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 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE MAIDEN OF THE MIST. 
 
 BY 
 THE AUTHOR OF " WAVERLEY," &c 
 
 What ! will the aspiring blood of Lancaster 
 Sink in the ground ? 
 
 Shaksfeare. 
 
 IN THREE VOLUMES. 
 VOL. I. 
 
 EDINBURGH : 
 
 PRINTED FOR CADELL AND CO., EDINBURGH ; 
 
 AND SLUPKIN AND MARSHALL, LONDON. 
 
 1829-
 
 EDINBURGH : 
 
 PRINTED BV BALLANTYNE AND COMPANY 
 
 PAUL'S WORK, CANONGATE.
 
 £ 
 
 Serf 4 
 
 r, I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN;* 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE MAIDEN OF THE MIST. 
 
 voi . i.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN ; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE MAIDEN OF THE MIST. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 The mists boil up around the glaciers ; clouds 
 
 Rise curling fast beneath me, white and sulphurous, 
 
 Like foam from the roused ocean. 
 
 I am giddy. 
 
 Manfred. 
 
 The course of four centuries has wellnigh 
 elapsed since the series of events which are re- 
 lated in the following chapters, took place on 
 the Continent. The records which contained 
 the outlines of the history, and might be refer- 
 red to as proof of its veracity, were long pre- 
 served in the superb library of the Monastery 
 of Saint Gall, but perished, with many of the
 
 4 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 literary treasures of that establishment, when 
 the convent was plundered by the French re- 
 volutionary armies. The events are fixed, by 
 historical date, to the middle of the fifteenth cen- 
 tury, — that important period, when chivalry still 
 shone with a setting ray, soon about to be total- 
 ly obscured; in some countries, by the establish- 
 ment of free institutions, in others, by that of 
 arbitrary power, which alike rendered useless 
 the interference of those redressers of wrongs, 
 whose only warrant of authority was the sword. 
 Amid the general light which had recently 
 shone upon Europe, France, Burgundy, and 
 Italy, but more especially Austria, had been 
 made acquainted with the character of a people, 
 of whose very existence they had before been 
 scarcely conscious. It is true, that the inhabi- 
 tants of those countries which lie in the vicinity 
 of the Alps, that immense barrier, were not 
 ignorant, that notwithstanding their rugged and 
 desolate appearance, the secluded valleys which 
 winded among those gigantic mountains nou- 
 rished a race of hunters and shepherds ; men, 
 who, living in a state of primeval simplicity,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 5 
 
 compelled from the soil a subsistence gained by 
 severe labour, followed the chase over the most 
 savage precipices and through the darkest pine 
 forests, or drove their cattle to spots which af- 
 forded them a scanty pasturage, even in the vi- 
 cinage of eternal snows. But the existence of 
 such a people, or rather of a number of small 
 communities who followed nearly the same poor 
 and hardy course of life, had seemed to the rich 
 and powerful princes in the neighbourhood a 
 matter of as little consequence, as it is to the 
 stately herds which repose in a fertile meadow, 
 that a few half-starved goats find their scanty 
 food among the rocks which overlook their rich 
 domain. 
 
 But wonder and attention began to be attract- 
 ed towards these mountaineers, about the mid- 
 dle of the fourteenth century, when reports were 
 spread abroad of severe contests, in which the 
 German chivalry, endeavouring to suppress in- 
 surrections among their Alpine vassals, had sus- 
 tained repeated and bloody defeats, although 
 having on their side numbers and discipline, 
 and the advantage of the most perfect military
 
 h ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 equipment. Great was the wonder that caval- 
 ry, which made the only efficient part of the 
 feudal armies, should be routed by men on foot ; 
 that warriors sheathed in complete steel should 
 be overpowered by men who wore no defensive 
 armour, and were irregularly provided with 
 pikes, halberts, and clubs, for the purpose of at- 
 tack; above all, it seemed a species of miracle, 
 that knights and nobles should be defeated by 
 peasants and shepherds. But the repeated vic- 
 tories of the Swiss at Laupen, Sempach, and 
 on other less distinguished occasions, plainly in- 
 timated that a new principle of civil organiza- 
 tion, as well as of military movements, had arisen 
 amid the stormy regions of Helvetia. 
 
 Still, although the decisive victories which 
 obtained liberty for the Swiss cantons, as well 
 as the spirit of resolution and wisdom with 
 which the members of the little confederation 
 had maintained themselves against the utmost 
 exertions of Austria, had spread their fame 
 abroad through all the neighbouring countries ; 
 and although they themselves were conscious 
 of the power which repeated victories had ac-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 7 
 
 quired, yet down to the middle of the fifteenth 
 century, and at a later date, they retained in a 
 great measure the wisdom, moderation, and sim- 
 plicity of their ancient manners ; so much so, 
 that those who were intrusted with the command 
 of the troops of the Republic in battle, were wont 
 to resume the shepherd's staff when they laid 
 down the truncheon, and, like the Roman dic- 
 tators, to retire to complete equality with their 
 fellow citizens, from the eminence to which their 
 talents, and the call of their country, had raised 
 them. 
 
 It is, then, in the Forest Cantons of Switz- 
 erland, in the autumn of 1474, that our tale 
 opens. 
 
 Two travellers, one considerably past the 
 prime of life, the other probably two or three- 
 and- twenty years old, had passed the night at the 
 little town of Lucerne, the capital of the state 
 of the same name, and beautifully situated on 
 the Lake of the Four Cantons. Their dress and 
 character seemed those of merchants of a higher
 
 8 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 class, and while they themselves journeyed on 
 foot, the character of the country rendering that 
 by far the most easy mode of pursuing their 
 route, a young peasant lad, from the Italian side 
 of the Alps, followed them with a sumpter mule, 
 which he sometimes mounted, but more fre- 
 quently led by the bridle. 
 
 The travellers were uncommonly fine-look- 
 ing men, and seemed connected by some very 
 near relationship, — probably that of father and 
 son ; for at the little inn where they lodged on 
 the preceding evening, the great deference and 
 respect paid by the younger to the elder, had 
 not escaped the observation of the natives, 
 who, like other sequestered beings, were curi- 
 ous in proportion to the limited means of in- 
 formation which they possessed. They obser- 
 ved also, that the merchants, under pretence 
 of haste, declined opening their bales, or pro- 
 posing traffic to the inhabitants of Lucerne, al- 
 leging in excuse, that they had no commodities 
 fitted for the market. The females of the town 
 were the more displeased with the reserve of the 
 mercantile travellers, because they were given to
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 9 
 
 understand, that it was occasioned by the wares 
 in which they dealt being too costly to find cus- 
 tomers among the Helvetian mountains ; for it 
 had transpired, by means of their attendant, that 
 the strangers had visited Venice, and had there 
 made many purchases of rich commodities, 
 which were brought from India and Egypt to 
 that celebrated emporium, as to the common 
 mart of the Western World, and thence disper- 
 sed into all quarters of Europe. Now the Swiss 
 maidens had of late made the discovery that 
 gauds and gems were fair to look upon, and 
 though without the hope of being able to pos- 
 sess themselves of such ornaments, they felt a 
 natural desire to review and handle the rich 
 stores of the merchants, and some displeasure 
 at being prevented from doing so. 
 
 It was also observed, that though the stran- 
 gers were sufficiently courteous in their de- 
 meanour, they did not evince that studious 
 anxiety to please, displayed by the travelling 
 pedlars or merchants of Lombardy or Savoy, 
 by whom the inhabitants of the mountains 
 were occasionally visited; and who had been
 
 10 ANNE O* GEJERSTEJN. 
 
 more frequent in their rounds of late years, 
 since the spoils of victory had invested the 
 Swiss with some wealth, and had taught many 
 of them new wants. Those peripatetic tra- 
 ders were civil and assiduous, as their calling 
 required ; but the new visitors seemed men 
 who were indifferent to traffic, or at least to 
 the gains which could be gathered in Switzer- 
 land. 
 
 Curiosity was further excited by the circum- 
 stance, that they spoke to each other in a lan- 
 guage which was certainly neither German, Ita- 
 lian, nor French, but from which an old man 
 serving in the cabaret, who had once been as 
 far as Paris, supposed they might be English ; 
 a people of whom it was only known that they 
 were a fierce insular race, at war with the French 
 for many years, and a large body of whom had 
 invaded the Forest Cantons, and sustained such 
 a defeat in the valley of Russvvyl, as was well 
 remembered by the grey-haired men of Lu- 
 cerne, who received the tale from their fathers. 
 
 The lad who attended the strangers, was soon 
 ascertained to be a youth from the Grison coun-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 1 1 
 
 try, who acted as their guide, so far as his know- 
 ledge of the mountains permitted. He said they 
 designed to go to Bale, but seemed desirous to 
 travel by circuitous and unfrequented routes. 
 The circumstances just mentioned increased the 
 general desire to know more of the travellers and 
 of their merchandize. Not a bale, however, was 
 unpacked, and the merchants, leaving Lucerne 
 next morning, resumed their toilsome journey, 
 preferring a circuitous route and bad roads, 
 through the peaceful cantons of Switzerland, 
 to encountering the exactions and rapine of the 
 robber chivalry of Germany, who, like so many 
 sovereigns, made war each at his own pleasure, 
 and levied tolls and taxes on all who passed their 
 domains of a mile's breadth, with all the inso- 
 lence of petty tyranny. 
 
 For several hours after leaving Lucerne, the 
 journey of our travellers was successfully pro- 
 secuted. The road, though precipitous and dif- 
 cult, was rendered interesting by those splen- 
 did phenomena, which no country exhibits in 
 a more astonishing manner than the moun- 
 tains of Switzerland, where the rocky pass, the
 
 12 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 verdant valley, the broad lake, and the rushing 
 torrent, the attributes of other hills as well as 
 these, are interspersed with the magnificent and 
 yet fearful horrors of the glaciers, a feature pe- 
 culiar to themselves. 
 
 It was not an age in which the beauties or 
 grandeur of a landscape made much impression 
 either on the minds of those who travelled through 
 the country, or who resided in it. To the lat- 
 ter, the objects, however dignified, were familiar, 
 and associated with daily habits and with daily 
 toil ; and the former saw, perhaps, more terror 
 than beauty in the wild region through which 
 they passed, and were rather solicitous to get safe 
 to their night's quarters, than to comment on the 
 grandeur of the scenes which lay between them 
 and their place of rest. Yet our merchants, as 
 they proceeded on their journey, could not help 
 being strongly impressed by the character of 
 the scenery around them. Their road lay along 
 the side of the lake, at times level and close on 
 its very margin, at times rising to a great height 
 on the side of the mountain, and winding along 
 the verge of precipices which sunk down to
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 13 
 
 the water as sharp and sheer as the wall of a 
 castle descends upon the ditch which defends it. 
 At other times it traversed spots of a milder 
 character, — delightful green slopes, and lowly- 
 retired valleys, affording both pasturage and 
 arable ground, sometimes watered by small 
 streams, which winded by the hamlet of wood- 
 en huts with their fantastic little church and 
 steeple, meandered round the orchard and the 
 mount of vines, and, murmuring gently as they 
 flowed, found a quiet passage into the lake. 
 
 " That stream, Arthur," said the elder tra- 
 veller, as with one consent they stopped to gaze 
 on such a scene as I have described, " resembles 
 the life of a good and a happy man." 
 
 " And the brook, which hurries itself head- 
 long down yon distant hill, marking its course 
 by a streak of white foam," answered Arthur, 
 — " what does that resemble ?" 
 
 " That of a brave and unfortunate one," re- 
 plied his father. 
 
 " The torrent for me," said Arthur; " a 
 headlong course which no human force can op-
 
 14 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 pose, and then let it be as brief as it is glori- 
 ous." 
 
 " It is a young man's thought," replied his 
 father ; " but I am well aware that it is so root- 
 ed in thy heart, that nothing but the rude hand 
 of adversity can pluck it up." 
 
 " As yet the root clings fast to my heart's 
 strings," said the young man ; " and methinks 
 adversity's hand hath had a fair grasp of it." 
 
 " You speak, my son, of what you little 
 understand," said his father. " Know, that till 
 the middle of life be passed, men scarce distin- 
 guish true prosperity from adversity, or rather 
 they court as the favours of fortune what they 
 should more justly regard as the marks of her 
 displeasure. Look at yonder mountain, which 
 wears on its shaggy brow a diadem of clouds, 
 now raised and now depressed, while the sun 
 glances upon, but is unable to dispel it ; — a child 
 might believe it to be a crown of glory — a man 
 knows it to be the signal of tempest." 
 
 Arthur followed the direction of his father's 
 eye to the dark and shadowy eminence of Mount 
 Pilatre
 
 ANNE OF OEIERSTEIN. I .) 
 
 " Is the mist on yonder wild mountain so 
 ominous then ?" asked the young man. 
 
 " Demand of Antonio," said his father ; " he 
 will tell you the legend." 
 
 The young merchant addressed himself to 
 the Swiss lad who acted as their attendant, de- 
 siring to know the name of the gloomy height, 
 which, in that quarter, seems the leviathan of 
 the huge congregation of mountains assembled 
 about Lucerne. 
 
 The lad crossed himself devoutly, as he re- 
 counted the popular legend, that the wicked 
 Proconsul of Judaea had here found the termina- 
 tion of his impious life ; having, after spending 
 years in the recesses of that mountain which 
 bears his name, at length, in remorse and de- 
 spair rather than in penitence, plunged into the 
 dismal lake which occupies the summit. Whe- 
 ther water refused to do the executioner's duty 
 upon such a wretch, or whether, his body be- 
 ing drowned, his vexed spirit continued to haunt 
 the place where he committed suicide, An- 
 tonio did not pretend to explain. But a form 
 was often, he Raid, seen to emerge from the 
 S
 
 16 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 gloomy waters, and go through the action of 
 one washing his hands; and when he did so, 
 dark clouds of mist gathered first round the bo- 
 som of the Infernal lake, (such it had been styled 
 of old,) and then wrapping the whole upper part 
 of the mountain in darkness, presaged a tem- 
 pest or hurricane, which was sure to follow in 
 a short space. He added, that the evil spirit 
 was peculiarly exasperated at the audacity of 
 such strangers as ascended the mountain to gaze 
 at his place of punishment, and that, in conse- 
 quence, the magistrates of Lucerne had prohi- 
 bited any one from approaching Mount Pilatre, 
 under severe penalties. Antonio once more 
 crossed himself as he finished his legend; in 
 which act of devotion he was imitated by his 
 hearers, too good Catholics to entertain any 
 doubt of the truth of the story. 
 
 " How the accursed heathen scowls upon us !" 
 said the younger of the merchants, while the 
 cloud darkened and seemed to settle on the brow 
 of Mount Pilatre. " Vade retro ;— be thou de- 
 fied, sinner !" 
 
 A rising wind, rather heard than felt, seein- 
 i
 
 A N N E O 1 (i E I F. K ST I ■ IN. ] i 
 
 eel to groan forth, in the tone of a dying lion, 
 the acceptance of the suffering spirit to the rash 
 challenge of the young Englishman. The moun- 
 tain was seen to send down its rugged sides thick 
 wreaths of heaving mjst, which, rolling through 
 the rugged chasms that seamed the grisly hill, 
 resembled torrents of rushing lava pouring down 
 from a volcano. The ridgy precipices, which 
 formed the sides of these huge ravines, showed 
 their splintery and rugged edges over the va- 
 pour, as if dividing from each other the descend- 
 ing streams of mist which rolled around them. 
 As a strong contrast to this gloomy and threat- 
 ening scene, the more distant mountain range 
 of Righi shone brilliant with all the hues of an 
 autumnal sun. 
 
 While the travellers watched this striking and 
 varied contrast, which resembled an approach- 
 ing combat betwixt the powers of Light and 
 Darkness, their guide, in his mixed jargon of 
 Italian and German, exhorted them to make 
 haste on their journey. The village to which 
 he proposed to conduct them, he said, was yet 
 distant, the road bad, and difficult to find, and 
 
 vol. i. r,
 
 18 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIW 
 
 if the Evil One (looking to Mount Pilatre, and 
 crossing himself) should send his darkness upon 
 the valley, the path would be both doubtful and 
 dangerous. The travellers, thus admonished, 
 gathered the capes of their cloaks close round 
 their throats, pulled their bonnets resolvedly 
 over their brows, drew the buckle of the broad 
 belts which fastened their mantles, and each 
 with a mountain staff in his hand, well shod 
 with an iron spike, they pursued their journey, 
 with unabated strength and undaunted spirit. 
 
 With every step the scenes around them ap- 
 peared to change. Each mountain, as if its 
 firm and immutable form were flexible and va- 
 rying, altered in appearance, like that of a sha- 
 dowy apparition, as the position of the strangers 
 relative to them changed with their motions, 
 and as the mist, which continued slowly, though 
 constantly to descend, influenced the rugged as- 
 pect of the hills and valleys which it shrouded 
 with its vapoury mantle. The nature of their 
 progress, too, never direct, but winding by a 
 narrow path along the sinuosities of the valley. 
 and making many a circuit round precipices and
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 19 
 
 oilier obstacles which it was impossible to sur- 
 mount, added to the wild variety of a journey, 
 in which, at last, the travellers totally lost any 
 vague idea which they had previously entertain- 
 ed concerning the direction in which the road 
 led them. 
 
 " I would," said the elder, " we had that mys- 
 tical needle which mariners talk of, that points 
 ever to the north, and enables them to keep their 
 way on the waters, when there is neither cape 
 nor headland, sun, moon, nor stars, nor any 
 mark in heaven or earth, to tell them how to 
 steer." 
 
 " It would scarce avail us among these moun- 
 tains," answered the youth ; " for though that 
 wonderful needle may keep its point to the north- 
 ern Pole-star, when it is on a flat surface like 
 the sea, it is not to be thought it would do so 
 when these huge mountains arise like walls, be- 
 twixt the steel and the object of its sympathy." 
 
 u I fear me," replied the father, " we shall 
 find our guide, who has been growing hourly 
 more stupid since he left his own valley, as use- 
 less as you suppose the compass would be among
 
 20 ANNE OF GEIEUSTF.i ■ 
 
 the hills of this wild country. — Canst tell, my 
 boy," said he, addressing Antonio in bad Ita- 
 lian, " if we be in the road we purposed ?" 
 
 " If it please Saint Antonio — " said the guide, 
 who was obviously too much confused to answer 
 the question directly. 
 
 " And that water, half covered with mist, 
 which glimmers through the fog, at the foot of 
 this huge black precipice — is it still a part of 
 the Lake of Lucerne, or have we lighted upon 
 another since we ascended that last hill ?" 
 
 Antonio could only answer that they ought 
 to be on the Lake of Lucerne still, and that he 
 hoped that what they saw below them was only 
 a winding branch of the same sheet of water. 
 But he could say nothing with certainty. 
 
 " Dog of an Italian !" exclaimed the younger 
 traveller, " thou deservest to have thy bones bro- 
 ken, for undertaking a charge which thou art as 
 incapable to perform, as thou art to guide us to 
 heaven !" 
 
 " Peace, Arthur," said his father ; " if you 
 frighten the lad, he runs off, and we lose the 
 small advantage we might have by his know-
 
 ANNK OF OEIERSTEIN. W 
 
 ledge; if you use your baton, be rewards you 
 witb the stab of a knife, — for such is the humour 
 of a revengeful Lombard. Either way, you are 
 marred instead of helped. — Hark thee hither 
 my boy," he continued, in his indifferent Italian, 
 "be not afraid of that hot youngster, whom I 
 will not permit to injure thee; but tell me, if 
 thou canst, the names of the villages by which 
 we are to make our journey to-day ?" 
 
 The gentle mode in which the elder traveller 
 spoke reassured the lad, who had been somewhat 
 alarmed at the harsh tone and menacing expres- 
 sions of his younger companion ; and he poured 
 forth, in his patois, a flood of names, in which 
 the German guttural sounds were strangely in- 
 termixed with the soft accents of the Italian, but 
 which carried to the hearer no intelligible infor- 
 mation concerning the object of his question ; so 
 that, at length, he was forced to conclude, "Even 
 lead on, in Our Lady's name, or in Saint An- 
 tonio's, if you like it better ; we shall but lose 
 time, I see, in trying to understand each other." 
 
 They moved on as before, with this difference, 
 that the guide, leading the mulo, now wont i
 
 22 ANNE or GEIEHSTEIN. 
 
 and was followed by the other two, whose mo- 
 tions he had formerly directed by calling to them 
 from behind. The clouds meantime became 
 thicker and thicker, and the mist, which had at 
 first been a thin vapour, began now to descend 
 in the form of a small thick rain, which gathered 
 like dew upon the capotes of the travellers. Dis- 
 tant rustling and groaning sounds were heard 
 among the remote mountains, similar to those by 
 which the evil spirit of Mount Pilatre had seem- 
 ed to announce the storm. The boy again press- 
 ed his companions to advance, but at the same 
 time threw impediments in the way of their do- 
 ing so, by the slowness and indecision which he 
 showed in leading them on. 
 
 Having proceeded in this manner for three or 
 four miles, which uncertainty rendered doubly 
 tedious, the travellers were at length engaged 
 in a narrow path, running along the verge of a 
 precipice. Beneath was water, but of what de- 
 scription they could not ascertain. The wind, 
 indeed, which began to be felt in sudden gusts, 
 sometimes swept aside the mist so completely 
 as to show waves glimmering below : but who-
 
 ANNE OP GEIERSTEIN. 23 
 
 ther they were those of the same lake on which 
 their morning journey had commenced, whe- 
 ther it was another or separate sheet of water of 
 a similar character, or whether it was a river 
 or large brook, the view afforded was too indis- 
 tinct to determine. Thus far was certain, that 
 they were not on the shores of the Lake of Lu- 
 cerne, where it displays its usual expanse of wa- 
 ters; for the same hurricane-gusts which showed 
 them water in the bottom of the glen, gave them 
 a transient view of the opposite side, at what 
 exact distance they could not well discern, but 
 near enough to show tall abrupt rocks and shag- 
 gy pine trees, here united in groups, and there 
 singly anchored among the cliffs which over- 
 hung the water. 
 
 Hitherto the path, though steep and rugged, 
 was plainly enough indicated, and showed traces 
 of having been used both by riders and foot 
 passengers. But suddenly, as Antonio with 
 the mule had reached a projecting eminence, 
 around the peak of which the path made a sharp 
 turn, he stopped short, with his usual exclama- 
 tion, addressed to his patron saint. It appealed
 
 24 ANNE <>1 GE1EESTEIN. 
 
 to Arthur that the mule shared the terrors of 
 the guide ; for it started back, put forward its 
 fore feet separate from each other, and seemed, 
 by the attitude which it assumed, to intimate a 
 determination to resist every proposal to ad- 
 vance, at the same time expressing horror and 
 fear at the prospect which lay before it. 
 
