 Chapter 3 of Anne of Geyerstein by Sir Walter Scott. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recording by Dion Giants, Salt Lake City, Utah. Cursed be the gold and silver which persuade weak men to follow far fatiguing trade. The lily, peace, outshines the silver store, and life is dearer than the golden ore, yet money tempts us, or the desert brown, to every distant mart and wealthy town, Hassan, or the camel-driver. Arthur Phillipson and Anne of Geyerstein thus placed together in a situation which brought them into the closest possible contiguity, felt a slight degree of embarrassment. The young man, doubtless, from the fear of being judged a paltrune in the eyes of the maiden by whom he had been rescued, and the young woman, perhaps in consequence of the exertion she had made, or a sense of being placed suddenly in a situation of such proximity to the youth whose life she had probably saved. And now, maiden, said Arthur, I must repair to my father the life which I owe to your assistance can scarce be called welcome to me unless I am permitted to hasten to his rescue. He was here interrupted by another bugle blast which seemed to come from the quarter in which the elder Phillipson and his guide had been left by their young and daring companion. Arthur looked in that direction, but the platform which he had seen but imperfectly from the tree when he was perched in that place of refuge was invisible from the rock on which they now stood. It would cost me nothing to step back on yonder route, said the young woman, to spy from thence whether I could see ought of your friends, but I am convinced they are under safer guidance than either yours or mine, for the horn announces that my uncle or some of my young kinsmen have reached them. They are by this time on their way to the Geyerstein to which with your permission I will become your guide. For you may be assured that my uncle Arnold will not allow you to pass farther today, and we shall but lose time by endeavouring to find your friends who situated where you say you left them will reach the Geyerstein sooner than we shall. Follow me then, or I must suppose you weary of my guidance. Sooner suppose me weary of the life which your guidance has in all probability saved, replied Arthur, and prepared to attend her, at the same time taking a view of her dress and person which confirmed the satisfaction he had in following such a conductor, and which we shall take the liberty to detail somewhat more minutely than he could do at that time. An upper vest, neither so close as to display the person, a habit forbidden by the sumptuary laws of the canton, nor so loose as to be an encumbrance in walking or climbing, covered a close tunic of a different colour, and came down beneath the middle of the leg, but suffered the ankle in all its fine proportions to be completely visible. The foot was defended by a sandal, the point of which was turned upwards, and the crossings and knots of the strings which secured it on the front of the leg were garnished with silver rings. The upper vest was gathered round the middle by a sash of party-coloured silk ornamented with twisted threads of gold, while the tunic, open at the throat, permitted the shape and exquisite whiteness of a well-formed neck to be visible at the collar, and for an inch or two beneath. The small portion of the throat and bosom thus exposed was even more brilliantly fair than was promised by the countenance which last bore some marks of having been freely exposed to the sun and air by no means in a degree to diminish its beauty, but just so far as to show that the maiden possessed the health which is purchased by habits of rural exercise, her long, fair hair fell down in a profusion of curls on each side of a face whose blue eyes lovely features and dignified simplicity of expression implied at once a character of gentleness and of the self-relying resolution of a mind too virtuous to suspect evil and too noble to fear it. Above these locks beauty's natural and most be seeming ornament or rather I should say amongst them was placed the small bonnet which from its size little answered the purpose of protecting the head, but served to exercise the ingenuity of the fair wearer who had not failed according to the prevailing custom of the mountain maidens to decorate the tiny cap with a heron's feather and the then unusual luxury of a small and thin chain of gold long enough to encircle the cap four or five times and having the ends secured under a broad metal of the same costly metal. I have only to add that the stature of the young person was something above the common size and that the whole contour of her form without being in the slightest degree masculine resembled that of Minerva rather than the proud beauties of Juno or the yielding graces of Venus, the noble brow, the well-formed and active limbs, the firm and yet light step above all the total absence of anything resembling the consciousness of personal beauty and the open and candid look which seemed desirous of knowing nothing that was hidden and conscious that she herself had nothing to hide were traits not unworthy of the goddess of wisdom and of chastity. The road which the young Englishman pursued under the guidance of this beautiful young woman was difficult and unequal but could not be termed dangerous at least in comparison to those precipices over which Arthur had recently passed. It was in fact a continuation of the path which the slip or slide of earth so often mentioned had interrupted and although it had sustained damage in several places at the period of the same earthquake yet there were marks of these having been already repaired in such a rude manner as made the way sufficient for the necessary intercourse of a people so indifferent as the Swiss to smooth or level paths. The maiden also gave Arthur to understand that the present road took a circuit for the purpose of gaining that on which he was lately traveling and that if he and his companions had turned off at the place where this new track united with the old pathway they would have escaped the danger which had attended their keeping the road by the verge of the precipice. The path which they now pursued was rather averted from the torrent though still within hearing of its sullen thunders which seemed to increase as they ascended parallel to its course till suddenly the road turning short and directing itself straight upon the old castle brought them within sight of one of the most splendid and awful scenes of that mountainous region. The ancient tower of Geierstein though neither extensive nor distinguished by architectural ornament possessed an error of terrible dignity by its position on the very verge of the opposite bank of the torrent which just at the angle of the rock on which the ruins are situated falls sheer over a cascade of nearly a hundred feet in height and then rushes down the defile through a trough of living rock which perhaps its waves have been deepening since time itself had a commencement facing and at the same time looking down upon this eternal roar of waters stood the old tower built so close to the verge of the precipice that the buttresses with which the architect had strengthened the foundation seemed a part of the solid rock itself and a continuation of its perpendicular ascent. As usual throughout Europe in the feudal times the principal part of the building was a massive square pile the decayed summit of which was rendered picturesque by flanking turrets of different sizes and heights some round some angular some ruinous some tolerably entire varying the outline of the building as seen against the stormy sky a projecting Sally port descending by a flight of steps from the tower had in former times given access to a bridge connecting the castle with that side of the stream on which Arthur Phillipson and his fair guide now stood a single arch or rather one rib of an arch consisting of single stones still remained and spend the river immediately in front of the waterfall in former times this arch had served for the support of a wooden drawbridge of more convenient breath and of such length and weight as must have been rather unmanageable had it not been lowered on some solid resting place it is true the device was attended with this inconvenience that even when the drawbridge was up there remained a possibility of approaching the castle gate by means of this narrow rib of stone but as it was not above 18 inches broad and could only admit the daring foe who should traverse it to a doorway regularly defended by gate and port colors and having flanked turrets and projections from which stones darts melted lead and scalding water might be poured down on the soldier who should venture to approach geierstein by this precarious access the possibility of such an attempt was not considered as diminishing the security of the garrison in the time we treat of the castle being entirely ruined and dismantled and the door drawbridge and port colors gone the dilapidated gateway and the slender arch which connected the two sides of the stream were used as a means of communication between the banks of the river by the inhabitants of the neighborhood whom habit had familiarized with the dangerous nature of the passage arthur phillips and had in the meantime like a good bow when new strung regained the elasticity of feeling and character which was natural to him it was not indeed with perfect composure that he followed his guide as she tripped lightly over the narrow arch composed of rugged stones and rendered wet and slippery with the perpetual drizzle of the mist issuing from the neighboring cascade nor was it without apprehension that he found himself performing this perilous feat in the neighborhood of the waterfall itself whose deafening roar he could not exclude from his ears though he took care not to turn his head towards its terrors lest his brain should again be deceived by the tumult of the waters as they shot forward from the precipice above and plunged themselves into what seemed the fathomless gulf below but notwithstanding these feelings of agitation the natural shame to show cowardice where a beautiful young female exhibited so much indifference and the desire to regain his character in the eyes of his guide prevented arthur from again giving way to the appalling feelings