of war, in the
third is plenty of money. The day is going against
the king. Quick, put on the suit of armour you
will see provided, jump on my back, and ride to
the rescue of your father-in-law. But first unpack
the portmanteaus.’
So Dan immediately opened the leather boxes.
And when he had opened the first out marched an
army of men. And when he had opened the
second out rolled cannons and cannon-balls, and
hay for the horses, and food for the men. And
when he had opened the third he found in it gold,
wherewith to pay the soldiers, and gold is said to
be ‘the sinews of war.’ So he mounted his little
horse and rode at the head of his army to the
battlefield, and he arrived just as the centre was
giving way, and when the two wings were turning
to flight. He rushed forward with his men and
fell on King Cuckoo with his Irish, and utterly
routed them, and took their banner, on which was
inscribed ‘Home Rule for ever,’ and sent the Irish
flying, tumbling head over heels, away, away, as
fast as their legs could run, in the direction of
their native isle,
Now as soon as he had gained the victory he
hastily withdrew with all his men till he had got
behind a belt of trees, and then he packed all his
troops once more into their portmanteau, and put
in all the munitions of war into the second, and
returned as quickly as he could to London, jumped
off his little horse, and stood lounging at the door
K 145