 Arthur pressed forward, not only from curio- 
 sity, but that he might if possible bear the brunt 
 of any danger before his father came up to share 
 it. In less time than we have taken to tell the 
 story, the young man stood beside Antonio and 
 the mule, upon a platform of rock on which the 
 road seemed absolutely to terminate, and from 
 the further side of which a precipice sunk sheer 
 down, to what depth the mist did not permit 
 him to discern, but certainly to more than three 
 hundred feet. 
 
 The blank expression which overcast the vi- 
 sages of the travellers, and traces of which might 
 be discerned in the physiognomy of their beast 
 of burden, announced alarm and mortification 
 at this unexpected, and, as it seemed, insur- 
 mountable obstacle. Nor did the looks of the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 25 
 
 father, who presently after came up to the same 
 spot, convey either hope or comfort. He stood 
 with the others gazing on the misty gulf be- 
 neath them, and looking all around, but in vain, 
 for some continuation of the path, which cer- 
 tainly had never been originally designed to ter- 
 minate in this manner. As they stood uncertain 
 what to do next, the son in vain attempting to 
 discover some mode of passing onward, and the 
 father about to propose that they should return 
 by the road which had brought them hither, a 
 loud howl of the wind, more wild than they had 
 yet heard, swept down the valley. All being 
 aware of the danger of being hurled from the 
 precarious station which they occupied, snatched 
 at bushes and rocks by which to secure them- 
 selves, and even the poor mule seemed to steady 
 itself, in order to withstand the approaching hur- 
 ricane. The gust came with such unexpected fu- 
 ry that it appeared to the travellers to shake the 
 very rock on which they stood, and would have 
 swept them from its surface like so many dry 
 leaves, had it not been for the precaution which 
 they had taken to secure themselves. But as
 
 26 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 the wind rushed down the glen, it completely 
 removed for the space of three or four minutes 
 the veil of mist which former gusts had only 
 served to agitate or discompose, and showed 
 them the nature and cause of the interruption 
 which they had met with so unexpectedly. 
 
 The rapid but correct eye of Arthur was then 
 able to ascertain that the path, after leaving the 
 platform of rock on which they stood, had origi- 
 nally passed upwards in the same direction along 
 a steep bank of earth, which had then formed the 
 upper covering of a stratum of precipitous rocks. 
 But it had chanced, in some of the convulsions 
 of nature which take place in those wild regions, 
 where she works upon a scale so formidable, 
 that the earth had made a slip, or almost a pre- 
 cipitous descent, from the rock, and been hurl- 
 ed downwards with the path, which was traced 
 along the top, and with bushes, trees, or what- 
 ever grew upon it, into the channel of the 
 stream ; for such they could now discern the wa- 
 ter beneath them to be, and not a lake, or an 
 arm of a lake, as they had hitherto supposed. 
 
 The immediate cause of this phenomenon
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 27 
 
 might probably have been an earthquake, not 
 unfrequent in that country. The bank of earth, 
 now a confused mass of ruins inverted in its 
 fall, showed some trees growing in a horizon- 
 tal position, and others, which, having pitched 
 on their heads in their descent, were at once in- 
 verted and shattered to pieces, and lay a sport 
 to the streams of the river which they had here- 
 tofore covered with gloomy shadow. The gaunt 
 precipice which remained behind, like the ske- 
 leton of some huge monster divested of its flesh, 
 formed the wall of a fearful abyss, resembling 
 the face of a newly wrought quarry, more dismal 
 of aspect from the rawness of its recent forma- 
 tion, and from its being as yet uncovered with 
 any of the vegetation with which nature speed- 
 ily mantles over the bare surface even of her 
 sternest crags and precipices. 
 
 Besides remarking these appearances, which 
 tended to show that this interruption of the road 
 had been of recent occurrence, Arthur was able 
 to observe, on the further side of the river, high- 
 er up the valley, and rising out of the pine fo- 
 rests, interspersed with^ocks, a square building
 
 28 ANNE OF GEI ERSTEIN. 
 
 of considerable height, like the ruins of a Gothic 
 tower. He pointed out this remarkable object 
 to Antonio, and demanded if he knew it ; justly 
 conjecturing that, from the peculiarity of the 
 site, it was a land-mark not easily to be forgot- 
 ten by any who had seen it before. Accordingly, 
 it was gladly and promptly recognised by the lad, 
 who called cheerfully out, that the place was 
 Geier stein, that is, as he explained it, the Rock 
 of the Vultures. He knew it, he said, by the 
 tower, as well as by a huge pinnacle of rock which 
 arose near it, almost in the form of a steeple, 
 to the top of which the lammer-geier (one of 
 the largest birds of prey known to exist) had in 
 former days transported the child of an ancient 
 lord of the castle. He proceeded to recount the 
 vow which was made by the Knight of Geierstein 
 to Our Lady of Einsiedlen; and, while he spoke, 
 the castle, rocks, woods, and precipices, again 
 faded in mist. But as he concluded his wonder- 
 ful narrative with the miracle which restored 
 the infant again to its father's arms, he cried 
 out suddenly, " Look to yourselves — the storm ! 
 —the storm !" It came accordingly, and sweep-
 
 ANNE OF OEIERSTE1N. 29 
 
 ing the mist before it, again bestowed on the 
 travellers a view of the horrors around them. 
 
 " Ay !" quoth Antonio, triumphantly, as the 
 gust abated, " old Pontius loves little to hear of 
 Our Lady of Einsiedlen ; but she will keep her 
 own with him — Ave Maria !" 
 
 " That tower," said the young traveller? 
 " seems uninhabited. I can descry no smoke, 
 and the battlement appears ruinous." 
 
 " It has not been inhabited for many a day," 
 answered the guide. " But I would I were at 
 it, for all that. Honest Arnold Biederman, the 
 Landamman [chief magistrate] of the Canton of 
 Unterwalden, dwells near, and I warrant you, 
 strangers will not want the best that cupboard 
 and cellar can find them, wherever he holds 
 rule." 
 
 " I have heard of him," said the elder tra- 
 veller, whom Antonio had been taught to call 
 Seignor Philipson ; " a good and hospitable man, 
 and one who enjoys deserved weight with his 
 countrymen." 
 
 " You have spoken him right, Seignor," an- 
 swered the guide; " and I would we could reach
 
 30 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 bis house, where you should be sure of hospi- 
 table treatment, and a good direction for your 
 next day's journey. But how we are to get to 
 the Vulture's Castle, unless we had wings like 
 the vulture, is a question hard to answer." 
 
 Arthur replied by a daring proposal, which 
 the reader will find in the next chapter.
 
 ANNR OF 0.F.IERSTF.1N. 31 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Away with me. 
 
 The clouds grow thicker — there — now lean on me. 
 Place your foot here — here, take this staff, and cling' 
 A moment to that shrub — now, give me your hand. 
 
 The chalet will be gained in half an hour. 
 
 After surveying the desolate scene as accu- 
 rately as the stormy state of the atmosphere 
 would permit, the younger of the travellers ob- 
 served, " In any other country, I should say the 
 tempest begins to abate ; but what to expect in 
 this land of desolation, it were rash to decide. 
 If the apostate spirit of Pilate be actually on the 
 blast, these lingering and more distant howls 
 seem to intimate that he is returning to his place 
 11
 
 32 ANNE OF OEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of punishment. The pathway has sunk with the 
 ground on which it was traced — I can see part 
 of it lying down in the abyss, marking, as with 
 a streak of clay, yonder mass of earth and stone. 
 But I think it possible, with your permission, 
 my father, that I could still scramble forward 
 along the edge of the precipice, till I come in 
 sight of the habitation which the lad tells us of. 
 If there be actually such a one, there must 
 be an access to it somewhere ; and if I cannot 
 find the path out, I can at least make a signal 
 to those who dwell near the Vulture's Nest yon- 
 der, and obtain some friendly guidance." 
 
 " I cannot consent to your incurring such a 
 risk," said his father ; " let the lad go forward, 
 if he can and will. He is mountain-bred, and 
 I will reward him richly." 
 
 But Antonio declined the proposal absolutely 
 and decidedly. " I am mountain-bred," he said, 
 " but I am no goat-hunter ; and I have no wings 
 to transport me from cliff to cliff, like a raven 
 — gold is not worth life." 
 
 " And God forbid," said Seignor Philipson, 
 " that I should tempt thee to weigh them against 
 13
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 33 
 
 each other ! — Go on, then, my son — I follow 
 thee." 
 
 " Under your favour, dearest sir, no," replied 
 the young man ; " it is enough to endanger the 
 life of one — and mine, far the most worthless, 
 should, by all the rules of wisdom as well as 
 nature, be put first in hazard." 
 
 " No, Arthur," replied his father, in a deter- 
 mined voice; " no, my son — I have survived 
 much, but I will not survive thee." 
 
 " I fear not for the issue, father, if you per- 
 mit me to go alone ; but I cannot — dare not — 
 undertake a task so perilous, if you persist in 
 attempting to share it, with no better aid than 
 mine. While I endeavoured to make a new ad- 
 vance, I should be ever looking back to see how 
 you should attain the station which I was about 
 to leave — And bethink you, dearest father, that 
 if I fall, I fall an unregarded thing, of as little 
 moment as the rock or tree which has toppled 
 headlong down before me. But you — should 
 your foot slip, or your hand fail, bethink you 
 what and how much must needs fall with you !" 
 
 " Thou art right, my child," said the father. 
 
 vol. i. c
 
 34 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " I still have that which hinds me to life, even 
 though I were to lose in thee all that is dear to 
 me. — Our Lady and our Lady's Knight hless 
 thee and prosper thee, my child ! Thy foot is 
 young, thy hand is strong — thou hast not climb- 
 ed Plynlimmon in vain. Be bold, but be wary 
 — remember there is a man who, failing thee, 
 has but one act of duty to bind him to the earth, 
 and, that discharged, he will soon follow thee." 
 The young man accordingly prepared for his 
 journey, and, stripping himself of his cumbrous 
 cloak, showed his well-prcportioned limbs in a 
 jerkin of grey cloth, which sat close to his per- 
 son. The father's resolution gave way when his 
 son turned round to bid him farewell. He re- 
 called his permission, and in a peremptory tone 
 forbade him to proceed. But without listening 
 to the prohibition, Arthur had commenced his 
 perilous adventure. Descending from the plat- 
 form on which he stood, by the boughs of an old 
 ash- tree, which thrust itself out of the cleft of a 
 rock, the youth was enabled to gain, though at 
 great risk, a narrow ledge, the very brink of the 
 precipice, by creeping along which he hoped to
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 35 
 
 pass on till he made himself heard or seen from 
 the habitation, of whose existence the guide had 
 informed him. His situation, as he pursued 
 this bold purpose, appeared so precarious, that 
 even the hired attendant hardly dared to draw 
 breath as he gazed on him. The ledge which 
 supported him seemed to grow so narrow as he 
 passed along it, as to become altogether invisi- 
 ble, while sometimes with his face to the pre- 
 cipice, sometimes looking forward, sometimes 
 glancing his eyes upward, but never venturing 
 to cast a look below, lest his brain should grow 
 giddy at a sight so appalling, he wound his way 
 onward. To his father and the attendant, who 
 beheld his progress, it was less that of a man 
 advancing in the ordinary manner, and resting 
 by aught connected with the firm earth, than 
 that of an insect crawling along the face of a 
 perpendicular wall, of whose progressive move- 
 ment we are indeed sensible, but cannot perceive 
 the means of its support. And bitterly, most 
 bitterly, did the miserable parent now lament, 
 that he had not persisted in his purpose to en- 
 counter the baffling and even perilous measure
 
 36 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of retracing his steps to the habitation of the 
 preceding night. He should then, at least, have 
 partaken the fate of the son of his love. 
 
 Meanwhile, the young man's spirits were 
 strongly braced for the performance of his peril- 
 ous task. He laid a powerful restraint on his 
 imagination, which in general was sufficiently 
 active, and refused to listen, even for an in- 
 stant, to any of the horrible insinuations by 
 which fancy augments actual danger. He en- 
 deavoured manfully to reduce all around him 
 to the scale of right reason, as the best sup- 
 port of true courage. " This ledge of rock," 
 he urged to himself, " is but narrow, yet it 
 has breadth enough to support me ; these clifts 
 and crevices in the surface are small and dis- 
 tant, but the one affords as secure a resting- 
 place to my feet, the other as available a grasp to 
 my hands, as if I stood on a platform of a cubit 
 broad, and rested my arm on a balustrade of 
 marble. My safety, therefore, depends on my- 
 self. If I move with decision, step firmly, and 
 hold fast, what signifies how near I am to the 
 mouth of an abyss ?"
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 37 
 
 Thus estimating the extent of his danger by 
 the measure of sound sense and reality, and sup- 
 ported by some degree of practice in such ex- 
 ercise, the brave youth went forward on his 
 awful journey, step by step, winning his way 
 with a caution, and fortitude, and presence of 
 mind, which alone could have saved him from 
 instant destruction. At length he gained a 
 point where a projecting rock formed the angle 
 of the precipice, so far as it had been visible 
 to him from the platform. This, therefore, was 
 the critical point of his undertaking; but it was 
 also the most perilous part of it. The rock pro- 
 jected more than six feet forward over the tor- 
 rent, which he heard raging at the depth of a 
 hundred yards beneath, with a noise like sub- 
 terranean thunder. He examined the spot with 
 the utmost care, and was led by the existence 
 of shrubs, grass, and even stunted trees, to be- 
 lieve that this rock marked the farthest extent 
 cf the slip or slide of earth, and that, could he 
 but round the angle of which it was the termina- 
 tion, he might hope to attain the continuation of 
 the path which had been so strangely interrupt-
 
 38 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 cd by this convulsion of nature. But the crag 
 jutted out so much as to afford no possibility 
 of passing either under or around it ; and as it 
 rose several feet above the position which Ar- 
 thur had attained, it was no easy matter to climb 
 over it. This was, however, the course which he 
 chose, as the only mode of surmounting what he 
 hoped might prove the last obstacle to his voyage 
 of discovery. A projecting tree afforded him the 
 means of raising and swinging himself up to the 
 top of the crag. But he had scarcely planted 
 himself on it, had scarcely a moment to con- 
 gratulate himself, on seeing, amid a wild chaos 
 of cliffs and wood, the gloomy ruins of Geier- 
 stein, with smoke arising, and indicating some- 
 thing like a human habitation beside them, 
 when, to his extreme terror, he felt the huge 
 cliff on which he stood, tremble, stoop slowly 
 forward, and gradually sink from its position. 
 Projecting as it was, and shaken as its equili- 
 brium had been by the recent earthquake, it lay 
 now so insecurely poised, that its balance was 
 entirely destroyed, even by the addition of the 
 young man's weight.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 39 
 
 Aroused by the imminence of the danger, 
 Arthur, by an instinctive attempt at self-preser- 
 vation, drew cautiously back from the falling 
 crag into the tree by which he had ascended, and 
 turned his head back as if spell-bound, to watch 
 the descent of the fatal rock from which he had 
 just retreated. It tottered for two or three 
 seconds, as if uncertain which way to fall ; and 
 had it taken a sidelong direction, must have 
 dashed the adventurer from his place of refuge, 
 or borne both the tree and him headlong down 
 into the river. After a moment of horrible un- 
 certainty, the power of gravitation determined 
 a direct and forward descent. Down went 
 the huge fragment, which must have weigh- 
 ed at least twenty ton, rending and splintering 
 in its precipitate course the trees and bushes 
 which it encountered, and settling at length in 
 the channel of the torrent, with a din equal to 
 the discharge of a hundred pieces of artillery. 
 The sound was re-echoed from bank to bank, 
 from precipice to precipice, with emulative thun- 
 ders ; nor was the tumult silent till it rose into 
 the region of eternal snows, which, equally in-
 
 40 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 
 
 sensible to terrestrial sounds, and unfavourable 
 to animal life, beard the roar in their majestic 
 solitude, but suffered it to die away without a 
 responsive voice. 
 
 What, in the meanwhile, were the thoughts 
 of the distracted father, who saw the ponderous 
 rock descend, but could not mark whether hi3 
 only son had borne it company in its dreadful 
 fall ! His first impulse was to rush forward along 
 the face of the precipice, which he had seen Ar- 
 thur so lately traverse ; and when the lad Anto- 
 nio withheld him, by throwing his arms around 
 him, he turned on the guide with the fury of a 
 bear which has been robbed of her cubs. 
 
 " Unhand me, base peasant," he exclaimed, 
 tf or thou diest on the spot !" 
 
 " Alas !" said the poor boy, dropping on his 
 knees before him, " I too have a father !" 
 
 The appeal went to the heart of the traveller, 
 who instantly let the lad go, and holding up his 
 hands, and lifting his eyes towards heaven, said, 
 in accents of the deepest agony, mingled with 
 devout resignation, "Fiat voluntas tua! — he was 
 my last, and loveliest, and best beloved, and
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 41 
 
 most worthy of my love ; and yonder," he added, 
 " yonder over the glen soar the birds of prey, 
 who are to feast on his young blood. — But I 
 will see him once more," exclaimed the miser- 
 able parent, as the huge carrion vulture floated 
 past him on the thick air, — " I will see my Ar- 
 thur once more, ere the wolf and the eagle mangle 
 him — I will see all of him that earth still holds. 
 Detain me not — but abide here, and watch me 
 as I advance. If I fall, as is most likely, I charge 
 you to take the sealed papers, which you will 
 find in the vallise, and carry them to the person 
 to whom they are addressed, with the least pos- 
 sible delay. There is money enough in the purse 
 to bury me with my poor boy, and to cause 
 masses be said for our souls, and yet leave you 
 a rich recompense for your journey." 
 
 The honest Swiss lad, obtuse in his under- 
 standing, but kind and faithful in his disposi- 
 tion, blubbered as his employer spoke, and, afraid 
 to offer farther remonstrance or opposition, saw 
 his temporary master prepare himself to traverse 
 the same fatal precipice, over the verge of which 
 his ill-fated son had seemed to pass to the fate
 
 42 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 which, with all the wildness of a parent's an- 
 guish, his father was hastening to share. 
 
 Suddenly there was heard from beyond the 
 fatal angle from which the mass of stone had 
 been displaced by Arthur's rash ascent, the loud 
 hoarse sound of one of those huge horns made 
 out of the spoils of the urus, or wild bull, of 
 Switzerland, which in ancient times announced 
 the terrors of the charge of these mountaineers, 
 and, indeed, served them in war instead of all 
 musical instruments. 
 
 "Hold, sir, hold!" exclaimed the Grison, "yon- 
 der is a signal from Geierstein. Some one will 
 presently come to our assistance, and show us 
 the safer way to seek for your son — And look 
 you — at yon green bush that is glimmering 
 through the mist, Saint Antonio preserve me, 
 as I see a white cloth displayed there ! it is just 
 beyond the point where the rock fell." 
 
 The father endeavoured to fix his eyes on the 
 spot, but they filled so fast with tears, that they 
 could not discern the object which the guide 
 pointed out. — " It is all in vain," he said, dash-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 43 
 
 ing the tears from his eyes — " I shall never see 
 more of him than his lifeless remains.'' 
 
 " You will — you will see him in life !" said 
 the Grison, " Saint Antonio wills it so — See, 
 the white cloth waves again !" 
 
 " Some remnant of his garments," said the 
 despairing father, — " some wretched memorial 
 of his fate. — No, my eyes see it not — I have be- 
 held the fall of my house — would that the vul- 
 tures of these crags had rather torn them from 
 their sockets !" 
 
 " Yet look again," said the Grison ; " the 
 cloth hangs not loose upon a bough — I can see 
 that it is raised on the end of a staff, and is 
 distinctly waved to and fro. Your son makes 
 a signal that he is safe." 
 
 " And if it be so," said the traveller, clasp- 
 ing his hands together, " blessed be the eyes 
 that see it, and the tongue that tells it ! If we 
 find my son, and find him alive, this day shall 
 be a lucky one for thee too." 
 
 " Nay," said the Grison, " I only ask that 
 you will abide still, and act by counsel, and I 
 will hold myself quit for my services. Only, it
 
 44 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 is not creditable to an honest lad to have people 
 lose themselves by their own wilfulness ; for 
 the blame, after all, is sure to fall upon the 
 guide, as if he could prevent old Pontius from 
 shaking the mist from his brow, or banks of 
 earth from slipping down into the valley at a 
 time, or young hair-brained gallants from walk- 
 ing upon precipices as narrow as the edge of a 
 knife, or madmen, whose grey hairs might 
 make them wiser, from drawing daggers like 
 bravos in Lombardy." 
 
 Thus the guide ran on, and in that vein he 
 might have long continued, for Seignor Philip- 
 son heard him not. Each throb of his pulse, 
 each thought of his heart, was directed to- 
 wards the object which the lad referred to as a 
 signal of his son's safety. He became at length 
 satisfied that the signal was actually waved by 
 a human hand ; and, as eager in the glow of re- 
 viving hope, as he had of late been under the 
 influence of desperate grief, he again prepared 
 for the attempt of advancing towards his son, 
 and assisting him, if possible, in regaining a 
 place of safety. But the intreaties and reite-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTETN. 45 
 
 rated assurances of his guide, induced him to 
 pause. 
 
 " Are you fit," he said, " to go on the crag ? 
 Can you repeat your Credo and Ave without 
 missing or misplacing a word ? for without that, 
 our old men say your neck, had you a score of 
 them, would be in danger.— Is your eye clear, 
 and your feet firm? — I trow the one streams 
 like a fountain, and the other shakes like the 
 aspen which overhangs it ! Rest here till those 
 arrive who are far more able to give your son 
 help than either you or I are. I judge by 
 the fashion of his blowing, that yonder is the 
 horn of the Good-man of Geierstein, Arnold 
 Biederman. He hath seen your son's danger, 
 and is even now providing for his safety and 
 ours. There are cases in which the aid of one 
 stranger, well acquainted with the country, is 
 worth that of three brothers, who know not the 
 crags." 
 
 " But if yonder horn really sounded a signal," 
 said the traveller, " how chanced it that my 
 son replied not ?" 
 
 " And if he did so, as is most likely he did,"
 
 46 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 rejoined theGrison, " how should we have heard 
 him ? The bugle of Uri itself sounded amid 
 these horrible dins of water and tempest like 
 the reed of a shepherd boy ; and how think you 
 we should hear the holloa of a man ?" 
 
 "Yet, methinks," said Seignor Philipson, " I 
 do hear something amid this roar of elements 
 which is like a human voice — but it is not Ar- 
 thur's." 
 
 " I wot well, no," answered the Grison ; 
 " that is a woman's voice. The maidens will 
 converse with each other in that manner, from 
 cliff to cliff, through storm and tempest, were 
 there a mile between." 
 
 " Now, Heaven be praised for this providen- 
 tial relief," said Seignor Philipson ; " I trust we 
 shall yet see this dreadful day safely ended. I 
 will holloa in answer." 
 
