Therefore let it please your knighthood to dismount." "It shall please my knighthood to chastise thy presumption," said the knight, springing from his saddle.
Hereupon, which in those days was usually the result of a meeting between any two persons anywhere, they proceeded to fight.
The knight had in an uncommon degree both strength and skill: the forester had less strength, but not less skill than the knight, and showed such a mastery of his weapon as reduced the latter to great admiration.
They had not fought many minutes by the forest clock, the sun; and had as yet done each other no worse injury than that the knight had wounded the forester's jerkin, and the forester had disabled the knight's plume; when they were interrupted by a voice from a thicket, exclaiming, "Well fought, girl: well fought.

Mass, that had nigh been a shrewd hit.

Thou owest him for that, lass.

Marry, stand by, I'll pay him for thee." The knight turning to the voice, beheld a tall friar issuing from the thicket, brandishing a ponderous cudgel.
"Who art thou ?" said the knight.
"I am the church militant of Sherwood," answered the friar.

"Why art thou in arms against our lady queen ?" "What meanest thou ?" said the knight.
"Truly, this," said the friar, "is our liege lady of the forest, against whom I do apprehend thee in overt act of treason.