by which he had been overwhelmed a short time before stepping firmly on yet cautiously supporting himself with his piped staff he traced the light footsteps of his guide along the bridge of dread and followed her through the ruined sallyport to which they ascended by stairs which were equally dilapidated the gateway admitted them into a mass of ruins formerly a sort of courtyard to the donjon which rose in gloomy dignity above the wreck of what had been works destined for external defense or buildings for internal accommodation they quickly passed through these ruins over which vegetation had thrown a wild mantle of ivy and other creeping shrubs and issued from them through the main gate of the castle into one of those spots in which nature often embosoms her sweetest charms in the midst of districts chiefly characterized by waste and desolation the castle in this aspect also rose considerably above the neighboring ground but the elevation of the site which towards the torrent was an abrupt rock was on this side a steep eminence which had been scarped like a modern glaces to render the building more secure it was now covered with young trees and bushes out of which the tower itself seemed to rise in ruined dignity beyond this hanging thicket the view was of a very different character a piece of ground amounting to more than a hundred acres seemed scooped out of the rocks and mountains which retaining the same savage character with the tract in which the travelers had been that morning bewildered enclosed and as it were defended a limited space of a mild and fertile character the surface of this little domain was considerably varied but its general aspect was a gentle slope to the southwest the principal object which it presented was a large house composed of huge logs without any pretense to form or symmetry but indicating by the smoke which arose from it as well as the extent of the neighboring offices and the improved and cultivated character of the fields around that it was the abode not of splendor certainly but of ease and competence an orchard of thriving fruit trees extended to the southward of the dwelling groves of walnut and chestnut grew in stately array and even a vineyard of three or four acres showed that the cultivation of the grape was understood and practiced it is now universal in switzerland but was in those early days almost exclusively confined to a few more fortunate proprietors who had the rare advantage of uniting intelligence with opulent or at least easy circumstances there were fair ranges of pasture fields into which the fine race of cattle which constitute the pride and wealth of the swiss mountaineers had been brought down from the more alpine grazings where they had fed during the summer to be near shelter and protection when the autumnal storms might be expected on some selected spots the lambs of the last season fed in plenty and security and in others huge trees the natural growth of the soil were suffered to remain from motives of convenience probably that they might be at hand when timber was required for domestic use but giving at the same time a woodland character to a scene otherwise agricultural through this mountain paradise the course of a small brook might be traced now showing itself to the sun which had by this time dispelled the fogs now intimating its course by its gently sloping banks clothed in some places with lofty trees or concealing itself under thickets of hawthorne and nut bushes this stream by a devious and gentle course which seemed to indicate a reluctance to leave this quiet region found its way at length out of the sequestered domain and like a youth hurrying from the gay and tranquil sports of boyhood into the wild career of active life finally united itself with the boystress torrent which breaking down tumultuously from the mountains shook the ancient tower of geierstein as it rolled down the adjacent rock and then rushed howling through the defile in which our youthful traveler had well nigh lost his life eager as the younger phillips and was to rejoin his father he could not help pausing for a moment to wonder how so much beauty should be found amid such scenes of horror and to look back on the tower of geierstein and on the huge cliff from which it derived its name as if to ascertain by the sight of these distinguished landmarks that he was actually in the neighborhood of the savage wild where he had encountered so much danger and terror yet so narrow were the limits of this cultivated farm that it hardly required such a retrospect to satisfy the spectator that the spot susceptible of human industry and on which it seemed that a considerable degree of labor had been bestowed bore a very small proportion to the wilderness in which it was situated it was on all sides surrounded by lofty hills in some places rising into walls of rock and others clothed with dark and savage forests of the pine and the large of primeval antiquity above these from the eminence on which the tower was situated could be seen the almost rosy hue in which an immense glacier threw back the sun and still higher over the frozen surface of that icy sea arose in silent dignity the pale peaks of those countless mountains on which the snow eternally rests what we have taken some time to describe occupied young philipson only for one or two hurried minutes for on a sloping lawn which was in front of the farmhouse as the mansion might properly be styled he saw five or six persons the foremost of whom from his gate his dress and the form of his cap he could easily distinguish as the parent whom he hardly expected at one time to have again be held he followed therefore his conductress with a glad step as she led the way down the steep ascent on which the ruined tower was situated they approached the group whom arthur had noticed the foremost of which was his father who hastily came forward to meet him in company with another person of advanced age and stature well-nigh gigantic and who from his simple yet majestic bearing seemed the worthy countryman of william tell stoffaker and winkle read and other swiss worthies whose stout hearts and hearty arms had in the preceding age vindicated against countless hosts their personal liberty and the independence of their country with a natural courtesy as if to spare the father and son many witnesses to a meeting which must be attended with emotion the landman himself in walking forward with the elder philipson signed to those by whom he was attended all of whom seemed young men to remain behind they remained accordingly examining as it seemed the guide antonio upon the adventures of the strangers and the conductor of arthur philipson had but time to say to him yonder old man is my uncle arnold bederman and these young men are my kinsmen when the former with the elder traveler were close before them the landman with the same propriety of feeling which he had before displayed signed to his knees to move a little aside yet while requiring from her an account of her morning's expedition he watched the interview of the father and son with as much curiosity as his natural sense of complacence permitted him to testify it was of a character different from what he had expected we have already described the elder philipson as a father devotedly attached to his son ready to rush on death when he had expected to lose him and equally overjoyed at heart doubtless to see him again restored to his affections it might have been therefore expected that the father and son would have rushed into each other's arms and such probably was the scene which arnold bederman expected to have witnessed but the english traveler in common with many of his countrymen covered keen and quick feelings with much appearance of coldness and reserve and thought it a weakness to give unlimited sway even to the influence of the most amiable and most natural emotions eminently handsome in youth his countenance still fine in his more advanced years had an expression which intimated and unwillingness either to yield to passion or encourage confidence his pace when he first beheld his son had been quickened by the natural wish to meet him but he slackened it as they drew near to each other and when they met said in a tone rather of censure and admonition than affection arthur may the saints forgive the pain thou hast this day given me amen said the youth i must need pardon since i have given you pain believe however that i acted for the best it is well arthur that in acting for the best according to your forward will you have not encountered the worst that i have not answered the son with the same devoted and patient submission is owing to this maiden pointing to an who stood at a few paces distance desirous perhaps of avoiding to witness the reproof of the father which might seem to her rather ill timed and unreasonable to the maiden my thanks shall be rendered said his father when i can study how to pay them in an adequate manner but is it well or comely thank you that you should receive from a maiden the succor which it is your duty as a man to extend to the weaker sex arthur held down his head and blushed deeply while arnold bederman sympathizing with his feelings stepped forward and mingled in the conversation never be abashed my young guest that you have been indebted for ought of counsel or assistance to a maiden of underwelden know that the freedom of their country owes no less to the firmness and wisdom of her daughters than to that of her sons and you my elder guest who have i judge seen many years and various lands must have often known examples how the strong are saved by the help of the weak the proud by the aid of the humble i have at least learned said the englishman to debate no point unnecessarily with the host who has kindly harbored me and after one glance at his son which seemed to kindle with the fondest affection he resumed as the party turned back towards the house a conversation which he had been maintaining with his new acquaintance before arthur and the maiden had joined them arthur had in the meantime an opportunity of observing the figure and features of their swiss landlord which i have already hinted exhibited a primeval simplicity mixed with a certain rude dignity arising out of its masculine and unaffected character the dress did not greatly differ in form from the habit of