 He attempted to do so, but, inexperienced in 
 the art of making himself heard in such a 
 country, he pitched his voice in the same key 
 w T ith that of the roar of wave and wind; so that, 
 even at twenty yards from the place where he 
 was speaking, it must have been totally indis-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 47 
 
 tinguishablc from that of the elemental war 
 around them. The lad smiled at his patron's in- 
 effectual attempts, and then raised his voice him- 
 self in a high, wild, and prolonged scream, which, 
 while produced with apparently much less ef- 
 fort than that of the Englishman, was never- 
 theless a distinct sound, separated from others 
 by the key to which it was pitched, and was 
 probably audible to a very considerable distance. 
 It was presently answered by distant cries of the 
 same nature, which gradually approached the 
 platform, bringing renovated hope to the anx- 
 ious traveller. 
 
 If the distress of the father rendered his con- 
 dition an object of deep compassion, that of 
 the son, at the same moment, was sufficiently 
 perilous. We have already stated, that Arthur 
 Philipson had commenced his precarious jour- 
 ney along the precipice, with all the coolness, re- 
 solution, and unshaken determination of mind, 
 which was most essential to a task where all 
 must depend upon firmness of nerve. But the 
 formidable accident which checked his onward 
 progress, was of a character so dreadful, as
 
 48 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 
 
 made him feel all the bitterness of a death, in- 
 stant, horrible, and, as it seemed, inevitable. 
 The solid rock had trembled and rent beneath 
 his footsteps, and although, by an effort rather 
 mechanical than voluntary, he had withdrawn 
 himself from the instant ruin attending its de- 
 scent, he felt as if the better part of him, his 
 firmness of mind and strength of body, had been 
 rent away with the descending rock, as it fell 
 thundering, with clouds of dust and smoke, into 
 the torrents and whirlpools of the vexed gulf 
 beneath. In fact, the seaman swept from the 
 deck of a wrecked vessel, drenched in the waves, 
 and battered against the rocks on the shore, 
 does not differ more from the same mariner, 
 when, at the commencement of the gale, he 
 stood upon the deck of his favourite ship, proud 
 of her strength and his own dexterity, than Ar- 
 thur, when commencing his journey, from the 
 same Arthur, while clinging to the decayed trunk 
 of an old tree, from which, suspended between 
 heaven and earth, he saw the fall of the crag 
 which he had so nearly accompanied. The ef- 
 fects of his terror, indeed, were physical as well
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 49 
 
 as moral, for a thousand colours played before 
 his eyes ; he was attacked by a sick dizziness, 
 and deprived at once of the obedience of those 
 limbs which had hitherto served him so ad- 
 mirably ; his arms and hands, as if no longer at 
 his own command, now clung to the branches 
 of the tree, with a cramp-like tenacity over 
 which he seemed to possess no power, and now 
 trembled in a state of such complete nervous 
 relaxation, as led him to fear that they were 
 becoming unable to support him longer in his 
 position. 
 
 An incident, in itself trifling, added to the dis- 
 tress occasioned by this alienation of his powers. 
 All living things in the neighbourhood had, as 
 might be supposed, been startled by the tremen- 
 dous fall to which his progress had given occa- 
 sion. Flights of owls, bats, and other birds of 
 darkness, compelled to betake themselves to the 
 air, had lost no time in returning into their 
 bowers of ivy, or the harbour afforded them by 
 the rifts and holes of the neighbouring rocks. 
 One of this ill-omened flight chanced to be a 
 lammergeier, or Alpine vulture, a bird larger 
 
 VOL. I. 1)
 
 50 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 and more voracious than the eagle himself, and 
 which Arthur had not been accustomed to see, 
 or at least to look upon closely. With the in- 
 stinct of most birds of prey, it is the custom of 
 this creature, when gorged with food, to assume 
 some station of inaccessible security, and there 
 remain stationary and motionless for days toge- 
 ther, till the work of digestion has been accom- 
 plished, and activity returns with the pressure 
 of appetite. Disturbed from such a state of re- 
 pose, one of these terrific birds had risen from 
 the ravine to which the species gives its name, 
 and having circled unwillingly round, with a 
 ghastly scream and a flagging wing, it had sunk 
 down upon the pinnacle of a crag, not four yards 
 from the tree in which Arthur held his preca- 
 rious station. Although still in some degree 
 stupified by torpor, it seemed encouraged by 
 the motionless state of the young man to sup- 
 pose him dead, or dying, and sat there and ga- 
 zed at him, without displaying any of that ap- 
 prehension which the fiercest animals usually 
 entertain from the vicinity of man. 
 As Arthur, endeavouring to shake off the in-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 51 
 
 capacitating effects of his panic fear, raised his 
 eyes to look gradually and cautiously around, 
 he encountered those of the voracious and ob- 
 scene bird, whose head and neck denuded of 
 feathers, her eyes surrounded by an iris of an 
 orange tawny colour, and a position more hori- 
 zontal than erect, distinguished her as much 
 from the noble carriage and graceful propor- 
 tion of the eagle, as those of the lion place him 
 in the ranks of creation above the gaunt, ra- 
 venous, grisly, yet dastard wolf. 
 
 As if arrested by a charm, the eyes of young 
 Philipson remained bent on this ill-omened and 
 ill-favoured bird, without his having the power 
 to remove them. The apprehension of dangers, 
 ideal as well as real, weighed upon his weaken- 
 ed mind, disabled as it was by the circumstances 
 of his situation. The near approach of a crea- 
 ture not more loathsome to the human race, than 
 averse to come within their reach, seemed as 
 ominous as it was unusual. Why did it gaze on 
 him with such glaring earnestness, projecting 
 its disgusting form, as if presently to alight upon 
 his person ? The foul bird, was she the demon 
 
 1 1RRARY
 
 53 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of the place to which her name referred ? and 
 did she come to exult, that an intruder on her 
 haunts seemed involved amid their perils, with 
 little hope or chance of deliverance ? Or was it 
 a native vulture of the rocks, whose sagacity 
 foresaw that the rash traveller was soon destined 
 to become its victim ? Could the creature, whose 
 senses are said to be so acute, argue from cir- 
 cumstances the stranger's approaching death, 
 and wait, like a raven or hooded crow by a dying 
 sheep, for the earliest opportunity to commence 
 her ravenous banquet ? Was he doomed to feel 
 its beak and talons before his heart's blood 
 should cease to beat ? Had he already lost the 
 dignity of humanity, the awe which the being 
 formed in the image of his Maker, inspires into 
 all inferior creatures ? 
 
 Apprehensions so painful served more than 
 all that reason could suggest, to renew, in some 
 degree, the elasticity of the young man's mind. 
 By waving his handkerchief, using, however, 
 the greatest precaution in his movements, he 
 succeeded in scaring the vulture from his vi- 
 cinity. It rose from its resting place, screaming
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 53 
 
 harshly and dolefully, and sailed on its expand- 
 ed pinions to seek a place of more undisturbed 
 repose, while the adventurous traveller felt a 
 sensible pleasure at being relieved of its disgust- 
 ing presence. 
 
 With more collected ideas, the young man, 
 who could obtain, from his position, a partial 
 view of the platform he had left, endeavoured 
 to testify his safety to his father, by displaying, 
 as high as he could, the banner by which he 
 had chased off the vulture. Like them, too, he 
 heard, but at a less distance, the burst of the 
 great Swiss horn, which seemed to announce 
 some near succour. He replied by shouting and 
 waving his flag, to direct assistance to the spot 
 where it was so much required ; and, recalling 
 his faculties, which had almost deserted him, 
 he laboured mentally to recover hope, and with 
 hope the means and motive for exertion. 
 
 A faithful Catholic, he eagerly recommended 
 himself in prayer to Our Lady of Einsiedlen, 
 and, making vows of propitiation, besought her 
 intercession, that he might be delivered from 
 his dreadful condition. " Or, gracious Lady !"
 
 54 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 he concluded his orison, M if it is my doom 
 to lose my life like a hunted fox amidst this 
 savage wilderness of tottering crags, restore at 
 least my natural sense of patience and courage, 
 and let not one who has lived like a man, 
 though a sinful one, meet death like a timid 
 hare !" 
 
 Having devoutly recommended himself to 
 that Protectress, of whom the legends of the 
 Catholic Church form a picture so amiable, 
 Arthur, though every nerve still shook with 
 his late agitation, and his heart throbbed with 
 a violence that threatened to suffocate him, turn- 
 ed his thoughts and observation to the means of 
 effecting his escape. But, as he looked around 
 him, he became more and more sensible how 
 much he was enervated by the bodily injuries 
 and the mental agony which he had sustained 
 during his late peril. He could not, by any 
 effort of which he was capable, fix his giddy 
 and bewildered eyes on the scene around him ; 
 — they seemed to reel till the landscape danced 
 along with them, and a motley chaos of thickets 
 and tali cliffs, which interposed between him
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 55 
 
 and the ruinous Castle of Geierstein, mixed 
 and whirled round in such confusion, that no- 
 thing, save the consciousness that such an idea 
 was the suggestion of partial insanity, prevent- 
 ed him from throwing himself from the tree, 
 as if to join the wild dance to which his dis- 
 turbed brain had given motion. 
 
 " Heaven be my protection !" said the unfor- 
 tunate young man, closing his eyes, in hopes, 
 by abstracting himself from the terrors of his 
 situation, to compose his too active imagina- 
 tion, " my senses are abandoning me !" 
 
 He became still more convinced that this was 
 the case, when a female voice, in a high pitched 
 but eminently musical accent, was heard at no 
 great distance, as if calling to him. He opened 
 his eyes once more, raised his head, and looked 
 towards the place from whence the sounds seem- 
 ed to come, though far from being certain that 
 they existed saving in his own disordered ima- 
 gination. The vision which appeared had al- 
 most confirmed him in the opinion that his mind 
 was unsettled, and his senses in no state to serve 
 him accurately.
 
 56 ANNE OF GEIERSTEJN. 
 
 Upon the very summit of a pyramidical rock 
 that rose out of the depth of the valley, was seen 
 a female figure, so obscured by mist, that only 
 the outline could be traced. The form, reflected 
 against the sky, appeared rather the undefined 
 lineaments of a spirit than of a mortal maiden ; 
 for her person seemed as light, and scarcely 
 more opake, than the thin cloud that sur- 
 rounded her pedestal. Arthur's first belief was, 
 that the Virgin had heard his vows, and had 
 descended in person to his rescue ; and he was 
 about to recite his Ave Maria, when the voice 
 again called to him with the singular shrill 
 modulation of the mountain haloo, by which 
 the natives of the Alps can hold conference with 
 each other from one mountain ridge to another, 
 across ravines of great depth and width. 
 
 While he debated how to address this un- 
 expected apparition, it disappeared from the 
 point which it at first occupied, and presently 
 after became again visible, perched on the cliff 
 out of which projected the tree in which Arthur 
 had taken refuge. Her personal appearance, as 
 well as her dress, made it then apparent that she
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTE1N. 57 
 
 was a maiden of these mountains, familiar with 
 their dangerous paths. He saw that a beautiful 
 young woman stood before him, who regarded 
 him with a mixture of pity and wonder. 
 
 " Stranger," she at length said, " who are 
 you, and whence come you ?" 
 
 " I am a stranger, maiden, as you justly 
 term me," answered the young man, raising 
 himself as well as he could. " I left Lucerne 
 this morning, with my father, and a guide. I 
 parted with them not three furlongs from 
 hence. May it please you, gentle maiden, to 
 warn them of my safety, for I know my father 
 will be in despair upon my account ?" 
 
 " Willingly," said the maiden ; " but I think 
 my uncle, or some one of my kinsmen, must 
 have already found them, and will prove faith- 
 ful guides. Can I not aid you ? — are you wound- 
 ed — are you hurt ? We were alarmed by the 
 fall of a rock — ay, and yonder it lies, a mass of 
 no ordinary size." 
 
 As the Swiss maiden spoke thus, she ap- 
 proached so close to the verge of the precipice, 
 and looked with such indifference into the gulf,
 
 58 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 that the sympathy which connects the actor and 
 spectator upon such occasions brought back the 
 sickness and vertigo from which Arthur had just 
 recovered, and he sunk back into his former 
 more recumbent posture, with something like 
 a faint groan* 
 
 " You are then ill ?" said the maiden, who 
 observed him turn pale — " Where and what is 
 the harm you have received ?" 
 
 " None, gentle maiden, saving some bruises 
 of little import ; but my head turns, and my 
 heart grows sick, when I see you so near the 
 verge of the cliff" 
 
 " Is that all ?" replied the Swiss maiden. 
 " Know, stranger, that I do not stand on my 
 uncle's hearth with more security than I have 
 stood upon precipices, compared to which this 
 is a child's leap. You, too, stranger, if, as I 
 j udge from the traces, you have come along the 
 edge of the precipice which the earth-slide hath 
 laid bare, ought to be far beyond such weak- 
 ness, since surely you must be well entitled to 
 call yourself a cragsman." 
 
 " I might have called myself so half an hour
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 59 
 
 since," answered Arthur ; " but I think I shall 
 hardly venture to assume the name in future." 
 
 " Be not downcast," said his kind adviser, 
 " for a passing qualm, which will at times cloud 
 the spirit and dazzle the eyesight of the bravest 
 and most experienced. Raise yourself upon the 
 trunk of the tree, and advance closer to the rock 
 out of which it grows. Observe the place well. 
 It is easy for you, when you have attained the 
 lower part of the projecting stem, to gain by 
 one bold step the solid rock upon which I stand, 
 after which there is no danger or difficulty wor- 
 thy of mention to a young man, whose limbs are 
 whole, and whose courage is active." 
 
 " My limbs are indeed sound," replied the 
 youth ; " but I am ashamed to think how much 
 my courage is broken. Yet I will not disgrace 
 the interest you have taken in an unhappy wan- 
 derer, by listening longer to the dastardly sug- 
 gestions of a feeling, which till to-day has been 
 a stranger to my bosom." 
 
 The maiden looked on him anxiously, and 
 with much interest, as, raising himself cautious- 
 ly, and moving along the trunk of the tree,
 
 60 ANNE OF GE1EKSTE1N. 
 
 which lay nearly horizontal from the rock, and 
 seemed to bend as he changed his posture, the 
 youth at length stood upright, within what, on 
 level ground, had been but an extended stride 
 to the cliff on which the Swiss maiden stood. 
 But instead of being a step to be taken on the 
 level and firm ground, it was one which must 
 cross a dark abyss, at the bottom of which a 
 torrent surged and boiled with incredible fury. 
 Arthur's knees knocked against each other, his 
 feet became of lead, and seemed no longer at 
 his command ; and he experienced, in a strong- 
 er degree than ever, that unnerving influence, 
 which those who have been overwhelmed by it 
 in a situation of like peril never can forget, and 
 which others, happily strangers to its power, 
 may have difficulty even in comprehending. 
 
 The young woman discerned his emotion, and 
 foresaw its probable consequences. As the only 
 mode in her power to restore his confidence, 
 she sprung lightly from the rock to the stem of 
 the tree, on which she alighted with the ease 
 and security of a bird, and in the same instant 
 back to the cliff; and extending her hand to the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 61 
 
 stranger, " My arm," she said, u is but a slight 
 balustrade ; yet do but step forward with reso- 
 lution, and you will find it as secure as the 
 battlement of Berne." But shame now over- 
 came terror so much, that Arthur, declining as- 
 sistance which he could not have accepted with- 
 out feeling lowered in his own eyes, took heart 
 of grace, and successfully achieved the formi- 
 dable step which placed him upon the same cliff 
 with his kind assistant. 
 
 To seize her hand and raise it to his lips, in 
 affectionate token of gratitude and respect, was 
 naturally the youth's first action ; nor was it pos- 
 sible for the maiden to have prevented him from 
 doing so, without assuming a degree of prudery 
 foreign to her character, and occasion a ceremo- 
 nious debate upon a matter of no great conse- 
 quence, where the scene of action was a rock 
 scarce five feet long by three in width.
 
 62 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Cursed be the gold and silver, which persuade 
 Weak man to follow far fatiguing trade. 
 The lily peace outshines the silver store ; 
 And life is dearer than the golden ore. 
 Yet money tempts us o'er the desert brown, 
 To every distant mart and wealthy town. 
 
 Hassan, or the Camel-driver. 
 
 Arthur Philipson, and Anne of Geiers- 
 tein, thus placed together in a situation which 
 brought them into the closest possible conti- 
 guity, felt a slight degree of embarrassment ; 
 the young man, doubtless, from the fear of be- 
 ing judged a poltroon 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 sud- 
 denly in a situation of such proximity to the 
 youth whose life she had probably saved.
 
 "ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 63 
 
 u 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 Philipson and his guide had 
 been left by their young and daring companion. 
 Arthur looked in that direction ; but the plat- 
 form, 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 root," said the young woman, " to spy 
 from thence whether I could see aught 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 Geierstein, 
 to which, with your permission, I will become 
 your guide ; for you may be assured that my 
 
 12
 
 64 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 uncle Arnold will not allow you to pass far- 
 ther to-day ; and we shall but lose time by en- 
 deavouring to find your friends, who, situated 
 where you say you left them, will reach the 
 Geierstein sooner than we shall. Follow me, 
 then, or I must suppose you weary of my gui- 
 dance." 
 
 " Sooner suppose me weary of the life which 
 your guidance has in all probability saved," re- 
 plied 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 in- 
 cumbrance in walking or climbing, covered a 
 close tunic of a different colour, and came down 
 beneath the middle of the leg, but suffered the 
 ancle, in all its fine proportions, to be com- 
 pletely visible. The foot was defended by a san- 
 dal, the point of which was turned upwards, and 
 10
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 65 
 
 the crossings and knots of the strings, which se- 
 cured 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 pos- 
 sessed the health which is purchased by ha- 
 bits 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 dig- 
 nified 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 beseeming ornament 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 66 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 — 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 maid- 
 ens, to decorate the tiny cap with a heron's fea- 
 ther, 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 medal of the same costly 
 metal. 
 
 I have only to add, that the stature of the 
 young person was something above the com- 
 mon 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 yield- 
 ing graces of Venus. The noble brow, the well- 
 formed and active limbs, the firm and yet light 
 step — above all, the total absence of any thing 
 resembling the consciousness of personal beau- 
 ty, and the open and candid look, which seem- 
 ed desirous of knowing nothing that was hidden.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTETN. ()7 
 
 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 pur- 
 sued, under the guidance of this beautiful young 
 woman, was difficult and unequal, hut could not 
 he 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 ne- 
 cessary intercourse of a people so indifferent as 
 the Swiss to smooth or level paths. The maid- 
 en also gave Arthur to understand, that the pre- 
 sent road took a circuit for the purpose of gain- 
 ing that on which he was lately travelling, 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 dan-
 
 08 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ger 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 direct- 
 ing 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 nei- 
 ther extensive, nor distinguished by architectu- 
 ral ornament, possessed an air 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 per- 
 haps 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 but-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 69 
 
 tresses with which the architect had strength- 
 ened the foundation, seemed a part of the solid 
 rock itself, and a continuation of its perpendi- 
 cular ascent. As usual throughout Europe in 
 the feudal times, the principal part of the build- 
 ing 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 build- 
 ding 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 Philipson and his fair guide now stood. 
 A single arch, or rather one rib of an arch, 
 consisting of single stones, still remained, and 
 spanned the river immediately in front of the 
 waterfall. In former times this arch had ser- 
 ved for the support of a wooden drawbridge, 
 of more convenient breadth, and of such length 
 and weight as must have been rather unma- 
 nageable, had it not been lowered on some so-
 
 70 AXNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 lid 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 eighteen inches broad, and could 
 only admit the daring foe who should traverse 
 it, to a door-way, regularly defended by gate 
 and portcullis, and having flanking turrets and 
 projections, from which stones, darts, melt- 
 ed lead, and scalding water, might be poured 
 down on an enemy who should venture to ap- 
 proach Geierstein by this precarious access, the 
 possibility of such an attempt was not consider- 
 ed as diminishing the security of the garrison. 
 In the time we treat of, the castle being en- 
 tirely ruined and dismantled, and the door, 
 drawbridge, and portcullis gone, the dilapida- 
 ted gateway, and the slender arch which con- 
 nected the two sides of the stream, were used 
 as a means of communication between the banks 
 of the river, by the inhabitants of the neigh- 
 bourhood, whom habit had familiarized with 
 the dangerous nature of the passage.
 
 ANNE OF SEIERSTEIN. 71 
 
 Arthur Philipson had, in the meantime, like 
 a good bow when new strung, regained the elas- 
 ticity of feeling and character which was na- 
 tural 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 neighbouring cascade. Nor was it 
 without apprehension that he found himself per- 
 forming this perilous feat in the neighbourhood 
 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 dizzied by the 
 tumult of the waters as they shot forward from 
 the precipice above, and plunged themselves in- 
 to what seemed the fathomless gulf below. But 
 notwithstanding these feelings of agitation, the 
 natural shame to show cowardice where a beau- 
 tiful young female exhibited so much indiffer- 
 ence, and the desire to regain his character in 
 the eyes of his guide, prevented Arthur from 
 again giving way to the appalling feelings by
 
 72 ANNE OF GEIEItSTEIN. 
 
 which he had been overwhelmed a short time 
 before. Stepping firmly on, yet cautiously sup- 
 porting himself with his piked staff, he traced 
 the light footsteps of his guide along the bridge 
 of dread, and followed her through the ruined 
 sally-port, to which they ascended by stairs 
 which were equally dilapidated. 
 
 The gateway admitted them into a mass of 
 ruins, formerly a sort of court-yard to the don- 
 jon, which rose in gloomy dignity above the 
 wreck of what had been works destined for 
 external defence, or buildings for internal ac- 
 commodation. 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 Na- 
 ture often embosoms her sweetest charms, in 
 the midst of districts chiefly characterised by 
 waste and desolation. 
 
 The Castle in this aspect also rose considera- 
 bly above the neighbouring ground, but the ele- 
 vation of the site, which towards the torrent 
 was an abrupt rock, was on this side a steep cmi-
 
 ANNE OF GE1EH STEIN. 73 
 
 nence, which had been scarped like a modem 
 glacis, 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 hun- 
 dred acres, seemed scooped out of the rocks 
 and mountains, which, retaining the same sa- 
 vage character with the tract in which the tra- 
 vellers had been that morning bewildered, in- 
 closed, 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 pretence to form or symmetry, but indica- 
 ting, by the smoke which arose from it, as well 
 as the extent of the neighbouring offices, and 
 the improved and cultivated character of the 
 fields around, that it was the abode, not of 
 splendour certainly, but of ease and competence.
 
 74 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 An orchard of thriving fruit-trees extended to 
 the southward of the dwelling. Groves of wal- 
 nut 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 practised. It is now universal in Switzer- 
 land, but was, in those early days, almost exclu- 
 sively confined to a few more fortunate pro- 
 prietors, who had the rare advantage of uniting 
 intelligence with opulent, or at least easy cir- 
 cumstances. 
 
