For they thought our Norsemen were afraid.
But they could not see beneath the penthouse roofs, where the men, three at each oar, were armed and ready.

Nor could they see the gangs of twelve men told off to the cables on each foredeck.

Six of these were to pass the cables round the piles and make fast while the other six were to stand by with shields ready, in case the roofs were broken.

But even then it should not take long to do all we needed, and some of the roof would be left surely at the worst.
Four only of the ships were to touch the bridge, one at each of the four midmost pilings.

The other four were made fast, stern to stern of the leading ships, so that their weight of oar play might be used to the full in the long pull to come, and two ships would haul at each set of piles where the weight was heaviest upon the bridge.
So we waited until the tide was at its fiercest ebb.