the female which we have described it consisted of an upper frock shaped like the modern shirt and only open at the bosom worn above a tunic or under doublet but the man's vest was considerably shorter in the skirts which did not come lower down than the kilt of the scottish highlander a species of boots or buskins rose above the knee and the person was thus entirely clothed a bonnet made of the fur of the martin and garnished with a silver medal was the only part of the dress which displayed anything like ornament the broad belt which gathered the garment together was of buff leather secured by a large brass buckle but the figure of him who wore this homely attire which seemed almost wholly composed of the fleeces of the mountain sheep and the spoils of animals of the chase would have commanded respect wherever the wearer had presented himself especially in those warlike days when men were judged of according to the promising or unpromising qualities of their fuse and sinews to those who looked at arnold beaterman from this point of view he displayed the size and form the broad shoulders and prominent muscles of a hercules but to such as looked rather at his countenance the steady sagacious features open front large blue eyes and deliberate resolution which it expressed more resembled the character of the fabled king of gods and men he was attended by several sons and relatives young men among whom he walked receiving as his undeniable due respect and obedience similar to that which a herd of deer are observed to render to the monarch stag while arthur beaterman walked and spoke with the elder stranger the young men seemed closely to scrutinize arthur and occasionally interrogated in whispers their relation and receiving from her brief and impatient answers which rather excited than appeased the vein of merriment in which the mountaineers indulged very much as it seemed to the young englishmen at the expense of their guest to feel himself exposed to derision was not softened by the reflection that in such a society it would probably be attached to all who could not tread on the edge of a precipice with a step as firm and undismayed as if they walked the street of a city however unreasonable ridicule may be it is always unpleasing to be subjected to it but more particularly it is distressing to a young man where beauty is a listener it was some consolation to arthur that he thought the maiden certainly did not enjoy the jest and seemed by word and look to reprove the rudeness of her companions but this he feared was only from a sense of humanity she too must despise me he thought though civility unknown to these ill-taught boars has enabled her to conceal contempt under the guise of pity she can but judge of me from that which she has seen if she could know me better such was his proud thought she might perhaps rank me more highly as the travelers entered the habitation of arnold bederman they found preparations made in a large apartment which served the purpose of general accommodation for a homely but plentiful meal a glance around the walls showed the implements of agriculture and the chase but the eyes of the elder phillipson rested upon a leather and corselet a long heavy halberd and a two-handed sword which were displayed as a sort of trophy near these but covered with dust unfurbished and neglected hung a helmet with a visor such as was used by knights and men at arms the golden garland or coronal twisted around it those sorely tarnished indicated noble birth and rank and the crest which was a vulture of the species which gave name to the old castle and its adjacent cliff suggested various conjectures to the english guest who acquainted in a great measure with the history of the swiss revolution made little doubt that in this relic he saw some trophy of the ancient warfare between the inhabitants of these mountains and the feudal lord to whom they had of your appertained as summons to the hospitable board disturbed the train of the english merchant's reflections and a large company comprising the whole inhabitants of every description that lived under bederman's roof sat down to a plentiful repast of goats flush fish preparations of milk of various kinds cheese and for the upper mess the venison of a young shammy the land man himself did the honors of the table with great kindness and simplicity and urged the strangers to show by their appetite that they thought themselves as welcome as he desired to make them during the repast he carried on a conversation with his elder guest while the younger people at table as well as the menials ate in modesty and silence ere the dinner was finished a figure crossed on the outside of the large window which lighted the eating hall the sight of which seemed to occasion a lively sensation amongst such as observed it who passed said old bederman to those seated opposite to the window it is our cousin rudolf of donner hoogle answered one of arnold's sons eagerly the annunciation seemed to give great pleasure to the younger part of the company especially the sons of the land man while the head of the family only said with a grave calm voice your kinsman is welcome tell him so and let him come hither two or three arose for this purpose as if there had been a contention among them who should do the honors of the house to the new guest he entered presently a young man unusually tall well proportioned and active with a quantity of dark brown locks curling around his face together with mustaches of the same or rather a still darker hue his cap was small considering the quantity of his thickly clustering hair and rather might be said to hang upon one side of his head then to cover it his clothes were of the same form and general fashion as those of arnold but made of much finer cloth the manufacturer of the german loom and ornamented in a rich and fanciful manner one sleeve of his vest was dark green curiously laced and embroidered with devices in silver while the rest of the garment was scarlet his sash was twisted and netted with gold and besides answering the purpose of a belt by securing the upper garment round his waist sustained a silver hilted ponyard his finery was completed by boots the tips of which were so long as to turn upwards with a peak after a prevailing fashion in the middle ages a golden chain hung round his neck and sustained a large medallion of the same metal this young gallant was instantly surrounded by the race of bedermann among whom he appeared to be considered as the model upon which the swiss youth ought to build themselves and whose gate opinions dress and manners all ought to follow who would keep pace with the fashion of the day in which he reigned and acknowledged and unrivaled example by two persons in the company however it seemed to arthur phillipson that this young man was received with less distinguished marks of regard than those with which he was hailed by the general voice of the youths present arnold bederman himself was at least no way warm in welcoming the young bernese for such was rudolf's country the young man drew from his bosom a sealed packet which he delivered to the land of men with demonstrations of great respect and seemed to expect that arnold when he had broken the seal and perused the contents would say something to him on the subject but the patriarch only made him be seated and per take of their meal and rudolf found a place accordingly next to an of geierstein which was yielded to him by one of the sons of arnold with ready courtesy it seemed also to the observant young englishman that the newcomer was received with marked coldness by the maiden to whom he appeared eager and solicitous to pay his compliments by whose side he had contrived to seat himself at the well furnished board and to whom he seemed more anxious to recommend himself than to per take of the food which it offered he observed the gallant whisper her and look towards him and gave a very brief reply but one of the young bedermans who sat on his other hand was probably more communicative as the youths both laughed and the maiden again seemed disconcerted and blushed with displeasure had i either of these sons of the mountain thought young phillipson upon six yards of level greensword if there be so much flat ground in this country me thinks i were more likely to spoil their mirth than to furnish food for it it is as marvelous to see such conceited bores under the same roof with so courteous and amiable a damsel as it would be to see one of their shaggy bears dance a rigadoon with a maiden like the daughter of our host well i need not concern myself more than i can help about her beauty or their breeding since morning will separate me from them forever as these reflections passed through the young guest's mind the father of the family called for a cup of wine and having required the two strangers to pledge him in a maple cup of considerable size he sent a similar goblet to rudolf donner hugel yet you he said kinsmen are used to more highly flavored wine than the half ripened grapes of geierstein can supply would you think it sir merchant he continued addressing phillipson there are burgers of burn who send for wine for their own drinking both to france and germany my kinsman disapproves of that replied rudolf yet every place is not blessed with vineyards like geierstein which produces all that heart and eye can desire this was said with a glance at his fair companion who did not appear to take the compliment while the envoy of burn proceeded but our wealthier burgers having some superfluous crowns think yet no extravagance to barter them for a goblet of better wine than our own mountains can produce but we will be more frugal when we have at our disposal tunes of the wine of burgundy for the mere trouble of transporting them how mean you by that cousin rudolf said arnold bederman me thinks respected kinsman answered the bernese your letters must have told you that our diet is likely to declare war against burgundy ah and you know then the contents of my letters said arnold another mark how times are changed at burn and with the diet of switzerland when did all her gray haired statesmen die that our allies should have brought beardless boys into their councils the senate of burn and the diet of the confederacy said the young man partly abashed partly in vindication of what he