 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 au- 
 tumnal storms might be expected. On some se- 
 lected 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 proba- 
 bly, that they might be at hand when timber 
 was required for domestic use, but giving, at
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 75 
 
 the same time, a woodland character to a scene 
 otherwise agricultural. Through this mountain- 
 paradise the course of a small hrook might be 
 traced, now showing itself to the sun, which 
 had by this time dispelled the fogs, now in- 
 timating its course, by its gently sloping banks, 
 clothed in some places with lofty trees, or con- 
 cealing itself under thickets of hawthorn and 
 nut bushes. This stream, by a devious and 
 gentle course, which seemed to indicate a reluc- 
 tance to leave this quiet region, found its way 
 at length out of the sequestered domain, and, 
 like a youth hurrying from the gay and tran- 
 quil sports of boyhood into the wild career of 
 active life, finally united itself with the boiste- 
 rous torrent, which, breaking down tumultu- 
 ously from the mountains, shook the ancient 
 Tower of Geierstein as it rolled down the ad- 
 jacent rock, and then rushed howling through 
 the defile in which our youthful traveller had 
 wellnigh lost his life. 
 
 Eager as the younger Philipson was to rejoin 
 his father, he could not help pausing for a mo- 
 ment to wonder how so much beautv should be
 
 76 ANNE Or GEIEUSTEIN. 
 
 found amid such scenes of horror, and to look 
 back on the Tower of Geier stein, and on the huge 
 cliff from which it derived its name, as if to as- 
 certain, by the sight of these distinguished land- 
 marks, that he was actually in the neighbour- 
 hood of the savage wild where he had encoun- 
 tered so much danger and terror. Yet so nar- 
 row were the limits of this cultivated farm, 
 that it hardly required such a retrospect to sa- 
 tisfy the spectator that the spot susceptible of 
 human industry, and on which it seemed that a 
 considerable degree of labour had been bestow- 
 ed, bore a very small proportion to the wilder- 
 ness in which it was situated. It was on all 
 sides surrounded by lofty hills, in some places 
 rising into walls of rock, in others clothed with 
 dark and savage forests of the pine and the 
 larch, 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
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 77 
 
 countless mountains, on which the snow eter- 
 nally 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 farm-house, as the man- 
 sion might be properly styled, he saw five or 
 six persons, the foremost of whom, from his 
 gait, 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 com- 
 pany with another person of advanced age, and 
 stature wellnigh gigantic, and who, from his 
 simple yet majestic bearing, seemed the wor- 
 thy countryman of William Tell, Stauf bacher, 
 Winkelried, and other Swiss worthies, whose 
 stout hearts and hardy arms had, in the pre-
 
 78 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ceding 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 Lan- 
 damman 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 accord- 
 ingly, examining, as it seemed, the guide An- 
 tonio, upon the adventures of the strangers. 
 Anne, the conductress of Arthur Philipson, had 
 but time to say to him, " Yonder old man is 
 my uncle, Arnold Biederman, and these young 
 men are my kinsmen," when the former, with 
 the elder traveller, were close before them. The 
 Landamman, with the same propriety of feeling 
 which he had before displayed, signed to his 
 niece to move a little aside ; yet while requi- 
 ring from her an account of her morning's ex- 
 pedition, he watched the interview of the fa- 
 ther and son with as much curiosity as his 
 natural sense of complaisance permitted him to
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIX. 79 
 
 testify. It was of a character different from 
 what he had expected. 
 
 We have already described the elder Philip- 
 son 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, doubt- 
 less, 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 Biederman expected to have wit- 
 nessed. 
 
 But the English traveller, in common with 
 many of his countrymen, covered keen and 
 quick feelings with much appearance of cold- 
 ness and reserve, and thought it a weakness to 
 give unlimited sway even to the influence of the 
 most amiable and most natural emotions. Emi- 
 nently handsome in youth, his countenance, 
 still fine in his more advanced years, had an 
 expression which intimated an unwillingness 
 either to yield to passion or encourage confi- 
 dence. His pace, when he first beheld his son, 
 had been quickened, by the natural wish to meet
 
 80 ANNE OF GEIERSTEINi 
 
 him ; but be Blackened it as they drew near to 
 each other, and when they met, said in a tone 
 rather of censure and admonition, than affec- 
 tion, — " 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 froward 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 Anne, 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 render- 
 ed," said his father, " when I can study how 
 to pay them in an adequate manner ; but is it 
 well or comely, think you, that you should re- 
 ceive from a maiden the succour which it is 
 your duty as a man to extend to the weaker sex ?" 
 11
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 81 
 
 Arthur held down his head and blushed deep- 
 ly, while Arnold Biederman, sympathizingwith 
 his feelings, stepped forward and mingled in the 
 conversation. 
 
 " Never be abashed, my young guest, that 
 you have been indebted for aught of counsel or 
 assistance to a maiden of Unterwalden. 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 exam- 
 ples 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 English- 
 man, " to debate no point unnecessarily with 
 the host who has kindly harboured 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 
 
 VOL.1. I
 
 82 ANNE OF GEIEHSTEIN. 
 
 of observing the figure and features of their 
 Swiss landlord, which, I have already hinted, 
 exhibited a primeval simplicity mixed with a cer- 
 tain rude dignity, arising out of its masculine 
 and unaffected character. The dress did not 
 greatly differ in form from the habit of the fe- 
 male which we have described. It consisted of 
 an upper frock, shaped like the modern shirt, 
 and only open at the bosom, worn above a tu- 
 nic 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 mar- 
 ten, and garnished with a silver medal, was the 
 only part of the dress which displayed any thing 
 like ornament ; the broad belt which gathered 
 the garment together, was of buff leather, se- 
 cured 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 com-
 
 ANNE OF GEJERSTEIN. 83 
 
 manded respect wherever the wearer had pre- 
 sented himself, especially in those warlike days, 
 when men were judged of according to the 
 promising or unpromising qualities of their 
 thews and sinews. To those who looked at 
 Arnold Biederman in this point of view, he dis- 
 played 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 ex- 
 pressed, more resembled the character of the 
 fabled King of Gods and Men. He was attend- 
 ed by several sons and relatives, young men, 
 among whom he walked, receiving, as his unde- 
 niable due, respect and obedience, similar to that 
 which a herd of deer are observed to render to 
 the monarch stag. 
 
 While Arnold Biederman walked and spoke 
 with the elder stranger, the young men seemed 
 closely to scrutinize Arthur, and occasionally 
 interrogated in whispers their relation Anne, re- 
 ceiving from her brief and impatient answers, 
 which rather excited than appeased the vein of
 
 84 ANN'E OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 merriment in which the mountaineers indulged, 
 very much, as it seemed to the young English- 
 man, 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 is it distressing to a young 
 man, where beauty is a listener. It was some con- 
 solation 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 boors, 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.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 85 
 
 As the travellers entered the habitation of Ar- 
 nold Biederman, they found preparations made 
 in a large apartment, which served the purpose 
 of general accommodation, for ahomelybut plen- 
 tiful meal. A glance round the walls showed 
 the implements of agriculture and the chase ; 
 but the eyes of the elder Philipson rested upon a 
 leathern corselet, a long heavy halbert, and a 
 two-handed sword, which were displayed as a 
 sort of trophy. Near these, but covered with 
 dust, unfurbished and neglected, hung a hel- 
 met, with a visor, such as was used by knights 
 and men-at-arms. The golden garland, or co- 
 ronal twisted around it, though sorely tarnish- 
 ed, 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 Eng- 
 lish guest, who, acquainted in a great measure 
 with the history of the Swiss revolution, made 
 little doubt that in this relic he saw some tro- 
 phy of the ancient warfare between the inhabi- 
 tants of these mountains, and the feudal lord to 
 whom they had of yore appertained.
 
 86 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 A 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 un- 
 der Biederman's roof, sate down to a plenti- 
 ful repast of goat's flesh, fish, preparations of 
 milk of various kinds, cheese, and, for the upper 
 mess, the venison of a young chamois. The 
 Landamman himself did the honours of the ta- 
 ble with great kindness and simplicity, and urged 
 the strangers to show, by their appetite, that 
 they thought themselves as welcome as he de- 
 sired 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 Biederman to those 
 seated opposite to the window. 
 
 " It is our cousin, Rudolph of Donnerhugel," 
 answered one of Arnold's sons eagerly.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 8T 
 
 The annunciation seemed to give great plea- 
 sure to the younger part of the company, es- 
 pecially the sons of the Landamman ; 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 honours of the house to the new 
 guest. He entered presently ; a young man, un- 
 usually tall, well-proportioned and active, with 
 a quantity of dark-brown locks curling around 
 his face, together with mustachios 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 than to cover 
 it. His clothes were of the same form and ge- 
 neral fashion as those of Arnold, but made of 
 much finer cloth, the manufacture of the Ger- 
 man loom, and ornamented in a rich and fan- 
 ciful manner. One sleeve of his vest was dark 
 green, curiously laced and embroidered with 
 devices in silver, while the rest of the garment
 
 88 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 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-bilted poniard. 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 sustain- 
 ed a large medallion of the same metal. 
 
 This young gallant was instantly surround- 
 ed by the race of Biederman, among whom he 
 appeared to be considered as the model upon 
 which the Swiss youth ought to build themselves, 
 and whose gait, opinions, dress, and manners, 
 all ought to follow, who would keep pace with 
 the fashion of the day, in which he reigned an 
 acknowledged and unrivalled example. 
 
 By two persons in the company, however, it 
 seemed to Arthur Philipson, 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. Ar- 
 nold Biederman himself was at least no way 
 warm in welcoming the young Bernese, for
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 89 
 
 such was Rudolph's country. The young man 
 drew from his bosom a sealed packet, which he 
 delivered to the Landamman with demonstra- 
 tions of great respect, and seemed to expect that 
 Arnold, when he had broken the seal and per- 
 used the contents, would say something to him 
 on the subject. But the patriarch only bade 
 him be seated, and partake of their meal, and 
 Rudolph found a place accordingly next to 
 Anne of Geierstein, which was yielded to him by 
 one of the sons of Arnold with ready courtesy. 
 It seemed also to the observant young Eng- 
 lishman, that the new comer was received with 
 marked coldness by the maiden, to whom he ap- 
 peared eager and solicitous to pay his compli- 
 ments, 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 partake of the food which it of- 
 fered. He observed the gallant whisper her, and 
 look towards him. Anne gave a very brief re- 
 ply, but one of the young Biedermans, who sat 
 on his other hand, was probably more commu- 
 nicative, as the youths both laughed, and the
 
 90 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 maiden again seemed disconcerted, and blushed 
 with displeasure. 
 
 Had I either of these sons of the mountain, 
 thought young Philipson, upon six yards of le- 
 vel greensward, if there be so much flat ground 
 in this country, methinks I were more likely 
 to spoil their mirth, than to furnish food for it. 
 It is as marvellous to see such conceited boors 
 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 maid- 
 en 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 for ever. 
 
 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 consi- 
 derable size, he sent a similar goblet to Rudolph 
 Donnerhugel. " Yet you," he said, " kinsman, 
 are used to more highly flavoured wine than 
 the half-ripened grapes of Geierstein can sup- 
 ply. — Would you think it, sir merchant," he con-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 91 
 
 tinued, addressing Philipson, " there are burgh- 
 ers of Berne who send for wine for their own 
 drinking both to France and Germany ?" 
 
 " My kinsman disapproves of that," replied 
 Rudolph ; " 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 Berne proceeded : " But our weal- 
 thier burghers having some superfluous crowns, 
 think it no extravagance to barter them for a 
 goblet of better win e than our own mountains 
 can produce. But we will be more frugal when 
 we have at our disposal tuns of the wine of Bur- 
 gundy for the mere trouble of transporting 
 them." 
 
 " How mean you by that, cousin Rudolph ?" 
 said Arnold Biederman. 
 
 " Methinks, 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
 
 02 ANNE OF GEIERSTKIN. 
 
 letters ?" said Arnold ; " another mark how 
 times are changed at Berne and with the Diet of 
 Switzerland. When did all her grey-haired 
 statesmen die, that our allies should have 
 brought beardless boys into their councils ?" 
 
 " The Senate of Berne, 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 Biederman, sternly. 
 " What kind of counsellor is he who talks 
 loosely the secrets of state affairs before women 
 and strangers ? Go, Rudolph, 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 arisen, " this does not apply to you, who 
 are unused to mountain travel, and require rest 
 after it."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 93 
 
 " Under your favour, sir, not so," said the 
 elder stranger ; " we hold in England, that the 
 best refreshment after we havebeen exhausted by 
 one species of exercise, is to betake ourselves to 
 another; as riding, for example, affords more 
 relief to one fatigued by walking, than a bed of 
 down would. So, if your young men will per- 
 mit, my son will join their exercises." 
 
 " He will find them rough playmates,*' an- 
 swered the Switzer ; " but be it at your plea- 
 sure." 
 
 The young men went out accordingly to the 
 open lawn in front of the house. Anne of 
 Geierstein, and some females of the household, 
 sate down on a bank to judge which perform- 
 ed 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 c^rows colder, and the frclings
 
 94 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 heavier, a moderate cup of wine brings back 
 light thoughts, and makes the limbs supple. Yet, 
 I almost wish that Noah had never planted the 
 grape, when of late years I have seen with my 
 own eyes my countrymen swill wine like very 
 Germans, till they were like gorged swine, in- 
 capable 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 to- 
 tally 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 aught else, which our 
 valleys produce 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 oc- 
 casionally send into our remote mountains a sen- 
 sible visitor like yourself, worthy guest, whose 
 discourse shows him to bo a man of sagacity
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 95 
 
 and discernment ; for though I love not the in- 
 creasing taste for trinkets and gewgaws 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 Bale, and thence to the 
 Duke of Burgundy's leaguer ?" 
 
 " I am so, my worthy host — " said the mer- 
 chant, " 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 faith- 
 ful 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 chid yonder boy but now," answered 
 Biederman, " for speaking on public affairs with-
 
 96 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 
 
 out reflection, and before the whole family ; but 
 our tidings and my errand need not be conceal- 
 ed from a considerate person like you, who must 
 indeed soon learn it from public rumour. You 
 know doubtless the mutual hatred which sub- 
 sists between Louis XL of France, and Charles 
 of Burgundy, whom men call the Bold ; and 
 having seen these countries, as I understood 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 distribu- 
 tions of large sums amongst some of the coun- 
 sellors of our neighbours of Berne, 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 Bernese into a war with the Duke. 
 Charles, on the other hand, is acting as he fre- 
 quently does, exactly as Louis could have wished. 
 Our neighbours and allies of Berne do not, like 
 ms of tlie Forest Cantons, confine themselves to 
 13
 
 ANNE or clKI EH STEIN. 97 
 
 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, Berne 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 Forests, 
 should be bent upon war, from which it has 
 hitherto happened that the Republic has always 
 derived victory, wealth, and increase of terri- 
 tory." 
 
 " Ay, worthy host, and of glory," said Philip- 
 son, 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." 
 
 VOL. I. G
 
 98 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " You are no wise merchant, kind guest/ 1 
 answered the host, " if you regard success in 
 former desperate undertakings as an encourage- 
 ment 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 burghers of Berne. 
 Yet we will not desert our neighbours and allies 
 in a just quarrel; and it is wellnigh settled that 
 a deputation shall be sent to the Duke of Bur- 
 gundy to request redress. In this embassy the 
 General Diet now assembled at Berne have re- 
 quested that I should take some share; and 
 hence the journey in which I propose that you 
 should accompany me."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 99 
 
 " It will be much to my satisfaction to travel 
 in your company, worthy host," said the Eng- 
 lishman. " But, as I am a true man, methinks 
 your port and figure resemble an envoy of de- 
 fiance rather than a messenger of peace." 
 
 " And I too might say," replied the Switzer, 
 " that your language and sentiments, my ho- 
 noured 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 
 Philipson, 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 ban- 
 ners 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 in- 
 flicted 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 Zurich, where Switzers levelled their pikes
 
 100 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 against the bosoms of their own countrymen ; 
 and quarter was asked and refused in the same 
 kindly mountain language. From such remem- 
 brances, your warlike recollections are proba- 
 bly free." 
 
 The merchant hung down his head and press- 
 ed his forehead with his hand, as one to whom 
 the most painful thoughts were suddenly re- 
 called. 
 
 " Alas !" he said, w I deserve to feel the pain 
 which your words inflict. What nation can 
 know the woes of England, that has not felt 
 them — what eye can estimate them which has 
 not seen a land torn and bleeding with the 
 strife of two desperate factions, battles fought 
 in every province, plains heaped with slain, and 
 scaffolds drenched in blood ! Even in your quiet 
 valleys, methinks, you may have heard of the 
 Civil Wars of England ?" 
 
 " I do indeed bethink me," said the Switzer, 
 " that England had lost her possessions in France 
 during many years of bloody internal wars con- 
 cerning the colour of a rose — was it not ? — But 
 these are ended."
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTE1N. 101 
 
 " For the present," answered Philipson, " 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 eld- 
 ers in those pastoral regions, the fine form of 
 Anne of Geierstein presented itself
 
 102 ANNE Of GEIEBSTE1N. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 And now the well-known bow the master bore, 
 Turn'd on all sides, and vlew'd it o'er and o'er ; 
 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." 
 
 Pope's Homer's 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 matronly duties she is 
 called upon to discharge, and whispered some- 
 thing in her uncle's ear. 
 
 " And could not the idle-pated boys have 
 brought their own errand — what is it they want 
 that they cannot ask themselves, but must send 
 thee to beg it for them ? Had it been any thing 
 reasonable, I should have heard it dinned into
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 103 
 
 my ears by forty voices, so modest are our Swiss 
 youths become now-a-days." She stooped for- 
 ward, and again whispered in his ear, as he fondly 
 stroked her curling tresses with his ample hand, 
 and replied, " The bow of Buttisholz, 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 Stauifacher, could 
 have done."
 
 101 ANNE OF GEIEItSTElN. 
 
 As the maiden went to take the weapon from 
 the place where it hung amid the group of arms 
 which Philipson 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 deafened with tne 
 foolery of minstrels and strolling minnesingers, 
 ever since the wandering knaves have found 
 there were pence to be gathered among us. A 
 Swiss maiden should only sing Albert Ischudi'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, con- 
 siderably above six feet in length, with three 
 shafts of a cloth-yard long. Philipson asked 
 to look at the weapons, and examined them 
 closely. " It is a tough piece of yew," he said. 
 " I should know it, since I have dealt in such
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTE1N. 105 
 
 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 Biederman, with something of a repro- 
 ving glance at his companion. " Carry the bow 
 to thy kinsmen, Anne, and let him who can bend 
 it, say he beat Arnold Biederman." 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 
 Philipson, " that weapons are wielded not by 
 strength, but by art and sleight of hand. What 
 most I wonder at, is to see in this place a bow 
 made by Matthew of Doncaster, a bowyer who 
 lived at least a hundred years ago, remarkable 
 for the great toughness and strength of the wea- 
 pons which he made, and which are now become 
 somewhat unmanageable, even by an English 
 yeoman." 
 
 " How are you assured of the maker's name, 
 worthy guest ?" replied the Swiss. 
 
 " Bv old Matthew's mark," answered the
 
 106 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 
 
 Englishman, " and his initials cut upon the 
 bow. I wonder not a little to find such a wea- 
 pon here, and in such good preservation." 
 
 " It has been regularly waxed, oiled, and 
 kept in good order," said the Landamman, 
 " 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, com- 
 posedly, " 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 
 warred in Switzerland." 
 
 " Not precisely as a nation," answered Bie- 
 derman ; " but it was in my grandsire's days, 
 that a large body of roving soldiers, composed 
 of men from almost all countries, but especial- 
 ly Englishmen, Normans, and Gascons, poured 
 down on the Argau, and the districts adjacent. 
 They were headed by a great warrior called 
 Ingelram de Couci, who pretended some claims 
 upon the Duke of Austria ; to satisfy which, he 
 ravaged indifferently the Austrian territory,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 107 
 
 and that of our Confederacy. His soldiers were 
 hired warriors, — Free Companions they called 
 themselves, — that seemed to belong to no coun- 
 try, and were as brave in the fight as they were 
 cruel in their depredations. Some pause 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 ar- 
 mour, 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 bat- 
 tle. But we met them at Buttisholz, and min- 
 gled 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 bar- 
 row." 
 
 Philipson 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 man can
 
 108 ANNE OF GEIEKSTE1N. 
 
 render for his transgressions. — Heaven pardon 
 their souls !" 
 
 "Amen," replied the Landamman, "andthose 
 of all brave men. My grandsire was at the bat- 
 tle, 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." 
 
 Philipson was about to inquire further, but 
 was interrupted by a loud cry of surprise and 
 astonishment from without. 
 
 " I must out," said Biederman, " and see 
 what these wild lads are doing. It is not now 
 as formerly 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 dis- 
 puting in the same breath ; while Arthur Phi- 
 lipson stood a little apart from the rest, leaning 
 on the unbent bow with apparent indifference. 
 At the sight of the Landamman all were silent
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 109 
 
 " What means this unwonted clamour ?" he 
 said, raising a voice to which all were accus- 
 tomed 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 Berne. " 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 Lan- 
 damman. — " Nay, speak not all at once ! — Anne 
 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 tied to a 
 pole. All the young men, except the stranger, 
 had practised at it with the cross-bow and long- 
 bow, without hitting it, When I brought out
 
 110 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 the bow of Buttisliolz, I offered it first to my 
 kinsmen. None would accept of it, saying, re- 
 spected uncle, that a task too great for you, 
 must be far too difficult for them." 
 
 " They said well," answered Arnold Bieder- 
 man; "and the stranger, did he string the bow?" 
 
 " He did, my uncle, but first he wrote some- 
 thing on a piece of paper, and placed it in my 
 hands." 
 
 " And did he shoot and hit the mark ?" con- 
 tinued the surprised Switzer. 
 
 " He first," said the maiden, " removed the 
 pole a hundred yards farther than the post 
 where it stood." 
 
 " Singular !" said the Landamman, " 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 Einsiedlen !" said the old 
 man, looking up in amaze, " if your eyes really 
 
 10
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. Ill 
 
 saw this, they saw such archery as was never 
 before witnessed in the Forest States." 
 
 " I say nay to that, my revered kinsman,'* 
 replied Rudolph Donnerhugel, whose vexation 
 was apparent ; " it was mere chance, if not illu- 
 sion or witchery." 
 
 " What say'st 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 deluded 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 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."
 
 112 ANNE OF (iEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " Produce the scroll, good niece," said her 
 uncle, " and end the controversy." 
 
 " Nay, under your favour, my worthy host," 
 said Arthur, " it is but some foolish rhymes ad- 
 dressed to the maiden's own eye." 
 
 " And under your favour, sir," said the Lan- 
 damman, " whatsoever is fit for my niece's eyes 
 may greet my ears." 
 
