Tidings of his having been thus discovered spread confidentially among the most tried and faithful of his Saxon followers, who had themselves been seeking safety in other places of refuge.

They began, at first cautiously and by stealth, but afterward more openly, to repair to the spot.

Alfred's family, too, from which he had now been for many months entirely separated, contrived to rejoin him.

The herdsman, who proved to be a man of intelligence and character superior to his station, entered heartily into all these movements.

He kept the secret faithfully.