had before spoken allow the young men to know their purposes since it is they by whom they must be executed the head which thinks may well confide in the hand that strikes not till the moment of dealing the blow young man said arnold bederman sternly what kind of counselor is he who talks loosely the secrets of state affairs before women and strangers go rudolf and all of ye and try by manly exercises which is best fitted to serve your country rather than give your judgment upon her measures hold young man he continued addressing arthur who had risen this does not apply to you who are unused to mountain travel and require rest after it under your favor sir not so said the elder stranger we hold in england that the best refreshment after we have been exhausted by one species of exercise is to take ourselves to another as writing for example affords more relief to one fatigued by walking than a bed of down would so if your young men will permit my son will join their exercises he will find them rough playmates answered the switzer but be it at your pleasure the young men went out accordingly to the open lawn in front of the house and of geierstein and some females of the household sat down on a bank to judge which performed best and shouts loud laughing and all that announces the riot of juvenile spirits occupied by manly sports was soon after heard by the two seniors as they sat together in the hall the master of the house resumed the wine flask and having filled the cup of his guest poured the remainder into his own at an age worthy stranger he said when the blood grows colder and the feelings heavier a moderate cup of wine brings back light thoughts and makes the limbs supple yet i almost wish that noa had never planted the grape when of late years i have seen with my own eyes my countrymen swell wine like very germans till they were like gorged swine incapable of sense thought or motion it is a vice said the englishman which i have observed gains ground in your country where within a century i have heard it was totally unknown it was so said the swiss for wine was seldom made at home and never imported from abroad for indeed none possessed the means of purchasing that or odd else which our valleys produced not but our wars and our victories have gained us wealth as well as fame and in the poor thoughts of one switzer at least we had been better without both had we not also gained liberty by the same exertion it is something however that commerce may occasionally send into our remote mountains a sensible visitor like yourself worthy guest whose discourse shows him to be a man of suggestivity and discernment for though i love not the increasing taste for trinkets and googles which you merchants introduce yet i acknowledge that we simple mountaineers learn from men like you more of the world around us than we could acquire by our own exertions you are bound you say to bail and thanks to the duke of burgundy's leaguer i am so my worthy host said the merchant that is providing i can perform my journey with safety your safety good friend may be assured if you list to tarry for two or three days for in that space i shall myself take the journey and with such an escort as will prevent any risk of danger you will find in me a sure and faithful guide and i shall learn from you much of other countries which it concerns me to know better than i do is it a bargain the proposal is too much to my advantage to be refused said the englishman but may i ask the purpose of your journey i should yonder boy but now answered beaterman for speaking on public affairs without reflection and before the whole family but our tidings and my errand need not be concealed from a considerate person like you who must indeed soon learn it from public rumor you know doubtless the mutual hatred which subsists between louis the eleventh of france and charles of burgundy whom men call the bold and having seen these countries as i understand from your former discourse you are probably well aware of the various contending interests which besides the personal hatred of the sovereigns make them irreconcilable enemies now louis whom the world cannot match for craft and subtlety is using all his influence by distributions of large sums amongst some of the counselors of our neighbors of burn by pouring treasures into the exchequer of that state itself by holding out the bait of emolument to the old men and encouraging the violence of the young to urge the bernie's into a war with the duke charles on the other hand is acting as he frequently does exactly as louis could have wished our neighbors and allies of burn do not like us of the forest cantons can find themselves to pasture or agriculture but carry on considerable commerce which the duke of burgundy has in various instances interrupted by the exactions and violence of his officers in the frontier towns as is doubtless well known to you unquestionably answered the merchant they are universally regarded as vexatious you will not then be surprised that solicited by the one sovereign and aggrieved by the other proud of past victories and ambitious of additional power burn and the city cantons of our confederacy whose representatives from their superior wealth and better education have more to say in our diet than we of the forest should be bent upon war from which it has hitherto happened that the republic has always derived victory wealth and increase of territory i were the host and of glory said philipson interrupting him with some enthusiasm i wonder not that the brave youths of your states are willing to thrust themselves upon new wars since their past victories have been so brilliant and so far famed you are no wise merchant kind guest answered the host if you regard success in former desperate undertakings as an encouragement to future rashness let us make a better use of past victories when we fought for our liberties god blessed our arms but will he do so if we fight either for aggrandizement or for the gold of france your doubt is just said the merchant more sedately but suppose you draw the sword to put an end to the vexatious exactions of burgundy hear me good friend answered the switzer it may be that we of the forest cantons think too little of those matters of trade which so much engross the attention of the burgers of burn yet we will not desert our neighbors and allies in a just quarrel and it is well nice settled that a deputation shall be sent to the duke of burgundy to request redress in this embassy the general diet now assembled at burn have requested that i should take some share and hence the journey in which i propose that you should accompany me it will be much to my satisfaction to travel in your company where the host said the englishman but as i am a true man me thinks your port and figure resemble an envoy of defiance rather than a messenger of peace and i too might say replied the switzer that your language and sentiments my honored guest rather belong to the sword than the measuring wand i was bred to the sword worthy sir before i took the cloth yard in my hand replied phillips and smiling and it may be i am still more partial to my old trade than wisdom would altogether recommend i thought so said arnold but then you fought most likely under your country's banners against a foreign and national enemy and in that case i will admit that war has something in it which elevates the heart above the due sense it should entertain of the calamity inflicted and endured by god's creatures on each side but the warfare in which i was engaged had no such gilding it was the miserable war of zurek where switzers leveled their pikes against the bosoms of their own countrymen and quarter was asked and refused in the same kindly mountain language from such remembrances your warlike recollections are probably free the merchant hung down his head and pressed his forehead with his hand as one to whom the most painful thoughts were suddenly recalled alas he said i deserved to fill the pain which your words inflict what nation can know the woes of england that has not felt them what i can estimate them which has not seen a land torn and bleeding with a strife of two desperate factions battles fought in every province planes heaped with slain and scaffolds drenched in blood even in your quiet valleys me thinks you may have heard of the civil wars of england i do indeed bithink me said the switzer that england had lost her possessions in france during many years of bloody internal wars concerning the color of a rose was it not but these are ended for the present answered phillips and it would seem so as he spoke there was a knock at the door the master of the house said come in the door opened and with the reverence which was expected from young persons towards their elders in these pastoral regions the fine form of an of geierstein presented itself end of chapter three chapter four of an of geierstein by sir walter scott this libra vox recording is in the public domain recording by dion gines sutleck city utah and now the well-known bow the master bore turned on all sides and viewed it or and or whilst some deriding how he turns the bow some other like it sure the man must know or else would copy or in bows he deals perhaps he makes them or perhaps he steals popes homers odyssey the fair maiden approached with the half bashful half important look which sits so well on a young housekeeper when she is at once proud and ashamed of the matron lee duties she is called upon to discharge and whispered something in her uncle's ear and could not the idle painted boys have brought their own errant what is it they want that they cannot ask themselves but must send thee to beg it for them had it been anything reasonable i should have heard it dend into my ears by 40 voices so modest are our swiss youths become nowadays she stooped forward and again whispered in his ear as he fondly stroked her curling trusses with his ample hand and replied the bow of buttersholz my dear why the youths surely are not grown stronger since last year when none of them could bend it but yonder it hangs with its three arrows who is the wise champion that is challenger at a game where he is sure to be foiled it is this gentleman's son sir said the maiden who not being able to contend with my cousins in running leaping hurling the bar or pitching the