 He took the scroll from the maiden, who blush- 
 ed deeply when she resigned it. The character in 
 which it was written, was so fine, that the Lan- 
 damman in surprise, exclaimed, " No clerk of 
 Saint 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 anew, " Ha ! verses, by Our Lady ! 
 What, have we minstrels disguised as traders ?" 
 He then opened the scroll, and read the follow- 
 ing lines : 
 
 If I hit mast, and line, and bird, 
 An English archer keeps his word. 
 Ah ! maiden, didst thou aim at me, 
 A single glance were worth the three. 
 
 Q
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 1 13 
 
 " Here is rare rhyming, my worthy guest," 
 said the Landamman, shaking his head ; " fine 
 words to make foolish maidens fain. 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 threw the poet as well as the 
 ohject of the verses into some discomposure, he 
 added gravely, " You must now allow, Rudolph 
 Donnerhugel, *that the stranger has fairly at- 
 tained the three marks which he proposed to 
 himself." 
 
 " That he has attained them is plain," answer- 
 ed 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, Rudolph !" said the Landam- 
 man ; " can spleen and envy have weight with 
 so brave a man as you, from whom my sons 
 ought to learn temperance, forbearance, and can- 
 dour, as well as manly courage and dexterity ?" 
 
 The Bernese coloured high under this rebuke, 
 to which he ventured not to attempt a reply. 
 
 VOL. I. H
 
 114. ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " To your sports till sunset, my children," 
 continued Arnold ; " while I and my worthy 
 friend occupy our time with a walk, for which 
 theevening is now favourable." 
 
 " Methinks," 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 re- 
 conciles us to the misfortunes of our own time, 
 by showing that our ancestors, who were perhaps 
 more intelligent or more powerful, have never- 
 theless, in their days, encountered cares and 
 distresses similar to those which we now groan 
 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 car- 
 ried them by degrees from the limits of the 
 lawn, where shout, and laugh, and halloo, were 
 again revived. Young Philipson, whose suc- 
 cess as an archer had obliterated all recollec- 
 tion of former failure, made other attempts to 
 mingle in the manly pastimes of the country,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 115 
 
 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 Rudolph Donnerhugel saw 
 with resentment that he was no longer without 
 a rival in the opinion of his male cousins, perhaps 
 of his kinswoman also. The proud young Swiss 
 reflected with bitterness that he had fallen under 
 the Landamman's displeasure, declined in re- 
 putation 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
 
 1 1 G ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 Ernest whistled through the air like a falcon 
 when she stoops down the wind !" And then 
 proceeded in a deep low voice, "You merchants 
 sell gloves — do you ever deal in single gauntlets, 
 or only in pairs ?" 
 
 " I sell no single glove," said Arthur, in- 
 stantly apprehending him, and sufficiently dis- 
 posed to resent the scornful looks of the Bernese 
 champion during the time of their meal, and his 
 having but lately imputed his successful shoot- 
 ing to chance or sorcery, — " I sell no single 
 glove, sir, but never refuse to exchange one." 
 
 " You are apt, I see," said Rudolph ; " 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 each redeem his own ?" 
 
 " With our good swords," said Arthur Phi- 
 lipson. 
 
 " In armour, 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,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 117 
 
 Sir Switzer, I hold enough for the purpose. — 
 Name time and place." 
 
 " The old castle-court at Geierstein," replied 
 Rudolph ; " 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 Ulrick has made a cast beyond 
 Ernest. — There is my glove, in token I will not 
 forget the flask of wine." 
 
 " And there is mine," said Arthur, " in to- 
 ken I will drink it with you merrily." 
 
 Thus, amid the peaceful though rough sports 
 of their companions, did these two hot-headed 
 youths contrive to indulge their hostile inclina- 
 tions towards each other, by settling a meeting 
 of deadly purpose.
 
 118 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 I was one 
 
 Who loved the greenwood bank and lowing herd, 
 The russet prize, the lowly peasant's life, 
 Season'd with sweet content, more than the halls 
 Where revellers feast to fever-height. Believe me, 
 There ne'er was poison mix'd in maple bowl. 
 
 Anonymi MS. 
 
 Leaving the young persons engaged with 
 their sports, the Landamman of Unterwalden 
 and the elder Philipson walked on in company, 
 conversing chiefly on the political relations of 
 France, England, and Burgundy, until the con- 
 versation 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 habit- 
 ation in its time," said Philipson. 
 
 " They were a proud and powerful race who 
 held it," replied the Landamman. " The Counta
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 119 
 
 of Geierstein have a history which runs back 
 to the times of the old Helvetians, and their 
 deeds are reported to have matched their anti- 
 quity. But all earthly grandeur has an end, 
 and free men tread the ruins of their feudal 
 castle, at the most distant sight of whose tur- 
 rets serfs were formerly obliged to vail their 
 bonnets, if they would escape the chastisement 
 of contumacious rebels." 
 
 " I observe," said the merchant, " engraved 
 on a stone under yonder turret, the crest, I con- 
 ceive, of the last family, a vulture perched on a 
 rock, descriptive, doubtless, of the word Geier- 
 stein." 
 
 " It is the ancient cognizance of the family," 
 replied Arnold Biederman, " and, as you say, 
 expresses the name of the castle, being the same 
 with that of the knights who 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 Buttisholz ?"
 
 120 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " And you, fair sir," replied the Landamman, 
 " would, I perceive, from the prejudices of your 
 education, regard the one victory with as unplea- 
 sant 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 de- 
 stroyed 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 Lan- 
 damman ?" said Philipson. " Are not you your- 
 self the occupant of this place ?" 
 
 "And you think, probably," answered Arnold, 
 6{ because I live like the other shepherds, wear 
 homespun grey, and hold the plough 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
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN'. 121 
 
 more ancient nobility than that of which the 
 remains are to be found in my native country. 
 But they have voluntarily resigned the oppres- 
 sive part of their feudal power, and are no longer 
 regarded as wolves amongst the flock, but as 
 sagacious mastiffs, who attend the sheep in time 
 of peace, and are prompt in their defence 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 distin- 
 guished birth, " you bear not the name, worthy 
 sir, of your fathers — They were, you say, the 
 Counts of Geierstein, and you are " 
 
 " Arnold Biederman, at your command," 
 answered the magistrate. "But know, — 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 falcon's feather into my 
 cap, and call myself Arnold, Count of Geier- 
 stein. No man could gainsay me — though whe- 
 ther it would become my Lord Count to drive 
 his bullocks to the pasture, and whether his Ex-
 
 122 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 cellency the High and Well-born could, without 
 derogation, sow a field or reap it, are questions 
 which should be settled beforehand. I see you 
 are confounded, my respected guest, at my de- 
 generacy ; 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 exten- 
 sive, much after the mode of feudal barons — 
 that is, they were sometimes the protectors and 
 patrons, but oftener the oppressors of their 
 subjects. But when my grandfather, Heinrich 
 of Geierstein, flourished, he not only joined the 
 Confederates to repel Ingelram de Couci 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 Confe- 
 derates, and contributed by his skill aud valour 
 to the decisive victory at Sempach, in which 
 Leopold lost his life, and the flower of Aus- 
 trian chivalry fell around him. My father, 
 Count Wiliiewald, followed the same coarse,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 123 
 
 boili from inclination and policy. He united 
 himself closely with the state of Unterwalden, 
 became a citizen of the Confederacy, and distin- 
 guished himself so much, that he was chosen Lan- 
 damman of the Republic. He had two sons, — 
 myself, and a younger brother, Albert ; and pos- 
 sessed, 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 honourable condition, of a free citizen of Un- 
 terwalden, possessing such influence among his 
 equals in the Canton as might be acquired by his 
 father's merits and his own. When Albert was 
 twelve 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 splendour, 
 seemed to me a weary display of tiresome and 
 useless ceremonials. Our father explained his
 
 J 2'i ANNE OF GEIEKSTE1N. 
 
 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 es- 
 teemed wealth. The tears gushed from Albert's 
 eyes — c And must my brother,' he said, * be a no- 
 ble Count, honoured and followed by vassals and 
 attendants, and I a home-spun peasant among 
 the grey-bearded shepherds of Unterwalden ? — 
 No, father — I respect your will — but I will not 
 sacrifice my own rights. Geierstein is a fief 
 held of the empire, and the laws entitle me 
 to my equal half of the lands. If my bro- 
 ther 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 in- 
 terfere in her affairs — appeal to the will of a 
 foreign prince from the pleasure of thy father.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 125 
 
 Go, but never again look me in the face, and 
 dread my eternal malediction.' Albert was 
 about to reply with vehemence, when I entreat- 
 ed him to be silent and hear me speak. I had, I 
 said, all my life loved the mountain better than 
 the plain ; 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. 6 Let me, therefore,' 
 said I, f be a citizen of the republic of Unterwal- 
 den ; you will relieve me of a thousand cares ; 
 and let my brother Albert wear the coronet and 
 bear the honours of Geierstein.' After some 
 farther discussion, my father was at length con- 
 tented to adopt my proposal, in order to attain 
 the object which he had so much at heart. Al- 
 bert 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 si- 
 tuated, and my neighbours called me Arnold 
 Biederman." 
 
 "And if Biederman," said the merchant,
 
 12() ANNE OF GEIEBSTEIN. 
 
 " means, as I understand the word, a man of 
 worth, candour, and generosity, I know none on 
 whom the epithet 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 practise. Proceed, I pray 
 you, with the history of your house, if the re- 
 cital be not painful to you." 
 
 " I have little more to say," replied the Lan- 
 damman. " My father died soon after the set- 
 tlement of his estate in the manner I have told 
 you. My brother had other possessions in 
 Swabia and Westphalia, and seldom visited his 
 paternal castle, which was chiefly occupied by 
 a seneschal, a man so obnoxious to the vassals 
 of the family, that but for the protection af- 
 forded 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 oc- 
 casional visits to Geierstein afford his vassals 
 much relief, or acquire any popularity for him- 
 self. He heard with the ears and saw with the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 127 
 
 eyes of his cruel and interested steward, Ital 
 Schreckenwald, and would not listen even to my 
 interference and admonition. Indeed, though 
 he always demeaned himself with personal kind- 
 ness towards me, I helieve he considered me as 
 a dull and poor-spirited clown, who had dis- 
 graced 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 my 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 Westphalia, but his bridal-bed was 
 less fruitful ; he had only one daughter, Anne 
 of Geierstein. Then came on the wars between 
 the city of Zurich and our Forest Cantons, in 
 which so much blood was shed, and when our 
 7
 
 128 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 brethren of Zurich were so ill advised as to em- 
 brace the alliance of Austria. Their Emperor 
 strained every nerve to avail himself of the fa- 
 vourable opportunity afforded by the disunion of 
 the Swiss ; and engaged all with whom he had 
 influence to second his efforts. With my bro- 
 ther he was but too successful ; for Albert not 
 only took arms in the Emperor's cause, but ad- 
 mitted into the strong fortress of Geierstein a 
 band of Austrian soldiers, with whom the wick- 
 ed Ital Schreckenwald laid waste the whole 
 country, excepting my little patrimony." 
 
 " It came to a severe pass with you, my wor- 
 thy 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 Bie- 
 derman. " 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 
 11
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEJN. 129 
 
 slew my youngest son, who died, alas ! in defence 
 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 Unterwalden, 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 pro- 
 tectors of whose house of late years had been a 
 latch and a shepherd's cur. The castle was there- 
 fore dismantled, as you see, by order of the elders 
 of the Canton ; and I even think, that consider- 
 ing the uses it was too often put to, I look with 
 more pleasure on the rugged remains of Geier- 
 stein, 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 y<mr patriotic exertions ?" 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 130 ANNK <)[■ (iEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " He was, as I learnt," answered the Lan- 
 tlamman, "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 
 Freyenbach, but my brother was prevented from 
 attempting the execution of his vindictive pur- 
 pose by a wound from an arrow, which occa- 
 sioned 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 St Jacob, which brought 
 our brethren of Zurich 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 forbore in consider- 
 ation of what they thought my good service. 
 When the sentence was intimated to the Count 
 of Geierstein, lie returned an answer of defiance; 
 yet a singular circumstance showed us not long
 
 ANNE OF GEIER9TEIN. 191 
 
 afterwards that lie retained an attachment to 
 his country, and amidst his resentment against 
 me his hrother, did justice to my unaltered af- 
 fection for him." 
 
 " I would pledge my credit," said the mer- 
 chant, " that what follows relates to yonder 
 fair maiden, your niece ?" 
 
 " You guess rightly," said the Landamman. 
 " For some time we heard, though indistinctly, 
 (for we have, as you know, but little communi- 
 cation with foreign countries, ) that my hrother 
 was high in favour at the court of the Emperor, 
 but latterly that he had fallen under suspicion, 
 and, in the course of some of those revolutions 
 common at the courts of princes, had been dri- 
 ven 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 fur- 
 ther side of the river, had passed the narrow 
 bridge as usual, and was walking through the 
 court-yard which we have lately left, (for their 
 walk was now turned homeward,) when a voice 
 said, in the German language, ' Uncle, have 
 compassion upon me !' As I looked around,
 
 132 ANNE OF GEIEBSTEIN. 
 
 I beheld a girl of ten years old approach 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 suppli- 
 cation, while mortal terror was painted upon her 
 countenance. — ' Am I your uncle, little maid- 
 en ?' 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 
 opinions so unfavourable to your kinsman, has 
 brought you hither, to see if he resembles the 
 picture you have received of him ?' — c It was 
 Ital Schreckenwald that brought me hither,* 
 said the girl, only half comprehending the na- 
 ture of my question. — « Ital 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, < Ital Schreckenwald !' and the caitiff 
 issued from his place of concealment, and stood 
 before me, with that singular indifference to dan-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 133 
 
 ger 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 Eng- 
 lishman, fiercely. 
 
 " I had wellnigh 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 contri- 
 buted 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. * Doff 
 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 mes- 
 senger the meed I dearly owe him. Proceed 
 with thy tale, and rid me of thy hateful pre- 
 sence.' — * Albert Count of Geierstein, thy lord 
 and my lord,' proceeded Schreckenwald, ' ha-
 
 13 1 ANNE of geierstein. 
 
 ving on his hand wars, and other affairs of 
 weight, sends his daughter, the Countess Anne, 
 to thy charge, and graces thee so far as to in- 
 trust to thee her support and nurture, until it 
 shall suit his purposes to require her back from 
 thee; and he desires that thou apply to her main- 
 tenance the rents and profits of the lands of 
 Geierstein, which thou hast usurped from him.' 
 — * Ital Schreckenwald,' I replied, ; I will not 
 stop to ask if this mode of addressing me be ac- 
 cording to my brother's directions, or thine own 
 insolent pleasure. If circumstances have, as 
 thou sayest, deprived my niece of her natural 
 protector, I will be to her as a father, nor shall 
 she want aught which I have to give her. The 
 lands of Geierstein are forfeited to the state, the 
 castle is ruinous, as thou seest, and it is much 
 of thy crimes that the house of my fathers is 
 desolate. But where I dwell Anne of Geier- 
 stein 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 arc stained with the blood
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 135 
 
 of the son.' The wretch retired as I spoke, but 
 took his leave with his usual determined in- 
 solence of manner. — ' Farewell,' he said, * Count 
 of the Plough and Harrow — fare well, noble com- 
 panion of paltry burghers !' He disappeared, 
 and released me from the strong temptation un- 
 der which I laboured, and which urged me to 
 stain with his blood the place which had witness- 
 ed his cruelty and his crimes. I conveyed my 
 niece to my house, and soon convinced her that 
 I was her sincere friend. I inured her, as if she 
 had been my daughter, to all our mountain ex- 
 ercises ; and while she excels in these the maid- 
 ens of the district, there 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 breed- 
 ing. Yet they are so happily mixed with sim- 
 plicity and courtesy, that Anne 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
 
 130 ANNE OF GEIER8TEIN. 
 
 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 Landam- 
 man, " 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 Donnerhugel, 
 is brave, and highly esteemed by his fellow-citi- 
 zens ; 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 Anne for seven years and 
 upwards, has, by a letter which I have lately 
 received, demanded that she shall be restored
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 137 
 
 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 Ital Schreckenwald — 
 Read it, I pray you, aloud." 
 
 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 Geier- 
 stein, called Arnold Bicdcrman.' A postscript
 
 138 ANNE OF GElERSTElfcr. 
 
 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 offence 
 and recent obligation. The speech of his mes- 
 senger was that of a malicious vassal, desirous 
 of venting his own spite under pretence of doing 
 his lord's errand." 
 
 " I so receive both," replied Arnold Bieder- 
 man. 
 
 " And do you intend," continued the mer- 
 chant, " to resign this beautiful and interesting 
 creature to the conduct of her father, wilful 
 as he seems to be, without knowing what his 
 condition is, or what his power of protecting 
 her ?" 
 
 The Landamman hastened 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 travelling 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 to- 
 wards the court of Charles, I have determined
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 139 
 
 that Anne 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 un- 
 der my charge. — And now, sir, having told you 
 of my family affairs at some greater length 
 than was necessary, I must crave your atten- 
 tion as a wise man, to what farther I have to 
 say. You know the disposition which young 
 men and women naturally have to talk, jest, 
 and sport with each other, out of which prac- 
 tice 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 Anne of Geier- 
 stein cannot, with propriety on her part, be 
 made the object of his thoughts or attentions." 
 The merchant coloured with resentment, 
 or something like it. " I asked not to join your 
 company, Sir Landamman — it was you who re- 
 quested mine," he said ; " if my son and I have 
 since become in any respect the objects of your 
 IS
 
 MO ANNE OF GElERSTEIN. 
 
 suspicion, we will gladly pursue our way sepa- 
 rately." 
 
 " Nay, be not angry, worthy guest," said the 
 Landamman ; " we Switzers do not rashly har- 
 bour suspicions ; and that we may not harbour 
 them, we speak respecting the circumstances 
 out of which they might arise, more plainly than 
 is the wont of more civilized countries. When 
 I proposed to yoa to be my companion on the 
 journey, to speak the truth, though it may dis- 
 please a father's ear, I regarded your son as a 
 soft, faint-hearted youth, who was, as yet at 
 least, too timid and milky-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 emprize of the 
 bow, long thought unattainable, and with which 
 a popular report attaches an idle prophecy. He 
 has wit to make verses, and knows doubtless 
 how to recommend himself by other accomplish- 
 ments which bind young persons to each other, 
 though they are lightly esteemed by men whoso 
 beards arc mixed with grey, like yours, friend
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 141 
 
 merchant, and mine own. 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 any one 
 looking towards his daughter who hath not the 
 advantage of noble blood, or who hath, what he 
 would call, debased himself by attention to mer- 
 chandise, to the cultivation of land — in a word, 
 to any art that is useful. Should your son love 
 Anne of Geierstein, he prepares for himself dan- 
 ger and disappointment. And, now you know 
 the whole, — I ask you, Do we travel together 
 or apart ?" 
 
 " Even as ye list, 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 per- 
 form 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
 
 142 AWF. OF GEIEBSTEIN. 
 
 never seriously disobeyed my commands, and I 
 will have an eye upon his motions." 
 
 " Enough, my friend," said the Landamman; 
 " 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 recon- 
 quer Normandy, Maine, and Gascony, the an- 
 cient appanages 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,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 143 
 
 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 am- 
 bitious 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 lute 
 to lull him to rest, for the turf of France and 
 the reveillee of an alarm trumpet." 
 
 " It is the better for us should it prove so," 
 said the Landamman ; " for if England and 
 Burgundy were to dismember France, as in our 
 fathers' days was nearly accomplished, Duke 
 Charles would then have leisure to exhaust his 
 long-hoarded vengeance against our confede- 
 racy." 
 
 As they conversed thus, they attained once 
 more the lawn in front of Arnold Biederman's 
 mansion, where the contention of the young men 
 had given place to the dance performed by tho 
 young persons of both sexes. The dance was
 
 144 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 led by Anne of Geierstein, and the youthful 
 stranger ; which, although it was the most natu- 
 ral arrangement, where the one was a guest, 
 and the other represented the mistress of the 
 family, occasioned the Landamman's exchan- 
 ging a glance with the elder Philipson, as if it 
 had held some relation to the suspicions he had 
 recently expressed. 
 
 But so soon as her uncle and his elder guest 
 appeared, Anne 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 attend- 
 ance. Philipson observed, that his host listened 
 seriously to his niece's communication ; and 
 nodding in his frank manner, seemed to inti- 
 mate that her request should receive a favour- 
 able consideration. 
 
 The family were presently afterwards sum- 
 moned to attend the evening meal, which con- 
 sisted chiefly of the excellent fish afforded by 
 the neighbouring streams and lakes. A large 
 cup, containing what was called the schlaf-trvnl;, 
 or sleeping drink, then went round, which was 
 
 8
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 145 
 
 first quaffed by the master of the household, 
 then modestly tasted by the maiden, next pled- 
 ged 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 luxu- 
 rious 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 house- 
 hold were locked in sound repose. 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 146 ANNF. OF GF.IEUSTK1V. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 When we two meet we meet like rushing torrents; 
 Like warring winds, like flames from various points, 
 That mate each other's fury— there is nought 
 Of elemental strife, were fiends to guide it, 
 Can match the wrath of man. 
 
 Frenaid. 
 
 The elder of our two travellers, though a 
 strong man and familiar with fatigue, slept 
 sounder and longer than usual on the morning 
 which was now beginning to dawn, but his son 
 Arthur had that upon his mind which early in- 
 terrupted his repose. 
 
 The encounter with the bold Switzer, a cho- 
 sen man of a renowned race of warriors, was an 
 engagement, which, in the opinion of the period 
 in which he lived, was not to be delayed or bro- 
 ken. He left his father's side, avoiding as much 
 as possible the risk of disturbing him, though 
 even in that case the circumstance would not
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 147 
 
 have excited any attention, as he was in the ha- 
 bit of rising early, in order to make prepara- 
 tions for the day's journey, to see that the guide 
 was on his duty, and that the mule had his pro- 
 vender, and to discharge similar offices which 
 might otherwise have given trouble to his father. 
 The old man, however, fatigued with the exer- 
 tions of the preceding day, slept, as we have 
 said, more soundly than his wont, and Arthur, 
 arming himself with his good sword, sallied out 
 to the lawn in front of the Landamman's dwell- 
 ing, amid the magic dawn of a beautiful har- 
 vest morning in the Swiss mountains. 
 
 The sun was just about to kiss the top of the 
 most gigantic of that race of Titans, though the 
 long shadows still lay on the rough grass, which 
 crisped under the young man's feet with a 
 strong intimation of frost. But Arthur looked 
 not round on the landscape however lovely, 
 which lay waiting one flash from the orb of day 
 to start into brilliant existence. He drew the 
 belt of his trusty sword which he was in the 
 act of fastening when he left the house, and ere 
 he had secured the buckle, ho was many paces
 
 148 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 on his way towards the place where he was to 
 use it. 
 
