5. In the midst of these invasions Alfred became king, when he was only
twenty-two years old. He proved as good a warrior as he was a student. He
thought that whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well. He was
generally successful against the Danes, but at one time they seemed to
have the country entirely in their power, and Alfred was compelled to hide
for his life.
6. For some time he dressed as a peasant, and lived in the cottage of a
cowherd, who was so careful of his king's safety that he did not even tell
his wife who he was. So she treated the king as a common peasant, and one
day gave him a sharp scolding because he allowed some cakes to burn on the
griddle, after she had left him to watch them. She told him he was clever
enough at eating cakes though he managed so badly at baking them.
7. When the search for him grew less active, Alfred gradually collected
some of his followers, with whom he encamped on a small spot of firm
ground in the center of a bog. It was surrounded by almost impassable
forests, and Alfred fortified the place so that it could not well be
taken.
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