“Of course .”
Robert stood, bowed slightly, and headed over to the Queen. She was still seated in her chair and conversing with an attendant as he approached .
“Your Majesty, I thought the ceremony went very nicely,” he said .
“As expected,” she replied .
“And now that the ceremony is over how might you wish to spend your time? Do you wish to return to the house or would you care to witness the Morris dancing, which I believe will start shortly ”
The Queen turned to her attendant and conferred with him, then turned back to Robert .
“I should like to see some local dancing. It has been a great while since I have had the privilege of being thus entertained .”
“I shall have a place made ready for you in one of the pavilions so that you may view the dancing more comfortably .”
“Oh, no. I should not like that.” She turned to her attendant. “ Let me take your arm and we shall stroll amongst the crowd.” She turned back to Robert, “And I should also like to see the results of the baking and flower competitions, if I may ?”
“Certainly,” Robert said smiling. “Whatever pleases you. One moment, and I shall alert your security detail .”
The Queen stood and chatted with a few of her attendants who were standing nearby .
Robert went to the Queen’s Guard who were standing at the entrance to the tent and alerted them to the fact that the Queen would be visiting the fete .
Three of the guards returned with him .
“Your Majesty I am ready to accompany you whenever you are ready,” Robert said .
Robert could see that Diana was now with her parents as they were leaving the tent, and just then Amelia came over and took Robert’s arm .
“Her Majesty is visiting the fete now,” Robert told her .
“Is that wise, with such an indiscriminate crowd ?”
“I think you are being unfair to our stable Cambridgeshire citizens. We are hardly known for rabble rousing,” Robert insisted .
Amelia waved her hand in the air. “If she so wishes .”
*
D iana went looking for Miriam and Geoffrey when her parents decided to wander the competition tents to see the winning entries which by now had been adjudicated .
She found Miriam holding a glass of beer as Geoffrey participated in the Welly Wanging .
“How’s he doing?” Diana asked .
“Want a sip?” Miriam asked, offering Diana her glass .
“I just had tea. I am good for now .”
“Old Geoffrey is neck in neck with the village champion,” Miriam added. “I never would have guessed he had it in him .”
The competition had been going on for a while—eliminating all but these last two. The champion held the top of the Wellington boot tightly in his right hand as he wound up and flung the boot high into the air. The boot went sailing and landed a great distance away—farther than the achieved distance so far .
The crowd cheered their hometown champion .
Then it was Geoffrey’s turn again. He stood a great distance back from the throw line. He took the boot in his left hand and winding his arm in fast circles, he ran forward to the line and threw the boot far, far, far. And beat the last shot from the champion .
But Geoffrey had just touched the line with his foot. So, the champion was given another chance to beat Geoffrey .
Back the champion went with his boot to the throw line. He wound up and let go. But the boot slipped from his hand and went careening into the assembled crowd—missing his mark and making Geoffrey the new champion .
“Miriam screamed and shouted, “Geoffrey, Geoffrey. Champion of the world .”
Diana clapped more discreetly but was happy for her friend .
Geoffrey shook the loser’s hand and came running over carrying his trophy of a gold Wellington boot. He hugged his sister .
“I told you,” he said beaming .
“Now if only you could use that skill as a profession,” she teased .
“How is the baking apprenticeship going?” Diana asked .
“Pardon the pun, but I got sacked .”
“Then what now? Have you not almost exhausted all possible professions known to the modern world?” Diana asked with a smile .
“I was thinking of being a traveling minstrel. I cannot play any instrument but I have a great sense of time and could beat out a rhythm on the back of a pie tin .”
Just then the crowd began to shift as they noticed the Queen and her entourage emerging from the tea tent. Robert and Amelia were accompanying her and they headed for the tent where the flowers had been judged and went inside .
The crowd shifted again when the Queen disappeared and attention returned to the races. There was to be a sack race, an egg and spoon race, and, lastly, the three-legged race which the twins announced they had entered .
The first race got underway. The sack race attracted mostly youngsters, as anyone over the age of twenty found repeated hopping to be more of a chore than a delight. The race was a tie—a twelve-year-old boy and a fourteen-year-old girl. Both were from the village .
Absolutely no one won the egg and spoon race. Every egg dropped from the spoon of each participant. That had never happened before so they ran the race again. And to everyone’s surprise, no one won that time either. The organizers felt another try would begin to strain the audience’s interest and it was dropped with no winner declared .
Geoffrey and Miriam were preparing for their race when it was temporarily suspended as the Queen had emerged from the flower tent and the Morris dancers formed to present their entertainment .
The eight dancers were all men. They were dressed in the traditional Morris costume of white shirt and knee length pants with white stockings. They wore black vests and had bells tied just below the knee. They wore straw hats festooned with ribbons and they carried sticks about four feet long that they would use in the dance .
The crowd made way for the Queen’s party as they prepared to watch the dance .
The dancers began, accompanied by two accordions, a drum, and a pennywhistle. It was a simple dance with the men turning and stomping, creating patterns as they twirled and struck their sticks in a ritual fight. The bells at their knees shook as they created syncopated rhythms before the Queen .
The Queen and the crowd were delighted when the dance had finished, and there was so much applause the dancers returned for a short encore .
Her Majesty seemed to be enjoying herself, and when the dancing had finally finished, she and her party walked over to where the three-legged race was about to begin .
The twins’ legs were tied together and they were ready to go .
Geoffrey said to Diana, “We are going to win. Just you wait and see .”
“What makes you so confident?” she asked .
“Because we are twins. We think alike and behave as one,” Miriam answered .