 It was still the custom of that military pe- 
 riod, to regard a summons to combat as a sa- 
 cred engagement, preferable to all others which 
 could be formed ; and stifling whatever inward 
 feelings of reluctance Nature might oppose to 
 the dictates of fashion, the step of a gallant to 
 the place of encounter was required to be as free 
 and ready, as if he had been going to a bridal. 
 I do not know whether this alacrity was alto- 
 gether real on the part of Arthur Philipson ; 
 but if it were otherwise, neither his look nor 
 pace betrayed the secret. 
 
 Having hastily traversed the fields and groves 
 which separated the Landamman's residence 
 from the old castle of Geierstein, he entered the 
 court-yard from the side where the castle over- 
 looked the land ; and nearly in the same instant 
 his almost gigantic antagonist, who looked yet 
 more tall and burly by the pale morning light 
 than he had seemed the preceding evening, 
 appeared ascending from the precarious bridge 
 beside the torrent, having reached Geierstein by
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 149 
 
 a different route from that pursued by the Eng- 
 lishman. 
 
 The young champion of Berne had hanging 
 along his back one of those huge two-handed 
 swords, the blade of which measured five feet, 
 and which were wielded with both hands. These 
 were almost universally used by the Swiss; 
 for, besides the impression which such wea- 
 pons were calculated to make upon the array 
 of the German men-at-arms, whose armour 
 was impenetrable to lighter swords, they were 
 also well calculated to defend mountain passes, 
 where the great bodily strength and agility of 
 those who bore them, enabled the combatants, 
 in spite of their weight and length, to use them 
 with much address and effect. One of these 
 gigantic swords hung around Rudolf Donner- 
 hugel's neck, the point rattling against his heel, 
 and the handle extending itself over his left 
 shoulder, considerably above his head. He car- 
 ried another in his hand. 
 
 " Thou art punctual," he called out to Ar- 
 thur Philipson, in a voice which was distinctly 
 heard above the roar of the waterfall, which it
 
 150 ANNE OF GEIEIISTEIN. 
 
 seemed to rival in sullen force. " But I judged 
 thou wouldst come without a two-handed sword. 
 There is my kinsman Ernest , s,' , he said, throw- 
 ing on the ground the weapon which he carried, 
 with the hilt towards the young Englishman. 
 " Look, stranger, that thou disgrace it not, for 
 my kinsman will never forgive me if thou dost. 
 Or thou mayst have mine if thou likest it bet- 
 ter." 
 
 The Englishman looked at the weapon, with 
 some surprise, to the use of which he was totally 
 unaccustomed. 
 
 " The challenger," he said, " in all countries 
 where honour is known, accepts the arms of 
 the challenged." 
 
 " He who fights on a Swiss mountain, fights 
 with a Swiss brand," answered Rudolf. " Think 
 you our hands are made to handle penknives ?" 
 
 " Nor are ours made to wield scythes," said 
 Arthur ; and muttered betwixt his teeth, as 
 he looked at the sword, which the Swiss con- 
 tinued to offer him — " Usum non habeo, I have 
 not proved the weapon." 
 
 " Do you repent the bargain you have made?"
 
 ANNE OF GE1E11STEIN. 151 
 
 said the Swiss ; " if so, cry craven, and return 
 in safety. Speak plainly, instead of prattling 
 Latin like a clerk or a shaven monk." 
 
 " No, proud man," replied the Englishman, 
 " I ask thee no forbearance. I thought but of 
 a combat between a shepherd and a giant, in 
 which God gave the victory to him who had 
 worse odds of weapons than falls to my lot to- 
 day. I will fight as I stand ; my own good sword 
 shall serve my need now, as it has done before." 
 
 " Content ! — But blame not me who offered 
 thee equality of weapons," said the mountaineer. 
 " And now hear me. This is a fight for life or 
 death — yon waterfall sounds the alarum for our 
 conflict. — Yes, old bellower," he continued, 
 looking back, " it is long since thou hast heard 
 the noise of battle ; — and look at it ere we begin, 
 stranger, for if you fall, I will commit your 
 body to its waters." 
 
 " And if thou fall'st, proud Swiss," answered 
 Arthur, " as well I trust thy presumption leads 
 to destruction, I will have thee buried in the 
 church at Einsiedlen, where the priests shall 
 sing masses for thy soul — thy two-handed sword
 
 152 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 shall be displayed above thy grave, and a scroll 
 shall tell the passenger, Here lies a bear's cub 
 of Berne, slain by Arthur the Englishman. " 
 
 " The stone is not in Switzerland, rocky as it 
 is," said Rudolf, scornfully, " that shall bear 
 that inscription. Prepare thyself for battle." 
 
 The Englishman cast a calm and deliberate 
 glance around the scene of action — a court-yard, 
 partly open, partly encumbered with ruins, in 
 less and larger masses. 
 
 Methinks, said he to himself, a master of 
 lfi«Mveapon, with the instructions of Botta- 
 ferma of Florence in his remembrance, a light 
 heart, a good blade, a firm hand, and a just 
 cause, might make up a worse odds than two 
 feet of steel. 
 
 Thinking thus, and imprinting on his mind 
 as much as the time would permit, every cir- 
 cumstance of the locality around him which 
 promised advantage in the combat, and taking 
 his station in the middle of the court-yard where 
 the ground was entirely clear, he flung his cloak 
 from him, and drew his sword. 
 
 Rudolph had at first believed that hi* foreign
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 153 
 
 antagonist was an effeminate youth, who would 
 he swept from before him at the first flourish 
 of his tremendous weapon. But the firm and 
 watchful attitude assumed by the young man, 
 reminded the Swiss of the deficiencies of his own 
 unwieldy implement, and made him determine 
 to avoid any precipitation which might give ad- 
 vantage to an enemy who seemed both daring 
 and vigilant. He unsheathed his huge sword, 
 by drawing it over the left shoulder, an opera- 
 tion which required some little time, and might 
 have offered formidable advantage to his anta- 
 gonist, had Arthur's sense of honour permit- 
 ted him to begin the attack ere it was com- 
 pleted. The Englishman remained firm, how- 
 ever, until the Swiss, displaying his bright 
 brand to the morning sun, made three or four 
 flourishes as if to prove its weight, and the fa- 
 cility with which he wielded it — then stood firm 
 within sword-stroke of his adversary, grasp- 
 ing his weapon with both hands, and advancing 
 it a little before his body, with the blade pointed 
 straight upwards. The Englishman, on the con- 
 trary* carried his sword in one hand, holding it
 
 154 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 across his face in a horizontal position, so as to 
 be at once ready to strike, thrust, or puny. 
 
 " Strike, Englishman !" said the Switzer, 
 after they had confronted each other in this 
 manner for about a minute. 
 
 " The longest sword should strike first," 
 said Arthur; and the words had not left his 
 mouth when the Swiss sword rose, and de- 
 scended with a rapidity which, the weight and 
 size of the weapon considered, appeared por- 
 tentous. No parry, however dexterously in- 
 terposed, could have baffled the ruinous de- 
 scent of that dreadful weapon, by which the 
 champion of Berne had hoped at once to begin 
 the battle and end it. But young Philipson 
 had not over-estimated the justice of his own 
 eye, or the activity of his limbs. Ere the blade 
 descended, a sudden spring to one side carried 
 him from beneath its heavy sway, and before 
 the Swiss could again raise his sword aloft, he 
 received a wound, though a slight one, upon the 
 left arm. Irritated at the failure and at the 
 wound, the Switzer heaved up his sword once 
 more, and availing himself of a strength eorrc- 
 11
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 155 
 
 sponding to his size, be discharged towards his 
 adversary a succession of blows, downright, 
 athwart, horizontal, and from left to right, with 
 such surprising strength and velocity, that it 
 required all the address of the young English- 
 man, by parrying, shifting, eluding, or retreat- 
 ing, to evade a storm, of which every individual 
 blow seemed sufficient to cleave a solid rock. 
 The Englishman was compelled to give ground, 
 now backwards^ now swerving to the one side 
 or the other, now availing himself of the frag- 
 ments of the ruins, but watching all the while, 
 with the utmost composure, the moment when 
 the strength of his enraged enemy might become 
 somewhat exhausted, or when by some improvi- 
 dent or furious blow he might again lay him- 
 self open to a close attack. The latter of these 
 advantages had nearly occurred, for in the mid- 
 dle of his headlong charge, theSwitzer stumbled 
 over a large stone concealed among the long 
 grass, and ere he could recover himself, recei- 
 ved a severe blow across the head from his an- 
 tagonist. It lighted upon his bonnet, the lining 
 of which enclosed a small steel cap, so that he
 
 156 ANNE OI GEIEESTEIK. 
 
 escaped unwounded, and springing up, renew- 
 ed the battle with unabated fury, though it 
 seemed to the young Englishman with breath 
 somewhat short, and blows dealt with more 
 caution. 
 
 They were still contending with equal fortune, 
 when a stern voice, rising over the clash of 
 swords, as well as the roar of waters, called out 
 in a commanding tone, M On your lives, for- 
 bear !" 
 
 The two combatants sunk the points of their 
 swords, not very sorry perhaps for the inter- 
 ruption of a strife which must otherwise have 
 had a deadly termination. They looked round, 
 and theLandamman stood before them, with an- 
 ger frowning on his broad and expressive fore- 
 head. 
 
 f* How now, boys !" he said ; " are you guests 
 of Arnold Biederman, and do you dishonour his 
 house by acts of violence more becoming the 
 wolves of the mountains, than beings to whom 
 the great Creator has given a form after his 
 own likeness, and an immortal soul to be saved 
 by penance and repentance ?"
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 157 
 
 " Arthur," said the elder Philipson, who had 
 come up at the same time with their host, 
 " what frenzyis this ? Are your duties of so light 
 and heedless a nature, as to give time and place 
 for quarrels and combats with every idle boor 
 who chances to be boastful at once and bull- 
 headed ?" 
 
 The young men, whose strife had ceased at 
 the entrance of these unexpected spectators, 
 stood looking at each other, and resting on their 
 swords. 
 
 " Rudolph Donnerhugel," said the Landam- 
 man, " give thy sword to me — to me, the owner 
 of this ground, the master of this family, and 
 magistrate of the canton." 
 
 " And which is more," answered Rudolph, 
 submissively, " to you who are Arnold Bieder- 
 man, at whose command every native of these 
 mountains draws his sword or sheathes it." 
 
 He gave his two-handed sword to the Lan- 
 damman. 
 
 " Now, by my honest word," said Biederman, 
 " it is the same with which thy father Stephen 
 fought so gloriously at Scmpach, abreast with
 
 158 ANNE OF GETERSTEIN. 
 
 the famous De Winkelried ! Shame it is, that it 
 should be drawn on a helpless stranger. — And 
 you, young sir," continued the Swiss, address- 
 ing Arthur, while his father said at the same 
 time, " Young man, yield up your sword to the 
 Landamman.' , 
 
 M It shall not need, sir," replied the young 
 Englishman, " since, for my part, I hold our 
 strife at an end. This gallant gentleman called 
 me hither on a trial, as I conceive, of courage : I 
 can give my unqualified testimony to his gallan- 
 try and swordmanship; and as I trust he will say 
 nothing to the shame of my manhood, I think 
 our strife has lasted long enough for the pur- 
 pose which gave rise to it." 
 
 " Too long for me," said Rudolph, frankly ; 
 " the green sleeve of my doublet, which I wore 
 of that colour in love to the Forest Cantons, is 
 now stained into as dirty a crimson as could 
 have been done by any dyer in Ypres or Ghent. 
 But I heartily forgive the brave stranger who 
 has spoiled my jerkin, and given its master a 
 lesson he will not soon forget. Had all Eng- 
 lishmen been like your guest, worthy kinsman.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 159 
 
 methinks the mound at Buttisholz had hardly 
 risen so high." 
 
 " Cousin Rudolph," said the Landamman, 
 smoothing his brow as his kinsman spoke, " I 
 have ever thought thee as generous as thou art 
 hair- brained and quarrelsome; and you, my 
 young guest, may rely, that when a Swiss says 
 the quarrel is over, there is no chance of its 
 being renewed. We are not like the men of the 
 valleys to the eastward, who nurse revenge as 
 if it were a favourite child. And now, join 
 hands, my children, and let us forget this fool- 
 ish feud." 
 
 " Here is my hand, brave stranger," said 
 Donnerhugel ; " thou hast taught me a trick of 
 fence, and when we have broken our fast, we 
 will, by your leave, to the forest, where I will 
 teach you a trick of woodcraft in return. When 
 your foot hath half the experience of your hand, 
 and your eye hath gained a portion of the stea- 
 diness of your heart, you will not find many 
 hunters to match you." 
 
 Arthur, with all the ready confidence of youth, 
 readily embraced a proposition so frankly made,
 
 160 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 and before they reached the house, various sub- 
 jects of sport were eagerly discussed between 
 them, with as much cordiality as if no disturb- 
 ance of their concord had taken place. 
 
 " Now this," said the Landamman, " is as it 
 should be. I am ever ready to forgive the 
 headlong impetuosity of our youth, if they will 
 be but manly and open in their reconciliation, 
 and bear their heart on their tongue, as a true 
 Swiss should." 
 
 " These two youths had made but wild work 
 of it, however," said Philipson, " had not your 
 care, my worthy host, learned of their rendez- 
 vous, and called me to assist in breaking their 
 purpose. May I ask how it came to your know- 
 ledge so opportunely ?" 
 
 " It was e'en through means of my domestic 
 fairy," answered Arnold Biedermau, " who 
 seems born for the good luck of my family, — I 
 mean my niece, Anne, who had observed a glove 
 exchanged betwixt the two young braggadocios, 
 and heard them mention Gcierstein and break 
 of day. O, sir, it is much to see a woman's sharp- 
 ness of wit ! it would have been long enough
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 1G1 
 
 ere any of my thick-headed sons had shown 
 themselves so apprehensive." 
 
 " I think I see our propitious protectress 
 peeping at us from yonder high ground," said 
 Philipson ; " but it seems as if she would will- 
 ingly observe us without being seen in re- 
 turn." 
 
 " Ay," said the Landamman, " she has been 
 looking out to see that there has been no hurt 
 done ; and now, I warrant me, the foolish girl is 
 ashamed of having shown such a laudable de- 
 gree of interest in a matter of the kind." 
 
 " Methinks," said the Englishman, " I would 
 willingly return my thanks, in your presence, 
 to the fair maiden to whom I have been so high- 
 ly indebted." 
 
 " There can be no better time than the pre- 
 sent," said the Landamman; and he sent through 
 the groves the maiden's name, in one of those 
 shrilly accented tones which we have already 
 noticed. 
 
 Anne of Geierstein, as Philipson had before 
 observed, was stationed upon a knoll at some 
 distance, and concealed, as she thought, from 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 162 ANNE OF GEIERSTEfN. 
 
 notice, by a screen of brushwood. She start- 
 ed at her uncle's summons, therefore, but pre- 
 sently obeyed it ; and avoiding the young men, 
 who passed on foremost, she joined the Lan- 
 damman and Philipson, by a circuitous path 
 through the woods. 
 
 " My worthy friend and guest would speak 
 with you, Anne/' said the Landamman, so soon 
 as the morning greeting had been exchanged. 
 The Swiss maiden coloured over brow as well 
 as cheek, when Philipson, with a grace which 
 seemed beyond his calling, addressed her in 
 these words : — 
 
 66 It happens sometimes to us merchants, my 
 fair young friend, that we are unlucky enough 
 not to possess means for the instant defraying 
 of our debts ; but he is justly held amongst us 
 as the meanest of mankind who does not ac- 
 knowledge them. Accept, therefore, the thanks 
 of a father, whose son your courage, only yes- 
 terday, saved from destruction, and whom your 
 prudence has, this very morning, rescued from 
 a great danger. And grieve me not, by re- 
 fusing to wear these ear-rings," he added, pro-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 163 
 
 clucing a small jewel-case, which he opened as 
 he spoke ; " they are, it is true, only of pearls, 
 bat they have not been thought unworthy the 
 ears of a countess — " 
 
 " And must, therefore," said the old Lan- 
 damman, " show misplaced on the person of a 
 Swiss maiden of Unterwalden ; for such and no 
 more is my niece Anne while she resides in my 
 solitude. Methinks, good Master Philipson, you 
 display less than your usual judgment in match- 
 ing the quality of your gifts with the rank of 
 her on whom they are bestowed — as a merchant, 
 too, you should remember that large guerdons 
 will lighten your gains." 
 
 " Let me crave your pardon, my good host," 
 answered the Englishman, "while I reply, that 
 at least I have consulted my own sense of the 
 obligation under which I labour, and have cho- 
 sen, out of what I have at my free disposal, that 
 which I thought might best express it. I trust 
 the host whom I have found hitherto so kind, 
 will not prevent this young maiden from ac- 
 cepting what is at least not unbecoming the 
 rank she is born to ; and you will judge me un-
 
 164- ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 justly if you think me capable of doing either 
 myself or you the wrong, of offering any token 
 of a value beyond what I can well spare." 
 
 The Landamman took the jewel-case into his 
 own hand. 
 
 " I have ever set my countenance," he said, 
 " against gaudy gems, which are leading us 
 daily further astray from the simplicity of our 
 fathers and mothers. — And yet," he added, with 
 a good-humoured smile, and holding one of the 
 ear-rings close to his relation's face, " the or- 
 naments do set off the wench rarely, and they 
 say girls have more pleasure in wearing such 
 toys than grey-haired men can comprehend. 
 Wherefore, dear Anne, as thou hast deserved a 
 dearer trust in a greater matter, I refer thee 
 entirely to thine own wisdom, to accept of our 
 good friend's costly present, and wear it or not 
 as thou thinkest fit." 
 
 " Since such is your pleasure, my best friend 
 and kinsman, 1 ' said the young maiden, blushing 
 as she spoke, " I will not give pain to our 
 valued guest, by refusing what he desires so 
 earnestly that I should accept ; but, by his
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 165 
 
 leave, good uncle, and yours, I will bestow 
 these splendid ear-rings on the shrine of Our 
 Lady of Einsiedlen, to express our general gra- 
 titude to her protecting favour, which has been 
 around us in the terrors of yesterday's storm, 
 and the alarms of this morning's discord." 
 
 " By Our Lady, the wench speaks sensibly," 
 said the Landamman ; " and her wisdom has 
 applied thy bounty well, my good guest, to be- 
 speak prayers for thy family and mine, and for 
 the general peace of Unterwalden. — Go to, 
 Anne, thou shalt have a necklace of jet at next 
 shearing-feast, if our fleeces bear any price in 
 the market."
 
 166 ANNE OF GEIEK8TKIN. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Let him who will not proffer'd peace receive, 
 Be sated with the plagues which war can give ; 
 And well thy hatred of the peace is known, 
 If now thy soul reject the friendship shown. 
 
 Hoole's Tatso. 
 
 The confidence betwixt the Landamman and 
 the English merchant appeared to increase du- 
 ring the course of a few busy days, which oc- 
 curred before that appointed for the commence- 
 ment of their journey to the court of Charles of 
 Burgundy. The state of Europe, and of the 
 Helvetian Confederacy, has been already alluded 
 to ; but, for the distinct explanation of our story, 
 may be here briefly recapitulated. 
 
 In the interval of a week, whilst the English 
 travellers remained at Geierstein, meetings 
 or diets, were held, as well of the Citv Can-
 
 ANNE OF GEIEliSTEIN. 167 
 
 tons of the confederacy, as of those of the 
 Forest. The former, aggrieved by the taxes im- 
 posed on their commerce by the Duke of Bur- 
 gundy, rendered yet more intolerable by the 
 violence of the agents whom he employed in 
 such oppression, were eager for war, in which 
 they had hitherto uniformly found victory and 
 wealth. Many of them were also privately in- 
 stigated to arms by the largesses of Lewis XL, 
 who spared neither intrigues nor gold to effect 
 a breach betwixt these dauntless confederates 
 and his formidable enemy, Charles the Bold. 
 
 On the other hand, there were many reasons 
 which appeared to render it impolitic for the 
 Switzers to engage in war with one of the most 
 wealthy, most obstinate, and most powerful 
 princes in Europe, — for such unquestionably was 
 Charles of Burgundy, — without the existence of 
 some strong reason affecting their own honour 
 and independence. Every day brought fresh 
 intelligence from the interior, that Edward the 
 Fourth of England had entered into a strict 
 and intimate alliance, offensive and defensive, 
 with the Duke of Burgundy, and that it was
 
 168 ANNE OF GEIEItSTEIN. 
 
 the purpose of the English King, renowned for 
 his numerous victories over the rival House 
 of Lancaster, by which, after various reverses, 
 he had obtained indisputed possession of the 
 throne, to re-assert his claims to those provinces 
 of France, so long held by his ancestors. It 
 seemed as if this alone were wanting to his 
 fame, and that, having subdued his internal 
 enemies, he now turned his eyes to the regain- 
 ing of those rich and valuable foreign posses- 
 sions which had been lost during the adminis- 
 tration of the feeble Henry VI. and the civil 
 discords so dreadfully prosecuted in the wars 
 of the White and Red Roses. It was univer- 
 sally known, that throughout England gene- 
 rally, the loss of the French provinces was 
 felt as a national degradation ; and that not 
 only the nobility, who had in consequence been 
 deprived of the large fiefs which they had held 
 in Normandy, Gascony, Maine, and Anjou, but 
 the warlike gentry, accustomed to gain both 
 fame and wealth at the expense of France, and 
 the fiery yeomanry, whose bows had decided so 
 many fatal battles, were as eager to renew the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 169 
 
 conflict, as their ancestors, of Cressy, Poitiers, 
 and Agincourt, had heen to follow their sove- 
 reign to the fields of victory, on which their 
 deeds had conferred deathless renown. 
 
 The latest and most authentic intelligence 
 bore, that the King of England was on the point 
 of passing to France in person, (an invasion 
 rendered easy by his possession of Calais,) with 
 an army superior in numbers and discipline to 
 any with which an English monarch had ever 
 before entered that kingdom ; that all the hostile 
 preparations were completed, and that the ar- 
 rival of Edward might instantly be expected ; 
 whilst the powerful co-operation of the Duke of 
 Burgundy, and the assistance of numerous dis- 
 affected French noblemen in the provinces which 
 had been so long under the English dominion, 
 threatened a fearful issue of the war to Lewis 
 XL, sagacious, wise, and powerful, as that prince 
 unquestionably was. 
 