stone has challenged them to ride or to shoot with the english long bow to ride said the venerable swiss were difficult where there are no horses and no level ground to career upon if there were but an english bow he shall have since we happen to possess one take it to the young men my niece with the three arrows and say to them from me that he who bends it will do more than william tell or the renowned staff acre could have done as the maiden went to take the weapon from the place where it hung amid the group of arms which phillipson had formerly remarked the english merchant observed that were the minstrels of his land to assign her occupation so fair a maiden should be bow-bearer to none but the little blind god cupid i will have nothing of the blind god cupid said arnold hastily yet half laughing at the same time we have been duffin with the foolery of minstrels and strolling minna singers ever since the wandering knaves have found there were pence to be gathered among us a swiss maiden should only sing albert is shooty's ballads or the merry lay of the going out and return of the cows to and from the mountain pastures while he spoke the damsel had selected from the arms a bow of extraordinary strength considerably above six feet in length with three shafts of a cloth yard long phillipson asked to look at the weapons and examine them closely it is a tough piece of you he said i should know it since i have dealt in such commodities in my time but when i was of arthur's age i could have bent it as easily as a boy bends a willow we are too old to boast like boys said arnold beaterman with something of a reproving glance at his companion carry the bow to thy kinsman and and let him who can bend it say he beat arnold beaterman as he spoke he turned his eyes on the spare yet muscular figure of the englishman then again glanced down on his own stately person you must remember good my host said phillipson that weapons are wielded not by strength but by art and slight of hand what most i wonder at is to see in this place a bow made by matthew of donkester a boyer who lived at least a hundred years ago remarkable for the great toughness and strength of the weapons which he made and which are now become somewhat unmanageable even by an english yeoman how are you assured of the maker's name were the guest replied the swiss by old matthew's mark answered the englishman and his initials cut upon the bow i wonder not a little to find such a weapon here and in such good preservation it has been regularly waxed oiled and kept in good order said the landman being preserved as a trophy of a memorable day it would but grieve you to recount its early history since it was taken in a day fatal to your country my country said the englishman composedly has gained so many victories that her children may well afford to hear of a single defeat but i knew not that the english ever ward in switzerland not precisely as a nation answered beaterman but it was in my grand sire's days that a large body of roving soldiers composed of men from almost all countries but especially englishman normans and gaskins poured down on the argo and the district's adjacent they were headed by a great warrior called englrom day kusi who pretended some claims upon the duke of austria to satisfy which he ravaged indifferently the austrian territory and that of our confederacy his soldiers were hired warriors free companions they called themselves that seemed to belong to no country and were as brave in the fight as they were cruel in their depredations some paws in the constant wars betwixt france and england had deprived many of those bands of their ordinary employment and battle being their element they came to seek it among our valleys the air seemed on fire with the blaze of their armor and the very sun was darkened at the flight of their arrows they did us much evil and we sustained the loss of more than one battle but we met them at buddha's holts and mingled the blood of many a rider noble as they were called and esteemed with that of their horses the huge mound that covers the bones of man and steed is still called the english barrow phillipson was silent for a minute or two and then replied then let them sleep in peace if they did wrong they paid for it with their lives and that is all the ransom that mortal men can render for his transgressions heaven pardon their souls a men replied the lenderman and those of all brave men my grand sire was at the battle and was held to have demeaned himself like a good soldier and this bow has been ever since carefully preserved in our family there is a prophecy about it but i hold it not worthy of remark phillipson was about to inquire further but was interrupted by a loud cry of surprise and astonishment from without i must go out said beaterman and see what these wild lads are doing it is not now as formally in this land when the young dared not judge for themselves till the old man's voice had been heard he went forth from the lodge followed by his guest the company who had witnessed the games were all talking shouting and disputing in this same breath while arthur phillipson stood a little apart from the rest leaning on the unbent bow with apparent indifference at the site of the lenderman all were silent what means this unwanted clamor he said raising a voice to which all were accustomed to listen with reverence rudiger addressing the eldest of his sons has the young stranger bent the bow he has father said rudiger and he has hit the mark three such shots were never shot by william tell it was chance pure chance said the young swiss from burn no human skill could have done it much less a puny lad baffled in all besides that he attempted among us but what has been done said the lenderman nay speak not all at once and of geierstein thou hast more sense and breeding than these boys tell me how the game has gone the maiden seemed a little confused at this appeal but answered with a composed and downcast look the mark was as usual a pigeon to a pole all the young men except the stranger had practiced at it with the crossbow and longbow without hitting it when i brought out the bow of buddhist holes i offered it first to my kinsmen none would accept of it saying respected uncle that a task too great for you must be far too difficult for them they said well answered arnold beaterman and the stranger did he string the bow he did my uncle but first he wrote something on a piece of paper and placed it in my hands and did he shoot and hit the mark continue the surprised switzer he first said the maiden removed the pole a hundred yards further than the post where it stood singular said the lenderman that is double the usual distance he then drew the bow continued the maiden and shot off one after another with incredible rapidity the three arrows which he had stuck into his belt the first cleft the pole the second cut the string the third killed the poor bird as it rose into the air by saint mary of ensedlan said the old man looking up in a maze if your eyes really saw this they saw such archery as was never before witnessed in the forest states i say nade to that my reverend kinsman replied rudolf donner hugel whose vaccination was apparent it was mere chance if not illusion or witchery what sayeth thou of it thyself arthur said his father half smiling was thy success by chance or skill my father said the young man i need not tell you that i have done but an ordinary feat for an english bowman nor do i speak to gratify that misproud and ignorant young man but to our worthy host and his family i make answer this youth charges me with having diluted men's eyes or hit the mark by chance for illusion yonder is the pierced pole the severed string and the slain bird they will endure a sight and handling and besides if that fair maiden will open the note which i put into her hand she will find evidence to assure you that even before i drew the bow i had fixed upon the three marks which i designed to aim at produce the scroll good niece said her uncle and end the controversy nay under your favor my worthy host said arthur it is but some foolish rhymes addressed to the maiden's own eye and under your favor sir said the landman whatsoever is fit for my niece's eyes may greet my ears he took the scroll from the maiden who blushed deeply when she resigned it the character in which it was written was so fine that the landman in surprise exclaimed no clerk of st gall could have written more fairly strange he again repeated that a hand which could draw so true a bow should have the cunning to form characters so fair he then exclaimed a new ha verses by our lady what have we minstrels disguised as traitors he then opened the scroll and read the following lines if i hit mast and line and bird and english archer keeps his word ah maiden dits thou aim at me a single glance were worth the three here is rare rhyming my worthy guest said the landman shaking his head fine words to make foolish maidens feign but do not excuse it it is your country fashion and we know how to treat it as such and without further allusion to the concluding couplet the reading of which through the poet as well as the object of the verses into some discomposure he added gravely you must now allow rudolf donner hugel that the stranger has fairly attained the three marks which he proposed to himself that he has attained them is plain answered the party to whom the appeal was made but that he has done this fairly may be doubted if there are such things as witchery and magic in this world shame shame rudolf said the landman can spleen and envy have weight with so brave a man as you from whom my sons ought to learn temperance forbearance and candor as well as manly courage and dexterity the bernie's colored high under this rebut to which he ventured not to attempt a reply to your sports till sunset my children continued arnold while i and my worthy friend occupy our time with a walk for which the evening is now favorable me thinks said the english merchant i should like to visit the ruins of yonder castle situated by the waterfall there is something of melancholy dignity in such a scene which reconciles us to the misfortunes of our own time by showing that our ancestors who were perhaps more intelligent or more powerful have nevertheless in their days encountered cares and distresses