Realizing that the Merry Men need new suits of clothes, Robin Hood sends Little John to the tailor in Ancaster. On the way, Little John gets sidetracked and goes to the Blue Boar Inn, staying there overnight. The next morning, he runs into a tanner named Arthur a Bland and, thinking that he intends to poach on the King’s deer, gets in a fight with him. Arthur soundly beats Little John, much to the amusement of Robin Hood, who has been hiding and watching. Robin declares that Little John got what he deserved for abandoning his errand. Arthur agrees to join the Merry Men, saying that he would not have fought with “the famous Little John” (98) if he had realized who he was. 

Lying by the side of the road, Robin, Little John, and Arthur a Bland see a fancily dressed young dandy walking and sniffing a rose. Robin stops him and with threats and orders him to show him his money. They get in a fight with quarterstaffs, and the stranger unexpectedly beats Robin soundly. He turns out to be Will Gamwell, Robin Hood’s nephew, who is fleeing from the law for having accidentally killed his father’s steward.