 It would no doubt have been the wisest policy 
 of Charles of Burgundy, when thus engaging 
 in an alliance against his most formidable 
 neighbour, and hereditary as well as personal
 
 170 ANNE OF GEIEKSTEIN. 
 
 enemy, to have avoided all cause of quarrel with 
 the Helvetian Confederacy, a poor but most 
 warlike people, who already had been taught 
 by repeated successes, to feel that their hardy 
 infantry could, if necessary, engage on terms of 
 equality, or even of advantage, the flower of 
 that chivalry, which had hitherto been consi- 
 dered as forming the strength of European 
 battle. But the measures of Charles, whom 
 fortune had opposed to the most astucious and 
 politic monarch of his time, were always dicta- 
 ted by passionate feeling and impulse, rather 
 than by a judicious consideration of the circum- 
 stances in which he stood. Haughty, proud, 
 and uncompromising, though neither destitute 
 of honour or generosity, he despised and hated 
 the paltry associations of herdsmen and shep- 
 herds, united with a few towns which subsist- 
 ed chiefly by commerce ; and instead of court- 
 ing the Helvetian Cantons, like his crafty ene- 
 my, or at least affording them no ostensible pre- 
 tence of quarrel, he omitted no opportunity of 
 showingthe disregard and contempt in which he 
 held their upstart consequence, and of evincing
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 171 
 
 the secret longing which he entertained to take 
 vengeance upon them for the quantity of noble 
 blood which they had shftd, and to compensate 
 the repeated successes they had gained over 
 the feudal lords, of whom he imagined himself 
 the destined avenger. 
 
 The Duke of Burgundy's possessions in the 
 Alsatian territory afforded him many oppor- 
 tunities for wreaking his displeasure upon the 
 Swiss League. The little castle and town of 
 Ferette, lying within ten or eleven miles of Bale, 
 served as a thoroughfare to the traffic of Berne 
 and Soleure, the two principal towns of the 
 confederation. In this place the Duke posted 
 a governor, or seneschal, who was also an ad- 
 ministrator of the revenue, and seemed born 
 on purpose to be the plague and scourge of his 
 republican neighbours. 
 
 Archibald von Hagenbach was a German no- 
 ble, whose possessions lay in Suabia, and was 
 universally esteemed one of the fiercest and 
 most lawless of that frontier nobility, known by 
 the name of Robber-knights and Robber-counts. 
 These dignitaries, because they held their fiefs
 
 172 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of the Holy Roman Empire, claimed as complete 
 sovereignty within their territories of a mile 
 square, as any reigning prince of Germany in 
 his more extended dominions. They levied tolls 
 and taxes on strangers, and imprisoned, tried, 
 and executed those who, they alleged, had com- 
 mitted offences within their petty domains. But 
 especially, and in further exercise of their seig- 
 norial privileges, they made war on each other, 
 and on the Free Cities of the Empire, attacking 
 and plundering without mercy the caravans, or 
 large trains of waggons, by which the internal 
 commerce of Germany was carried on. 
 
 A succession of injuries done and received by 
 Archibald of Hagenbach, who had been one of 
 the fiercest sticklers for this privilege of faust- 
 recht, or club-law, as it may be termed, had 
 ended in his being obliged, though somewhat 
 advanced in life, to leave a country where his 
 tenure of existence was become extremely pre- 
 carious, and to engage in the service of the Duke 
 of Burgundy, who willingly employed him, as 
 he was a man of high descent and proved va- 
 lour, and not the less, perhaps, that he was Bare
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 173 
 
 to find in a man of Hagenbach's fierce, rapaci- 
 ous, and haughty disposition, the unscrupulous 
 executioner of whatsoever severities it might be 
 his master's pleasure to enjoin. 
 
 The traders of Berne and Soleure, according- 
 ly, made loud and violent complaints of Hagen- 
 bach's exactions. The impositions laid on com- 
 modities which passed through his district of 
 La Ferette, to whatever place they might be 
 ultimately bound, were arbitrarily increased, 
 and the merchants and traders who hesitated to 
 make instant payment of what was demanded, 
 were exposed to imprisonment and personal 
 punishment. The commercial towns of Ger- 
 many appealed to the Duke against this ini- 
 quitous conduct on the part of the Governor of 
 La Ferette, and requested of his Grace's good- 
 ness that he would withdraw Von Hagenbacli ; 
 but the Duke treated their complaints with con- 
 tempt. The Swiss League carried their re- 
 monstrances higher, and required that justice 
 should be done on the Governor of La Ferette 
 as having offended against the law of nations ;
 
 174 ANNE OF GEIKKSTEIX. 
 
 but they were equally unable to attract atten- 
 tion or obtain redress. 
 
 At length the Diet of the Confederation de- 
 termined to send the solemn deputation which 
 has been repeatedly mentioned. One or two of 
 these envoys joined with the calm and prudent 
 Arnold Biederman, in the hope that so solemn 
 a measure might open the eyes of the Duke to 
 the wicked injustice of his representative ; others 
 among the deputies, having no such peaceful 
 views, were determined, by this resolute remon- 
 strance, to pave the way for war. 
 
 Arnold Biederman was an especial advocate 
 for peace, while its preservation was compatible 
 with national independence, and the honour of 
 the confederacy ; but the younger Philipson 
 soon discovered that the Landamman alone, of 
 all his family, cherished these moderate views. 
 The opinion of his sons had been swayed and 
 seduced by the impetuous eloquence and over- 
 bearing influence of Rudolph of Donnerhugel, 
 who, by some feats of peculiar gallantry, and 
 the consideration due to the merit of his an- 
 cestors, had acquired an influence in the conn-
 
 ANNE OF GEIEKSTEIN. 175 
 
 cils of bis native canton, and with the youth 
 of the League in general, beyond what was 
 usually yielded by these wise republicans to 
 men of his early age. Arthur, who was now 
 an acceptable and welcome companion of all 
 their hunting parties and other sports, heard 
 nothing among the young men but anticipations 
 of war, rendered delightful by the hopes of booty 
 and of distinction, which were to be obtained 
 by the Switzers. The feats of their ancestors 
 against the Germans had been so wonderful as 
 to realize the fabulous victories of romance ; and 
 while the present race possessed the same hardy 
 limbs, and the same inflexible courage, they 
 eagerly anticipated the same distinguished suc- 
 cess. When the Governor of La Ferette was 
 mentioned in the conversation, he was usually 
 spoken of as the ban dog of Burgundy, or the 
 Alsatian mastiff; and intimations were openly 
 given, that, if his course were not instantly 
 checked by his master, and he himself with- 
 drawn from the frontiers of Switzerland, Archi- 
 bald of Hagenbach would find his fortress no 
 protection from the awakened indignation of 
 5
 
 17() ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 tlie wronged inhabitants of Soleure, and parti- 
 cularly of those of Berne. 
 
 This general disposition to war among the 
 young Switzers was reported to the elder Phi- 
 lipson by his son, and led him at one time 
 to hesitate whether he ought not rather to re- 
 sume all the inconveniences and dangers of a 
 journey, accompanied only by Arthur, than run 
 the risk of the quarrels in which he might 
 be involved by the unruly conduct of these 
 fierce mountain youths, after they should have 
 left their own frontiers. Sucb an event would 
 have had, in a peculiar degree, the effect of de- 
 stroying every purpose of his journey ; but, re- 
 spected as Arnold Biederman was by his fami- 
 ly and countrymen, tbe English merchant con- 
 cluded, upon the whole, that his influence would 
 be able to restrain his companions until the 
 great question of peace or war should be deter- 
 mined, and especially until they should have 
 discharged their commission by obtaining an 
 audience of the Duke of Burgundy ; and after 
 this lie should be separated from their society, 
 11
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTIEN. 177 
 
 and not liable to be engaged in any responsibi- 
 lity for their ulterior measures. 
 
 After a delay of about ten days, the deputation 
 commissioned to remonstrate with the Duke 
 on the aggressions and exactions of Archibald 
 of Hagenbach, at length assembled at Geier- 
 stein, from whence the members were to journey 
 forth together. They were three in number, be- 
 sides the young Bernese, and the Landamman 
 of Unterwalden. One was, like Arnold, a 
 proprietor from the Forest Cantons, wearing a 
 dress scarcely handsomer than that of a common 
 herdsman, but distinguished by the beauty and 
 size of his long silvery beard. His name was 
 Nicholas Bonstetten. Melchior Sturmthal, ban- 
 ner-bearer of Berne, a man of middle age, and 
 a soldier of distinguished courage, with Adam 
 Zimmerman, a burgess of Soleure, who was 
 considerably older, completed the number of 
 the envoys. 
 
 Each was dressed after his best fashion ; but, 
 
 notwithstanding that the severe eye of Arnold 
 
 Biederman censured one or two silver belt 
 
 hackles, as well as a chain of the same metal, 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 178 ANNE OF UF.IF.RSTF.1K. 
 
 which decorated the portly person of theBurgc- 
 of Soleure, it seemed that a powerful and victo- 
 rious people, for such the Swiss were now to be 
 esteemed, were never represented by an embassy 
 of such patriarchal simplicity. The deputies 
 travelled on foot, with their piked staves in 
 their hands, like pilgrims bound for some place 
 of devotion. Two mules, which bore their little 
 stock of baggage, were led by young lads, sons 
 or cousins of members of the embassy, who had 
 obtained permission in this manner to get such 
 a glance of the world beyond the mountains, as 
 this journey promised to afford. 
 
 But although their retinue was small, so 
 far as respected either state or personal attend- 
 ance and accommodation, the dangerous cir- 
 cumstances of the times, and the very unsettled 
 state of the country beyond their own terri- 
 tories, did not permit men charged with affairs 
 of such importance to travel without a guard. 
 Even the danger arising from the wolves, which, 
 when pinched by the approach of winter, have 
 been known to descend from their mountain fast- 
 nesses into open villages, such as those the tra-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 17U 
 
 vellers might choose to quarter in, rendered the 
 presence of some escort necessary; and the bands 
 of deserters from various services, who formed 
 parties of banditti on the frontiers of Alsatia 
 and Germany, combined to recommend such a 
 precaution. 
 
 Accordingly, about twenty of the selected 
 youth from the various Swiss cantons, inclu- 
 ding Rudiger, Ernest, and Sigismond, Arnold's 
 three eldest sons, attended upon the deputation ; 
 they did not, however, observe any military or- 
 der, or march close or near to the patriarchal 
 train. On the contrary, they formed hunting 
 parties of five or six together, who explored tho 
 rocks, woods, and passes of the mountains, 
 through which the envoys journeyed. Their 
 slower pace allowed the active young men, who 
 were accompanied by their large shaggy dogs, 
 full time to destroy wolves and bears, or occa- 
 sionally to surprise a chamois among the cliffs : 
 while the hunters, even while in pursuit of their 
 sport, were careful to examine such places a* 
 might afford opportunity for ambush, and thus 
 ascertained tlu> safety of the party whom the)
 
 180 ANNE OF (J-EIEItSTEIN. 
 
 escorted, more securely than if they had attended 
 close on their train. A peculiar note on the huge 
 Swiss bugle, before described, formed of the horn 
 of the mountain bull, was the signal agreed upon 
 for collecting in a body should danger occur. 
 Rudolf Donnerhugel, so much younger than his 
 brethren in the same important commission, 
 took the command of this mountain body guard, 
 whom he usually accompanied in their sportive 
 excursions. In point of arms, they were well 
 provided ; bearing two-handed swords, long par- 
 tizans and spears, as well as both cross and long 
 bows, short cutlasses, and huntsmen's knives. 
 The heavier weapons, as impeding their activi- 
 ty, were carried with the baggage, but were 
 ready to be assumed on the slightest alarm. 
 
 Arthur Philipson, like his late antagonist, 
 naturally preferred the company and sports of 
 the younger men, to the grave conversation 
 and slow pace of the fathers of the mountain 
 commonwealth. There was, however, one temp- 
 tation to loiter with the baggage, which, had 
 other circumstances permitted, might have re- 
 conciled the young Englishman to forego the
 
 ■YNNL Ol' GfcllEUSTKIN. 181 
 
 opportunities of sport which the Swiss youth so 
 eagerly sought after, and endure the slow pace 
 and grave conversation of the elders of the 
 party. In a word, Anne of Geierstein, accom- 
 panied by a Swiss girl her attendant, travelled 
 in the rear of the deputation. 
 
 The two females were mounted upon asses, 
 whose slow step hardly kept pace with the bag- 
 gage mules ; and it may be fairly suspected that 
 Arthur Philipson, in requital of the import- 
 ant services which he had received from that 
 beautiful and interesting young woman, would 
 have deemed it no extreme hardship to have 
 afforded her occasionally his assistance on the 
 journey, and the advantage of his conversa- 
 tion to relieve the tediousness of the way. But 
 he dared not presume to offer attentions which 
 the customs of the country did n#t seem to per- 
 mit, since they were* not attempted by any of 
 the maiden's cousins, or even by Rudolf Don- 
 nerhugel, who certainly had hitherto appeared 
 to neglect no opportunity to recommend him- 
 self to his fair cousin. Besides, Arthur had re- 
 flection enough to be convinced, that in yiohl
 
 182 ANNL OF GElJiRSTElN. 
 
 ing to the feelings which impelled him to culti- 
 vate the acquaintance of this amiable young 
 person, he would certainly incur the serious 
 displeasure of his father, and probably also 
 that of her uncle, by whose hospitality they had 
 profited, and whose safe-conduct they were in 
 the act of enjoying* 
 
 The young Englishman, therefore, pursued 
 the same amusements which interested the other 
 young men of the party, managing only, as fre- 
 quently as their halts permitted, to venture upon 
 offering to the maiden such marks of courtesy as 
 could afford no room for remark or censure. 
 And his character as a sportsman being now well 
 established, he sometimes permitted himself, 
 even when the game was afoot, to loiter in the 
 vicinity of the path on which he could at least 
 mark the flutter of the grey wimple of Anne 
 of Geiersteiu, and the outline of the form which 
 it shrouded. This indolence, as it seemed, was 
 not unfavourably construed by his companions, 
 being only accounted an indifference to the less 
 noble or less dangerous game ; for when the ob- 
 ject was a bear, wolf, or other animal of prey,
 
 ANNE OF GEIEIISTE1N. 
 
 188 
 
 no spear, cutlass, or bow of the party, not even 
 those of Rudolf Donnerhugel, were so prompt 
 in the chase as those of the young Englishman. 
 Meantime, the elder Philipson had other and 
 more serious subjects of consideration. He was 
 a man, as the reader must have already seen, 
 of much acquaintance with the world, in which 
 he had acted parts different from that which he 
 now sustained. Former feelings were recalled 
 and awakened, by the view of sports familiar 
 to his early years. The clamour of the hounds, 
 echoing from the wild hills and dark forests 
 through which they travelled ; the sight of the 
 gallant young huntsmen, appearing, as they 
 brought the object of their chase to bay, amid 
 airy cliffs and profound precipices, which seem- 
 ed impervious to the human foot ; the sounds 
 of halloo and horn reverberating from hill to 
 hill, had more than once wellnigh impelled 
 him to take a share in the hazardous but ani- 
 mating amusement, which, next to war, was 
 then in most parts of Europe the most serious 
 occupation of life. But the feeling was transient, 
 and he became yet more deeply interested in
 
 184 ANNE Ol GL1EKSTE1N. 
 
 studying the manners and opinions of the per- 
 sons with whom he was travelling. 
 
 They seemed to be all coloured with the same 
 downright and blunt simplicity which charac- 
 terised Arnold Biederman, although it was in 
 none of them elevated by the same dignity of 
 thought or profound sagacity. In speaking of 
 the political state of their country, they affect- 
 ed no secrecy ; and although, with the excep- 
 tion of Rudolf, their own young men were not 
 admitted into their councils, the exclusion seem- 
 ed only adopted with a view to the necessary 
 subordination of youth to age, and not for the 
 purpose of observing any mystery. In the pre- 
 sence of the elder Philipson, they freely discuss- 
 ed the pretensions of the Duke of Burgundy, 
 the means which their country possessed of 
 maintaining her independence, and the firm 
 resolution of the Helvetian League to bid de- 
 fiance to the utmost force the world could bring 
 against it, rather than submit to the slightest 
 insult. In other respects, their views appeared 
 wise and moderate, although both the Banner- 
 et of Berne, and the consequential Burgher of
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEI^. 185 
 
 Soleure, seemed to hold the consequences of 
 war more lightly than they were viewed by the 
 cautious Landamman of Unterwalden, and his 
 venerable companion, Nicholas Bonstetten, who 
 subscribed to all his opinions. 
 
 It frequently happened, that, quitting these 
 subjects, the conversation turnedon such as were 
 less attractive to their fellow-traveller. The 
 signs of the weather, the comparative fertility of 
 recent seasons, the most advantageous mode of 
 managing their orchards and rearing their crops, 
 though interesting to the mountaineers them- 
 selves, gave Philipson slender amusement ; and 
 notwithstanding that the excellent Meinherr 
 Zimmerman of Soleure would fain have join- 
 ed with him in conversation respecting trade 
 and merchandise, yet the Englishman, who dealt 
 in articles of small bulk and considerable value, 
 and traversed sea and land to carry on his traffic, 
 could find few mutual topics to discuss with the 
 Swiss trader, whose commerce only extended in- 
 to the neighbouring districts of Burgundy and 
 Germany, and whose goods consisted of coarse
 
 I8t) ANNE OF GE1ERSTE1N. 
 
 woollen cloths, fustian, bides, peltry, and such 
 ordinary articles. 
 
 But, ever and anon, while the Switzers were 
 discussing some paltry interests of trade, or de- 
 scribing some process of rude cultivation, or 
 speaking of blights in grain, and the murrain 
 amongst cattle, with all the dull minuteness 
 of petty farmers and traders met at a coun- 
 try-fair, a well-known spot would recall the 
 name and story of a battle in which some of 
 them had served, (for there were none of the 
 party who had not been repeatedly in arms, ) 
 and the military details, which in other coun- 
 tries were only the theme of knights and squires 
 who had acted their part in them, or of learn- 
 ed clerks who laboured to record them, were, 
 in this singular region, the familiar and inti- 
 mate subjects of discussion with men whose 
 peaceful occupations seemed to place them at 
 an immeasurable distance from the profession 
 of a soldier. This led the Englishman to think 
 of the ancient inhabitants of Rome, where the 
 plough was so readily exchanged for the sword, 
 and the cultivation of a rude farm for the ma-
 
 ANNE OV GEIEllSTElN. IB? 
 
 nagement of public affairs. He hinted this re- 
 semblance to the Landamman, who was natural- 
 ly gratified with the compliment to his country, 
 but presently replied — " May Heaven continue 
 among us the homebred virtues of the Romans, 
 and preserve us from their lust of conquest and 
 love of foreign luxuries !" 
 
 The slow pace of the travellers, with various 
 causes of delay which it is unnecessary to dwell 
 upon, occasioned the deputation spending two 
 nights on the road before they reached Bale. 
 The small towns or villages in which they 
 quartered, received them with such marks of 
 respectful hospitality as they had the means to 
 bestow, and their arrival was a signal for a little 
 feast, with which the heads of the community 
 uniformly regaled them. 
 
 On such occasions, while the elders of the 
 village entertained the deputies of the Confe- 
 deration, the young men of the escort were 
 provided for by those of their own age, several 
 of whom, usually aware of their approach, were 
 accustomed to join in the chase of the day, and
 
 186 ANNL <>1 GL1LIISTE1N. 
 
 made tlie strangers acquainted with the epotfl 
 where game was most plenty. 
 
 These feasts were never prolonged to excess, 
 and the most special dainties which composed 
 them were kids, lambs, and game, the produce of 
 the mountains. Yet it seemed both to Arthur 
 Philipson and his father, that the advantages of 
 good cheer were more prized by the Banneret 
 of Berne and the Burgess of Soleure, than by 
 their host the Landamman, and the Deputy of 
 Schwitz. There was no excess committed, as 
 we have already said; but the deputies first 
 mentioned obviously understood the art of se- 
 lecting the choicest morsels, and were connois- 
 seurs in the good wine, chiefly of foreign growth, 
 with which they freely washed it down. Arnold 
 was too wise to censure what he had no means of 
 amending ; he contented himself by observing 
 in his own person a rigorous diet, living indeed 
 almost entirely upon vegetables and fair water, 
 in which he was closely imitated by the old grey- 
 bearded Nicholas Bonstetten, who seemed to 
 make it his principal object to follow the Lau- 
 damxnan's example in every thing.
 
 ANNE OF GEIF.RSTEIN. \S\) 
 
 It was, as we have already said, the third 
 day after the commencement of their journey, 
 before the Swiss deputation reached the vici- 
 nity of Bale, in which city, then one of the lar- 
 gest in the south-western extremity of Ger- 
 many, they proposed taking up their abode for 
 the evening, nothing doubting a friendly recep- 
 tion. The town, it is true, was not then, nor 
 till about thirty years afterwards, a part of the 
 Swiss Confederation, to which it was only join- 
 ed in 1501 ; but it was a Free Imperial City, 
 connected with Berne, Soleure, Lucerne, and 
 other towns of Switzerland, by mutual interests 
 and constant intercourse. It was the object of 
 the deputation to negotiate, if possible, a peace, 
 which could not be more useful to themselves 
 than to the city of Bale, considering the inter- 
 ruptions of commerce which must be occasion- 
 ed by a rupture between the Duke of Burgun- 
 dy and the Cantons, and the great advantage 
 which that city would derive by preserving a 
 neutrality, situated as it was betwixt these two 
 hostile powers. 
 
 They anticipated, therefore, as welcome a
 
 190 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 reception from the authorities of Bale, as they 
 had received while in the bounds of their own 
 Confederation, since the interests of that city 
 were so deeply concerned in the objects of their 
 mission. The next chapter will show how far 
 these expectations were realized,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 191 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 They saw that city, welcoming the Rhine, 
 As from his mountain heritage he bursts, 
 As purposed proud Orgetorix of yore, 
 Leaving the desert region of the hills, 
 To lord it o'er the fertile plains of Gaul. 
 
 Helvetia. 
 
 The eyes of the English travellers, wearied 
 with a succession of wild mountainous scenery, 
 now gazed with pleasure upon a country, still 
 indeed irregular and hilly in its surface, but 
 capable of high cultivation, and adorned with 
 cornfields and vineyards. The Rhine, a broad 
 and large river, poured its grey stream in a 
 huge sweep through the landscape, and divided 
 into two portions the city of Bale, which is si- 
 tuated on its banks. The southern part, to 
 which their path conducted them, displayed 
 16
 
 192 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 the celebrated cathedral, and the lofty terrace 
 which runs in front of it, and seemed to re- 
 mind the travellers that they now approached a 
 country in which the operations of man could 
 make themselves distinguished even among the 
 works of nature, instead of being lost, as the 
 fate of the most splendid efforts of human la- 
 bour must have been, among those tremen- 
 dous mountains which they had so lately tra- 
 versed. 
 
 They were yet a mile from the entrance of 
 the city, when the party was met by one of the 
 magistrates, attended by two or three citizens 
 mounted on mules, the velvet housings of which 
 expressed wealth and quality. They greeted the 
 Landamman of Unterwalden and his party in 
 a respectful manner, and the latter prepared 
 themselves to hear, and make a suitable reply 
 to, the hospitable invitation which they natural- 
 ly expected to receive. 
 