similar to those which we now grown under have with you my worthy sir replied his host there will be time also upon the road to talk of things that you should know the slow step of the two elderly men carried them by degrees from the limits of the lawn where shout and laugh and halloo were again revived young philipson whose success as an archer had obliterated all recollection of former failure made other attempts to mingle in the manly pastimes of the country and gained a considerable portion of applause the young men who had but lately been so ready to join in ridiculing him now began to consider him as a person to be looked up and appealed to while rudolf donner hugel saw with resentment that he was no longer without a rival in the opinion of his male cousins perhaps of his kin's woman also the proud young swiss reflected with bitterness that he had fallen under the land of man's displeasure declined in reputation with his companions of whom he had been hitherto the leader and even hazarded a more mortifying disappointment all as his swelling heart expressed it through the means of a stranger stripling of neither blood nor fame who could not step from one rock to another without the encouragement of a girl in this irritated mood he drew near the young Englishman and while he seemed to address him on the chances of the sports which were still proceeding he conveyed in a whisper matter of a far different tendency striking arthur's shoulder with the frank bluntness of a mountaineer he said aloud yonder bolt of earnest whistled through the air like a falcon when she stooped down the wind and then proceeded in a deep low voice you merchant sell gloves do you ever deal in single gauntlets or only in pairs i sell no single glove said arthur instantly apprehending him and sufficiently disposed to resent the scornful looks of the bernie's champion during the time of their meal and his having but lately imputed his successful shooting to chance or sorcery i sell no single glove sir but never refused to exchange one you are apt i see said rudolf look at the players while i speak or our purpose will be suspected you are quicker i say of apprehension than i expected if we exchange our gloves how shall we each redeem his own with our good swords said arthur philipson in armor or as we stand even as we stand said arthur i have no better garment of proof than this doublet no other weapon than my sword and these sir switzer i hold enough for the purpose name time and place the old castle court at geierstein replied rudolf the time sunrise but we are watched i have lost my wager stranger he added speaking aloud and in an indifferent tone of voice since ulrich has made a cast beyond earnest there is my glove in token i shall not forget the flask of wine and there is mine said arthur in token i will drink it with you merrily thus amid the peaceful though rough sports of their companions did these two hotheaded youths contrive to indulge their hostile inclinations towards each other by settling a meeting of deadly purpose end of chapter four chapter five of an of geierstein by sir welter scott this libra vox recording is in the public domain recording by dion giant's celic city utah i was one who loved the greenwood bank and lowing herd the russet prize the lowly peasants life seasoned with sweet content more than the hulls where revelers feast to fever height believe me there never was poison mixed in maple bowl anonymous leaving the young persons engaged with their sports the landman of underwalden and the elder phillipson walked on in company conversing chiefly on the political relations of france england and burgundy until the conversation was changed as they entered the gate of the old castle yard of geierstein where arose the lonely and dismantled keep surrounded by the ruins of other buildings this has been a proud and a strong habitation in its time said phillipson they were a proud and powerful race who held it replied the landman the counts of geierstein have a history which runs back to the times of the old helvedians and their deeds are reported to have matched their antiquity but all earthly grandeur has an end and free men tread the ruins of their feudal castle at the most distant site of whose turrets serfs were formally obliged to veil their bonnets if they would escape the chastisement of contumatious rebels i observe said the merchant engraved on a stone under yonder turret the crest i conceive of the last family a vulture perched on iraq descriptive doubtless of the word geierstein it is the ancient cognizance of the family replied arnold bederman and as you say expresses the name of the castle being the same with that of the knights who's so long held it i also remarked in your hall continued the merchant a helmet bearing the same crest or cognizance it is i suppose a trophy of the triumph of the swiss peasants over the nobles of geierstein as the english bow is preserved in remembrance of the battle of buttersholz and you fair sir replied the landman would i perceive from the prejudices of your education regard the one victory with as unpleasant feelings as the other strange that the veneration for rank should be rooted even in the minds of those who have no claim to share it but clear up your downcast brows my worthy guest and be assured that though many a proud baron's castle when switzerland threw off the bonds of feudal slavery was plundered and destroyed by the just vengeance of an incensed people such was not the lot of geierstein the blood of the old possessors of these towers still flows in the veins of him by whom these lands are occupied what am i to understand by that sir landman said phillipson are not you yourself the occupant of this place and you think probably answered arnold because i live like the other shepherds where homespun gray and hold the plow with my own hands i cannot be descended from a line of ancient nobility this land holds many such gentle peasants sir merchant nor is there a more ancient nobility than that of which the remains are to be found in my native country but they have voluntarily resigned the oppressive part of their feudal power and are no longer regarded as wolves amongst the flock but as seditious mastiffs who attend the sheep in time of peace and are prompt in their defense when war threatens our community but repeated the merchant who could not yet reconcile himself to the idea that his plain and peasant seeming host was a man of distinguished birth you bear not the name worthy sir of your fathers they were you say the counts of geierstein and you are arnold bederman at your command answered the magistrate but no if the knowledge can make you sup with more sense of dignity or comfort i need but put on yonder old helmet or if that were too much trouble i have only to stick a falcons feather into my cap and call myself arnold count of geierstein no man could gain say me though whether it would become my lord count to drive his bullocks to the pasture and whether his excellency the high and well-born could without derogation so a field or reap it are questions which should be settled beforehand i see you are confounded my respected guest at my degeneracy but the state of my family is very soon explained my lordly fathers ruled this same domain of geierstein which in their time was very extensive much after the mode of feudal barons that is they were sometimes the protectors and patrons but often are the oppressors of their subjects but when my grandfather hind rick of geierstein flourished he not only joined the confederates to repel englrom decusi and his roving bands as i already told you but when the wars with austria were renewed and many of his degree joined with the host of the emperor leopold my ancestor adopted the opposite side fought in front of the confederates and contributed by his skill and valor to the decisive victory at sempak in which leopold lost his life and the flower of austrian chivalry fell around him my father count willowwald followed the same course both from inclination and policy he united himself closely with the state of underwalden became a citizen of the confederacy and distinguished himself so much that he was chosen landamen of the republic he had two sons myself and a younger brother albert and possessed as he felt himself of a species of double character he was desirous perhaps unwisely if i may censure the purpose of a deceased parent that one of his sons should succeed him in his lordship of geierstein and the other support the less ostentatious though not in my thought less honorable condition of a free citizen of underwalden possessing such influence among his equals in the canton as might be acquired by his father's merits and his own when albert was 12 years old our father took us on a short excursion to germany where the form pomp and magnificence which we witnessed made a very different impression on the mind of my brother and on my own what appeared to albert the consummation of earthly splendor seemed to me a weary display of tiresome and useless ceremonials our father explained his purpose and offered to me as his eldest son the large estate belonging to geierstein reserving such a portion of the most fertile ground as might make my brother one of the wealthiest citizens in a district where competence is esteemed wealth the tears gushed from albert's eyes and must my brother he said be a noble count honored and followed by vassals and attendants and i a homespun peasant among the gray bearded shepherds of underwalden no father i respect your will but i will not sacrifice my own rights geierstein is a thief held of the empire and the laws entitle me to my equal half of the lands if my brother be count of geierstein i am not the less count albert of geierstein and i will appeal to the emperor rather than that the arbitrary will of one ancestor though he be my father shall cancel in me the rank and rights which i have derived from a hundred my father was greatly incensed go he said proud boy give the enemy of thy country a pretext to interfere in her affairs appeal to the will of a foreign prince from the pleasure of thy father go but never again look me in the face and dread my eternal malediction albert was about to reply with the hymns when i entreated him to be silent and hear me speak i had i said all my life loved the mountain better than the plane had been more pleased to walk than to ride more proud to contend with shepherds in their sports than with nobles in the lists and happier in the village dance than among the feasts of the german nobles let me therefore i said be a citizen of the republic of underwalden you will relieve me of a thousand cares and let my brother albert wear the coronet and bear the honors of geierstein after some further discussion my father was at length contented to adopt my proposal in order to attain the object which he had so much at heart albert was declared heir of his castle and his rank by the title of count albert of geierstein and i was placed in possession of these fields and fertile meadows amidst which my house is situated and my neighbors called me arnold bederman and if bederman said the merchant means as i understand the word a man of worth candor and generosity i know none on whom the epitaph could be so justly conferred yet let me observe that i praise the conduct which in your circumstances i could not have bowed my spirit to practice proceed i pray you with the history of your house if the recital be not painful to you i have little more to say replied the landman my father died soon after the settlement of his estate in the manner i have told you my brother had other possessions in swabia and west philia and seldom visited his paternal castle which was chiefly occupied by a seneshal a man so obnoxious to the vassals of the family that but for the protection afforded by my near residence and relationship with his lord he would have been plucked out of the vulture's nest and treated with as little ceremony as if he had been the vulture himself neither to say the truth did my brother's occasional visits to geierstein afford his vassals much relief or acquire any popularity for himself he heard with the ears and saw with the eyes of his cruel and interested steward it all schreckenwald and would not listen even to my interference and admonition indeed though he always demeaned himself with personal kindness towards me i believe he considered me as a dull and poor spirited clown who had disgraced my noble blood by my mean propensities he showed contempt on every occasion for the prejudices of his countrymen and particularly by wearing a peacock's feather in public and causing his followers to display the same badge though the cognizance of the house of austria and so unpopular in this country that men have been put to death for no better reason than for carrying it in their caps in the meantime i was married to bertha now a saint in heaven by whom i had six stately sons five of whom you saw surrounding my table this day albert also married his wife was a lady of rank in west philia but his bridal bed was less fruitful he had only one daughter and of geierstein then came on the wars between the city of zurek and our forest kentons in which so much blood was shed and when our brethren of zurek were so ill advised as to embrace the alliance of austria their emperor strained every nerve to avail himself of the favorable opportunity afforded by the disunion of the swiss and engaged all with whom he had influence to second his efforts with my brother he was but too successful for albert not only took arms in the emperor's cause but admitted into the strong fortress of geierstein a band of austrian soldiers with whom the wicked ital schreckenwald laid waste the whole country accepting my little patrimony it came to a severe pass with you my worthy host said the merchant since you were to decide against the cause of your country or that of your brother i did not hesitate continued arnold bederman my brother was in the emperor's army and i was not therefore reduced to act personally against him but i denounced war against the robbers and thieves with whom schreckenwald had filled my father's house it was waged with various fortune the seneschal during my absence burnt down my house and slew my youngest son who died alas in defense of his father's hearth it is little to add that my lands were wasted and my flocks destroyed on the other hand i succeeded with help of a body of the peasants of underwalden in storming the castle of geierstein it was offered back to me by the confederates but i had no desire to sully the fair cause in which i had assumed arms by enriching myself at the expense of my brother and besides to have dwelt in that guarded hold would have been a penance to one the sole protectors of whose house of late years had been a latch and a shepherd's kerr the castle was therefore dismantled as you see by the order of the elders of the canton and i even think that considering the uses it was too often put to i look with more pleasure on the rugged remains of geierstein than i ever did when it was entire and apparently impregnable i can understand your feelings said the englishman though i repeat my virtue would not perhaps have extended so far beyond the circle of my family affections your brother what said he to your patriotic exertions he was as i learned answered the landman dreadfully incensed having no doubt been informed that i had taken his castle with a view to my own aggrandizement he even swore he would renounce my kindred seek me through the battle and slay me with his own hand we were in fact both at the battle of frayenbach but my brother was prevented from attempting the execution of his vindictive purpose by a wound from an arrow which occasioned his being carried out of the melee i was afterwards in the bloody and melancholy fight at mount herzel and that other onslaught at the chapel of saint jacob which brought our brother of zurek to terms and reduced austria once more to the necessity of making peace with us after this war of thirteen years the diet passed sentence of banishment for life on my brother albert and would have deprived him of his possessions but for bore in consideration of what they thought my good service when the sentence was intimated to the count of geierstein he returned an answer of defiance yet a singular circumstance showed us not long afterwards that he retained an attachment to his country and amiss his resentment against me his brother did justice to my unaltered affection for him i would pledge my credit said the merchant that what follows relates to yonder fair maiden your niece you guess rightly said the landman for some time we heard though indistinctly for we have as you know but little communication with foreign countries that my brother was high in favor at the court of the emperor but laterally that he had fallen under suspicion and in the course of some of those revolutions common at the courts of princes had been driven into exile it was shortly after this news and as i think more than seven years ago that i was returning from hunting on the farther side of the river had passed the narrow bridge as usual and was walking through the courtyard which we have lately left for their walk was now turned homework when a voice said in the german language uncle have compassion upon me as i looked around i beheld a girl of ten years old approached timidly from the shelter of the ruins and kneel down at my feet uncle spare my life she said holding up her little hands in the act of supplication while mortal terror was painted upon her countenance am i your uncle little maiden said i and if i am why should you fear me because you are the head of the wicked and base clowns who delight to spill noble blood replied the girl with a courage which surprised me what is your name my little maiden said i and who having planted in your mind opinion so unfavorable to your kinsman has brought you hither to see if he resembles the picture you have received of him it was it all schreckenwald that brought me hither said the girl only half comprehending the nature of my question it all schreckenwald i repeated shocked at the name of a wretch i have so much reason to hate a voice from the ruins like that of a sullen echo from the grave answered it all schreckenwald and the katef issued from his place of concealment and stood before me with that singular indifference to danger which he unites to his atrocity of character i had my spiked mountain staff in my hand what should i have done or what would you have done under like circumstances i would have laid him on the earth with his skull shivered like an icicle said the englishman fiercely i had well nigh done so replied the swiss but he was unarmed a messenger from my brother and therefore no object of revenge his own undismayed and audacious conduct contributed to save him let the vassal of the noble and high born count of geierstein hear the words of his master and let him look that they are obeyed said the insolent ruffian doth thy cap and listen for though the voice is mine the words are those of the noble count god and man know replied i if i owe my brother respect or homage it is much if in respect for him i defer paying to his messenger the mead i dearly owe him proceed with thy tale and rid me of thy hateful presence albert count of geierstein thy lord and my lord proceeded schreckenwald having on his hand wars and other affairs of weight sends his daughter the countess an to thy charge and graces thee so far as to entrust to the her support and nurture until it shall suit his purposes to require her back from thee and he desires that thou apply to her maintenance the rents and profits of the lands of geierstein which thou hast usurped from him it all schreckenwald i replied i will not stop to ask if this mode of addressing me be according to my brother's directions or thine own insolent pleasure if circumstances have as thou sayest deprived my knees of her natural protector i shall be to her as a father nor shall she want ought which i have to give her the lands of geierstein are forfeited to the state the castle is ruinous as thou seeest and it is much of thy crimes that the house of my father's is desolate but where i dwell and of geierstein shall dwell as my children fare shall she fare and she shall be to me as a daughter and now thou hast thine errand go hence if thou lovest thy life for it is unsafe parleying with the father when thy hands are stained with the blood of the sun the wretch retired as i spoke but took his leave with his usual determined insolence of manner farewell he said count of the plow and harrow farewell noble companion of paltry burgers he disappeared and released me from the strong temptation under which i labored and which urged me to stain with his blood the place which had witnessed his cruelty and his crimes i conveyed my knees to my house and soon convinced her that i was her sincere friend i inert her as if she had been my daughter to all our mountain exercises and while she excels in these the damsels of the district their burst from her such sparkles of sense and courage mingled with delicacy as belong not i must needs own the truth to the simple maidens of these wild hills but relish of a nobler stem and higher breeding yet they are so happily mixed with simplicity and courtesy that an of geierstein is justly considered as the pride of the district nor do i doubt but that if she should make a worthy choice of a husband the state would assign her a large dower out of her father's possessions since it is not our maxim to punish the child for the faults of the parent it will naturally be your anxious desire my worthy host replied the englishman to secure to your niece in whose praises i have deep cause to join with a grateful voice such a suitable match as her birth and expectations but above all her merit demand it is my good guest said the landman that which hath often occupied my thoughts the over near relationship prohibits what would have been my most earnest desire the hope of seeing her wedded to one of my own sons this young man rudolf donner hugel is brave and highly esteemed by his fellow citizens but more ambitious and more desirous of distinction than i would desire for my niece's companion through life his temper is violent though his heart i trust is good but i am like to be unpleasantly released from all care on this score since my brother having as it seemed forgotten and for seven years and upwards has by a letter which i have lately received demanded that she shall be restored to him you can read my worthy sir for your profession requires it see here is the scroll coldly worded but far less unkindly than his unbrotherly message by it all schreckenwald read it i pray you allowed the merchant read accordingly brother i thank you for the care you have taken of my daughter for she has been in safety when she would otherwise have been in peril and kindly used when she would have been in hardship i now entreat you to restore her to me and trust that she will come with the virtues which become a woman in every station and a disposition to lay aside the habits of a swiss villager for the graces of a high-born maiden adieu i thank you once more for your care and would repay it were it in my power but you need nothing i can give having renounced the rank to which you were born and made your nest on the ground where the storm passes over you i rest your brother geierstein it is addressed to count arnold of geierstein called arnold bederman a post script requires you to send the maiden to the court of the duke of burgundy this good sir appears to me the language of a haughty man divided betwixt the recollection of old offense and recent obligation the speech of his messenger was that of a malicious vessel desirous of venting his own spite under pretense of doing his lord's errand i so receive both replied arnold bederman and do you intend continued the merchant to resign this beautiful and interesting creature to the conduct of her father willful as he seems to be without knowing what his condition is or what his power of protecting her the land of men hasten to reply the tie which unites the parent to the child is the earliest and the most hallowed that binds the human race the difficulty of her traveling in safety has hitherto prevented my attempting to carry my brother's instructions into execution but as i am now likely to journey in person towards the court of charles i have determined that an shall accompany me and as i will myself converse with my brother whom i have not seen for many years i shall learn his purpose respecting his daughter and it may be i may prevail on albert to suffer her to remain under my charge and now sir having told you of my family affairs at some greater length than was necessary i must crave your attention as a wise man to what further i have to say you know the disposition which young men and women naturally have to talk just and sport with each other out of which practice arise often more serious attachments which they call loving par amours i trust if we are to travel together you will so school your young man as to make him aware that an of geierstein cannot with propriety on her part be made the object of his thoughts or attentions the merchant colored with resentment or something like it i asked not to join your company sir landerman it was you who requested mine he said if my son and i have since become in any respect the objects of your suspicion we will gladly pursue our ways separately nay be not angry where the guest said the landman we switzers do not rashly harbor suspicions and that we may not harbor them we speak respecting the circumstances out of which they might arise more plainly than is the want of more civilized countries when i proposed to you to be my companion on the journey to speak the truth though it may displease a father's ear i regarded your son as a soft faint hearted youth who was as yet at least to timid and milk-blooded to attract either respect or regard from the maidens but a few hours have presented him to us in the character of such a one as is sure to interest them he has accomplished the empress of the bow long thought unattainable and with which a popular report connects an idle prophecy he has went to make verses and knows doubtless how to recommend himself by other accomplishments which bind young persons to each other though they are lightly esteemed by men whose beards are mixed with gray like yours friend merchant and my known now you must be aware that since my brother broke terms with me simply for preferring the freedom of a swiss citizen to the tawdry and servile condition of a german courtier he will not approve of anyone looking towards his daughter who hath not the advantage of noble blood or who hath what he would call debased himself by attention to merchandise to the cultivation of land in a word to any art that is useful should your son love and of geierstein he prepares for himself danger and disappointment and now you know the whole i ask you do we travel together or apart even as she lists my worthy host said philipson in an indifferent tone for me i can but say that such an attachment as you speak of would be as contrary to my wishes as to those of your brother or what i suppose are your own arthur philipson has duties to perform totally inconsistent with his playing the gentle bachelor to any maiden in switzerland take germany to boot whether of high or low degree he is an obedient son besides hath never seriously disobeyed my commands and i will have an eye upon his motions enough my friend said the landman we travel together then and i willingly keep my original purpose being both pleased and instructed by your discourse then changing the conversation he began to ask whether his acquaintance thought that the league entered into by the king of england and the duke of burgundy would continue stable we hear much continued the swiss of the immense army with which king edward proposes the recovery of the english dominions in france i am well aware said philipson that nothing can be so popular in my country as the invasion of france and the attempt to reconquer normandy main and gascony the ancient eponages of our english crown but i greatly doubt whether the voluptuous usurper who now calls himself king will be graced by heaven with success in such an adventure this fourth edward is brave indeed and has gained every battle in which he drew his sword and they have been many in number but since he reached through a bloody path to the summit of his ambition he has shown himself rather a sensual debauchee than a valiant knight and it is my firm belief that not even the chance of recovering all the fair dominions which were lost during the civil wars excited by his ambitious house will tempt him to exchange the soft beds of london with sheets of silk and pillows of down and the music of a dying loot to lull him to rest for the turf of france and the revelry of an alarm trumpet it is the better for us should it prove so said the landman for if england and burgundy were to dismember france as in our father's days was nearly accomplished duke charles would then have leisure to exhaust his long hoarded vengeance against our confederacy as they conversed thus they attained once more the lawn in front of arnold bederman's mansion where the contention of the young men had given place to the dance performed by the young persons of both sexes the dance was led by an of geierstein and the youthful stranger which although it was the most natural arrangement where the one was a guest and the other represented the mistress of the family occasioned the landman's exchanging a glance with the elder philipson as if it had held some relation to these suspicions he had recently expressed but so soon as her uncle and his elder guest appeared and of geierstein took the earliest opportunity of a pause to break off the dance and to enter into conversation with her kinsman as if on the domestic affairs under her attendance philipson observed that his host listened seriously to his niece's communication and nodding in his frank manner seemed to intimate that her request should receive a favorable consideration the family were presently afterwards summoned to attend the evening meal which consisted chiefly of the excellent fish afforded by the neighboring streams and lakes a large cup containing what was called the schloff trunk or sleeping drink then went round which was first quaffed by the master of the household then modestly tasted by the maiden next pledged by the two strangers and finally emptied by the rest of the company such were then the sober manners of the swiss afterwards much corrupted by their intercourse with more luxurious regions the guests were conducted to the sleeping apartments where philipson and young arthur occupied the same couch and shortly after the whole inhabitants of the household were locked in sound repose end of chapter five