 The message of the community of Bale was, 
 however, diametrically opposite to what they 
 had anticipated. It was delivered with a good 
 deal of diffidence and hesitation bv the function-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 193 
 
 ary who met them, and who certainly, while 
 discharging his commission, did not appear to 
 consider it as the most respectable which he 
 might have borne. There were many profes- 
 sions of the most profound and fraternal regard 
 for the cities of the Helvetian League, with 
 whom the orator of Bale declared his own state 
 to be united in friendship and interests. But 
 he ended by intimating, that, on account of cer- 
 tain cogent and weighty reasons, which should 
 be satisfactorily explained at more leisure, the 
 Free City of Bale could not, this evening, receive 
 within its walls the highly respected deputies, 
 who were travelling, at the command of the Hel- 
 vetian Diet, to the court of the Duke of Bur- 
 gundy. 
 
 Philipson marked with much interest the 
 effect which this most unexpected intimation 
 produced on the members of the embassage. 
 Rudolf Donnerhugel, who had joined their cora- 
 nany as they approached Bale, appeared less 
 surprised than his associates, and, while he re- 
 mained perfectly silent, seemed rather anxious 
 to penetrate their sentiments, than disposed to 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 194 ' ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 express his own. It was not the first time 
 the sagacious merchant had observed, that this 
 bold and fiery young man could, when his pur- 
 poses required it, place a strong constraint upon 
 the natural impetuosity of his temper. For the 
 others, the Banneret's brow darkened ; the face 
 of the Burgess of Soleure became flushed like 
 the moon when rising in the north-west ; the 
 grey-bearded Deputy of Schwitz looked anxi- 
 ously on Arnold Biederman ; and the Landam- 
 man himself seemed more moved than was usual 
 in a person of his equanimity. At length, he 
 replied to the functionary of Bale, in a voice 
 somewhat altered by his feelings : — 
 
 " This is a singular message to the deputies 
 of the Swiss Confederacy, bound as we are upon 
 an amicable mission, from the citizens of Bale, 
 whom we have always treated as our good 
 friends, and who still profess to be so. The shel- 
 ter of their roofs, the protection of their walls, 
 the wonted intercourse of hospitality, is what 
 no friendly state hath a right to refuse to the in- 
 habitants of another." 
 • " Nor is it with their will that the commu-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 195 
 
 nity of Bale refuse it, worthy Landamman," re- 
 plied the magistrate. M Not you alone, and your 
 worthy associates, but your escort, and your 
 very beasts of burden, should be entertained 
 with all the kindness which the citizens of Bale 
 could bestow — But we act under constraint." 
 
 " And by whom exercised 2" said the Ban- 
 neret, bursting out into passion. " Has the 
 Emperor Sigismund profited so little by the 
 example of his predecessors " 
 
 " The Emperor," replied the delegate of Bale, 
 interrupting the Banneret, " is a well-inten- 
 tioned and peaceful monarch, as he has been 
 
 ever ; but there are Burgundian troops, of 
 
 late, marched into the Sundgaw, and messages 
 have been sent to our state from Count Archi* 
 bald of Hagenbach." 
 
 " Enough said," replied the Landamman. 
 " Draw not farther the veil from a weakness 
 for which you blush. I comprehend you entire- 
 ly. Bale lies too near the citadel of La Ferette 
 to permit its citizens to consult their own incli- 
 nations. Brother, we see where your difficulty
 
 196 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 lies — we pity you — and we forgive your in- 
 hospitality." 
 
 " Nay, but hear me to an end, worthy Lan- 
 damman," answered the magistrate. " There 
 is here in the vicinity, an old hunting-seat of the 
 Counts of Falkenstein, called Graffs-lust, which, 
 though ruinous, yet may afford better lodgings 
 than the open air, and is capable of some defence, 
 — though Heaven forbid that any one should 
 dare to intrude upon your repose ! And hark ye 
 hither, my worthy friends ; — if you find in the 
 old place some refreshments, as wine, beer, and 
 the like, use them without scruple, for they are 
 there for your accommodation.'* 
 
 " I do not refuse to occupy a place of secu- 
 rity," said the Landamman ; " for although the 
 causing us to be excluded from Bale may be only 
 done in the spirit of petty insolence and malice, 
 yet it may also, for what we can tell, be con- 
 nected with some purpose of violence. Your 
 provisions we thank you for ; but we will not, 
 with my consent, feed at the cost of friends, 
 who are ashamed to own us unless by stealth." 
 
 " One thing more, my worthy sir," said the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 197 
 
 official of Bale — " You have a maiden in com- 
 pany, who, I presume to think, is your daugh- 
 ter. There is but rough accommodation where 
 you are going, even for men ; — for women there 
 is little better, though what we could we have 
 done to arrange matters as well as may be. But 
 rather let your daughter go with us back to 
 Bale, where my dame will be a mother to her, 
 till next morning, when I will bring her to your 
 camp in safety. We promised to shut our gates 
 against the men of the Confederacy, but the 
 women were not mentioned." 
 
 " You are subtle casuists, you men of Bale," 
 answered the Landamman; " but know, that 
 from the time in which the Helvetians sallied 
 forth to encounter Caesar down to the present 
 hour, the women of Switzerland, in the press 
 of danger, have had their abode in the camp 
 of their fathers, brothers, and husbands, and 
 sought no farther safety than they might find 
 in the courage of their relations. We have 
 enough of men to protect our women, and my 
 niece shall remain with us, and take the fate 
 which Heaven may send us."
 
 198 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIX. 
 
 " Adieu then, worthy friend," said the ma- 
 gistrate of Bale ; " it grieves me to part with 
 you thus, but evil fate will have it so. Yon- 
 der grassy avenue will conduct you to the old 
 hunting- seat, where Heaven send that you may 
 pass a quiet night ; for, apart from other risks, 
 men say that these ruins have no good name. 
 Will you yet permit your niece, since such the 
 young person is, to pass to Bale for the night 
 in my company ?" 
 
 " If we are disturbed by beings like our- 
 selves," said Arnold Biederman, " we have 
 strong arms, and heavy partizans ; if we should 
 be visited, as your words would imply, by those 
 of a different description, we have, or should 
 have, good consciences, and confidence in Hea- 
 ven. — Good friends, my brethren on this em- 
 bassy, have I spoken your sentiments as well as 
 mine own?" 
 
 The other deputies intimated their assent to 
 what their companion had said, and the citi- 
 zens of Bale took a courteous farewell of their 
 guests, endeavouring, by the excess of civility, 
 to atone for their deficiency in effective hospi-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 199 
 
 tality. After their departure, Rudolph was 
 the first to express his sense of their pusillani- 
 mous behaviour. " Coward dogs !" he said ; 
 " may the Butcher of Burgundy flay the very 
 skins from them with his exactions, to teach 
 them to disown old friendships, rather than 
 abide the lightest blast of a tyrant's anger !" 
 
 " And not even their own tyrant either," said 
 another of the group, — for several of the young 
 men had gathered ro.und their seniors, to hear 
 the welcome which they expected from the ma- 
 gistrates of Bale. 
 
 " No," replied Ernest, one of x\rnold Bied- 
 erman's sons, " they do not pretend that the Em- 
 peror hath interfered with them ; but a word 
 of the Duke of Burgundy, which should be no 
 more to them than a breath of wind from the 
 west, is sufficient to stir them to such brutal 
 inhospitality. It were well to march to the 
 city, and compel them at the sword's point to 
 give us shelter." 
 
 A murmur of applause arose amongst the 
 youth around, which awakened the displeasure 
 of Arnold Biederman.
 
 200 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " Did I hear," he said, " the tongue of a son 
 of mine, or was it that of a brutish Lanzknecht, 
 who has no pleasure but in battle or violence ? 
 Where is the modesty of the youth of Switzer- 
 land, who were wont to wait the signal for action 
 till it pleased the elders of the canton to give 
 it, and were as gentle as maidens till the voice of 
 their patriarchs bade them be bold as lions ?" 
 
 " I meant no harm, father," said Ernest, 
 abashed with this rebuke, " far less any slight 
 towards you ; but I must needs say " 
 
 " Say not a word, my son," replied Arnold, 
 " but leave our camp to-morrow by break of 
 day ; and as thou takest thy way back to Geier- 
 stein, to which I command thine instant return, 
 remember, that he is not fit to visit strange 
 countries, who cannot rule his tongue before his 
 own countrymen, and to his own father." 
 
 The Banneret of Berne, the Burgess ofSoleure, 
 even the long-bearded Deputy from Schwitz, 
 endeavoured to intercede for the offender, and 
 obtain a remission of his banishment ; but it 
 was in vain. 
 
 " No, my good friends and brethren, no,"
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 201 
 
 replied Arnold. " These young men require an 
 example ; and though I am grieved in one sense 
 that the offence has chanced within my own fa- 
 mily, yet I am pleased in another light, that 
 the delinquent should be one over whom I can 
 exercise full authority, without suspicion of 
 partiality. — Ernest, my son, thou hast heard 
 my commands : Return to Geierstein with the 
 morning's light, and let me find thee an altered 
 man when I return thither." 
 
 The young Swiss, who was evidently much 
 hurt and shocked at this public affront, placed 
 one knee on the ground, and kissed his father's 
 right hand, while Arnold, without the slightest 
 sign of anger, bestowed his blessing upon him ; 
 and Ernest, without a word of remonstrance, 
 fell into the rear of the party. The deputation 
 then proceeded down the avenue which had 
 been pointed out to them, and at the bottom of 
 which arose the massy ruins of Graffs-lust ; but 
 there was not enough of daylight remaining to 
 discern their exact form. They could observe as 
 they drew nearer, and as the night became 
 darker, that three or four windows were light- 
 n 2
 
 202 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ed up, while the rest of the front remained ob- 
 scured in gloom. When they arrived at the place, 
 they perceived it was surrounded by a large 
 and deep moat, the sullen surface of which 
 reflected, though faintly, the glimmer of the 
 lights within.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 203 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Francisco. Give you good night. 
 Marcellus. O, farewell, honest soldier. 
 
 Who hath relieved you ? 
 Francisco. Give you good night ; Bernardo hath my place. 
 
 Hamlet. 
 
 The first occupation of our travellers was to 
 find the means of crossing the moat, and they 
 were not long of discovering the tete-du-pont on 
 which the drawbridge, when lowered, had for- 
 merly rested. The bridge itself had been long 
 decayed, but a temporary passage of fir trees and 
 planks had been constructed, apparently very 
 lately, which admitted them to the chief en- 
 trance of the castle. On entering it, they 
 found a wicket opening under the archway, 
 which, glimmering with light, served to guide 
 them to a hall prepared evidently for their ac- 
 commodation as well as circumstances had ad- 
 mitted of.
 
 204 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 A large fire of well- seasoned wood burned 
 blithely in the chimney, and had been maintain- 
 ed so long there, that the air of the hall, not- 
 withstanding its great size and somewhat ruin- 
 ous aspect, felt mild and genial. There was 
 also at the end of the apartment a stack of 
 wood, large enough to maintain the fire had 
 they been to remain there a week. Two or three 
 long tables in the hall stood covered and ready 
 for their reception ; and, on looking more close- 
 ly, several large hampers were found in a cor- 
 ner, containing cold provisions of every kind, 
 prepared with great care, for their immediate 
 use. The eyes of the good Burgess of Soleure 
 twinkled when he beheld the young men in the 
 act of transferring the supper from the hampers, 
 and arranging it on the table. 
 
 " Well," said he, " these poor men of Bale 
 have saved their character ; since, if they have 
 fallen short in welcome, they have abounded 
 in good cheer." 
 
 " Ah, friend !" said Arnold Biederman, 
 " the absence of the landlord is a great deduc- 
 tion from the entertainment. Better half an
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 205 
 
 apple from the hand of your host, than a bridal 
 feast without his company." 
 
 " We owe them the less for their banquet," 
 said the Banneret. "But, from the doubtful 
 language they held, I should judge it meet to 
 keep a strong guard to-night, and even that 
 some of our young men should, from time to 
 time, patrol around the old ruins. The place is 
 strong and defensible, and so far our thanks are 
 due to those who have acted as our quarter- 
 masters. We will, however, with your permis- 
 sion, my honoured brethren, examine the house 
 within, and then arrange regular guards and 
 patrols. — To your duty then, young men, and 
 search these ruins carefully, — they may per 
 chance contain more than ourselves ; for we are 
 now near one who, like a pilfering fox, moves 
 more willingly by night than by day, and seeks 
 his prey amidst ruins and wildernesses rather 
 than in the open field." 
 
 All agreed to this proposal. The young men 
 took torches, of which a good provision had 
 been left for their use, and made a strict search 
 through the ruins.
 
 206 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 The greater part of the castle was much 
 more wasted and ruinous than the portion 
 which the citizens of Bale seemed to have des- 
 tined for the accommodation of the embassy. 
 Some parts were roofless, and the whole deso- 
 late. The glare of light — the gleam of arms — 
 the sound of the human voice, and echoes of 
 mortal tread, startled from their dark recesses 
 bats, owls, and other birds of ill omen, the 
 usual inhabitants of such time-worn edifices, 
 whose flight through the desolate chambers re- 
 peatedly occasioned alarm amongst those who 
 heard the noise without seeing the cause, and 
 shouts of laughter when it became known. They 
 discovered that the deep moat surrounded their 
 place of retreat on all sides, and of course that 
 they were in safety against any attack which 
 could be made from without, except it was 
 attempted by the main entrance, which it was 
 easy to barricade, and guard with sentinels. 
 They also ascertained, by strict search, that 
 though it was possible an individual might be 
 concealed amid such a waste of ruins, yet it was 
 altogether impossible that any number which 

 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 207 
 
 might be formidable to so large a party as their 
 own, could have remained there without a cer- 
 tainty of discovery. These particulars were re- 
 ported to the Banneret, who directed Donner- 
 hugel to take charge of a body of six of the young 
 men, such as he should himself choose, to patrol 
 on the outside of the building till the first cock- 
 crowing, and at that hour to return to the cas- 
 tle, when the same number were to take the 
 duty till morning dawned, and then be relie- 
 ved in their turn. Rudolf declared his own in- 
 tention to remain on guard the whole night; 
 and as he was equally remarkable for vigilance 
 as for strength and courage, the external watch 
 was considered as safely provided for, it being 
 settled that, in case of any sudden rencounter, 
 the deep and hoarse sound of the Swiss bugle 
 should be the signal for sending support to the 
 patrolling party. 
 
 Within side the castle, the precautions were 
 taken with equal vigilance. A sentinel, to be 
 relieved every two hours, was appointed to take 
 post at the principal gate, and other two kept 
 watch on the other side of the castle, although
 
 208 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1X. 
 
 the moat appeared to insure its safety in that 
 quarter. 
 
 These precautions being taken, the remain- 
 der of the party sat down to refresh themselves, 
 the deputies occupying the upper part of the hall, 
 while those of their escort modestly arranged 
 themselves in the lower end of the same large 
 apartment. Quantities of hay and straw, which 
 were left piled in the wide castle, were put to 
 the purpose for which undoubtedly they had 
 been destined by the citizens of Bale, and, with 
 the aid of cloaks and mantles, were judged ex- 
 cellent good bedding by a hardy race, who, in 
 war or the chase, were often well satisfied with 
 a much worse night's lair. 
 
 The attention of the Balese had even gone so 
 far as to provide for Anne of Geierstein sepa- 
 rate accommodation, more suitable to her use 
 than that assigned to the men of the party. 
 An apartment, which had probably been the 
 buttery of the castle, entered from the hall, and 
 had also a doorway leading out into a passage 
 connected with the ruins; but this last had hasti- 
 ly, yet carefully, been built up with large hewn
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 209 
 
 stones taken from the ruins ; without mortar, 
 indeed, or any other cement, but so well secu- 
 red by their own weight, that an attempt to 
 displace them must have alarmed not only any 
 one who might be in the apartment itself, but 
 also those who were in the hall adjacent, or in- 
 deed in any part of the castle. In the small 
 room thus carefully arranged and secured there 
 were two pallet-beds and a large fire, which 
 blazed on the hearth, and gave warmth and 
 comfort to the apartment. Even the means of 
 devotion were not forgotten, a small crucifix of 
 bronze being hung over a table, on which lay a 
 breviary. 
 
 Those who first discovered this little place of 
 retreat, came back loud in praise of the deli- 
 cacy of the citizens of Bale, who, while pre- 
 paring for the general accommodation of the 
 strangers, had not failed to provide separately 
 and peculiarly for that of their female compa- 
 nion. 
 
 Arnold Biederman felt the kindness of this 
 conduct. " We should pity our friends of Bale, 
 and not nourish resentment against them," he
 
 210 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 said. " They have stretched their kindness to- 
 wards us as far as their personal apprehensions 
 permitted ; and that is saying no small matter 
 for them, my masters, for no passion is so un- 
 utterably selfish as that of fear. — Anne, my 
 love, thou art fatigued. Go to the retreat pro- 
 vided for you, and Lizette shall bring you from 
 this abundant mass of provisions what will be 
 fittest for your evening meal." 
 
 So saying, he led his niece into the little bed- 
 room, and, looking round with an air of com- 
 placency, wished her good repose ; but there was 
 something on the maiden's brow which seemed 
 to augur that her uncle's wishes would not be 
 fulfilled. From the moment she had left Swit- 
 zerland, her looks had become clouded; her in- 
 tercourse with those who approached her had 
 grown more brief and rare ; her whole appear- 
 ance was marked with secret anxiety or secret 
 sorrow. This did not escape her uncle, who na- 
 turally imputed it to the pain of parting from 
 him, which was probably soon to take place, and 
 to her regret at leaving the tranquil spot in which 
 so many years of her youth had been spent.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 211 
 
 But Anne of Geierstein had no sooner enter- 
 ed the apartment, than her whole frame trem- 
 bled violently, and the colour leaving her cheeks 
 entirely, she sunk down on one of the pallets, 
 where, resting her elbows on her knees, and 
 pressing her hands on her forehead, she ra- 
 ther resembled a person borne down by men- 
 tal distress, or oppressed by some severe illness, 
 than one who, tired with a journey, was in 
 haste to betake herself to needful rest. Arnold 
 was not quick-sighted as to the many sources 
 of female passion. He saw that his niece suf- 
 fered ; but imputing it only to the causes al- 
 ready mentioned, augmented by the hysterical 
 effects often produced by fatigue, he gently bla- 
 med her for having departed from her character 
 of a Swiss maiden ere she was yet out of reach 
 of a Swiss breeze of wind. 
 
 " Thou must not let the dames of Germany 
 or Flanders think that our daughters have dege- 
 nerated from their mothers ; else must we fight 
 the battles of Sempach and Laupen over again, 
 to convince the Emperor, and this haughty 
 Duke of Burgundy, that our men are of the
 
 212 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 same mettle with their forefathers. And as for 
 our parting, I do not fear it. My brother is a 
 Count of the Empire, indeed, and therefore he 
 must needs satisfy himself that every thing over 
 which he possesses any title shall be at his com- 
 mand, and sends for thee to prove his right of 
 doing so. But I know him well : He will no 
 sooner be satisfied that he may command thy 
 attendance a{ pleasure, than he will concern 
 himself about thee no more. Thee? Alas ! poor 
 thing, in what couldst thou aid his courtly in- 
 trigues and ambitious plans ? No, no — thou art 
 not for the noble Count's purpose, and must be 
 content to trudge back to rule the dairy at Geier- 
 stein, and be the darling of thine old peasant- 
 like uncle." 
 
 " Would to God we were there even now !" 
 said the maiden, in atone of distress which she 
 strove in vain to conceal or suppress. 
 
 " That may hardly be till we have executed 
 the purpose which brought us hither,'' said the 
 literal Landamman. " But lay thee on thy 
 pallet, Anne — take a morsel of food, and three 
 drops of wine, and thou wilt wake to-morrow
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 213 
 
 as gay as on a Swiss holiday, when the pipe 
 sounds the reveillie." 
 
 Anne was now ahle to plead a severe headaeh, 
 and declining all refreshment, which she de- 
 clared herself incapable of tasting, she bade her 
 uncle good night. She then desired Lizette to 
 get some food for herself, cautioning her, as she 
 returned, to make as little noise as possible, and 
 not to break her repose if she should have the 
 good fortune to fall asleep. Arnold Bieder- 
 man then kissed his niece, and returned to the 
 hall, where his colleagues in office were impa- 
 tient to commence an attack on the provisions 
 which were in readiness ; to which the escort of 
 young men, diminished by the patrols and sen- 
 tinels, were no less disposed than their seniors. 
 The signal of assault was given by the De- 
 puty from Schwitz, the eldest of the party, 
 pronouncing in patriarchal form a benediction 
 over the meal. The travellers then commen- 
 ced their operations with a vivacity, which show- 
 ed that the uncertainty whether they should 
 get any food, and the delays which had occur- 
 red in arranging themselves in their quarters,
 
 214 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 had infinitely increased their appetites. Even 
 the Landamman, whose moderation sometimes 
 approached to abstinence, seemed that night in 
 a more genial humour than ordinary. His 
 friend of Schwitz, after his example, ate, drank, 
 and spoke more than usual ; while the rest of 
 the deputies pushed their meal to the verge of a 
 carousal. The elder Philipson marked the scene 
 with an attentive and anxious eye, confining his 
 applications to the wine-cup to such pledges as 
 the politeness of the times called upon him to 
 reply to. His son had left the hall just as the 
 banquet began, in the manner which we are 
 now to relate. 
 
 Arthur had proposed to himself to join the 
 youths who were to perform the duty of senti- 
 nels within, or patrols on the outside of their 
 place of repose, and had indeed made some ar- 
 rangement for that purpose with Sigismund, 
 the third of the Landamman's sons. But while 
 about to steal a parting glance at Anne of Geier- 
 stein, before offering his service as he proposed, 
 there appeared on her brow such a deep and so- 
 lemn expression, as diverted his thoughts from
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 215 
 
 every other subject, excepting the anxious doubts 
 as to what could possibly have given rise to such 
 a change. The placid openness of brow ; the eye 
 which expressed conscious and fearless inno- 
 cence; the lips which, seconded by a look as 
 frank as her words, seemed ever ready to speak, 
 in kindness and in confidence, that which the 
 heart dictated, were for the moment entirely 
 changed in character and expression, and in a 
 degree and manner for which no ordinary cause 
 could satisfactorily account. Fatigue might have 
 banished the rose from the maiden's beautiful 
 complexion, and sickness or pain might have 
 dimmed her eye and clouded her brow. But 
 the look of deep dejection with which she fixed 
 her eyes at times on the ground, and the start- 
 led and terrified glance which she cast around 
 her at other intervals, must have had their rise 
 in some different source. Neither could illness or 
 weariness explain the manner in which her lips 
 were contracted or compressed together, like 
 one who makes up her mind to act or behold 
 something that is fearful, or account for the tre- 
 mor which seemed at times to steal over her 
 3
 
 216 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 insensibly, though by a strong effort she was 
 able at intervals to throw it off. For this change 
 of expression there must be in the heart some 
 deeply melancholy and afflicting cause. What 
 could that cause be ? 
 
 It is dangerous for youth to behold beau- 
 ty in the pomp of all her charms, with every 
 look bent upon conquest — more dangerous to 
 see her in the hour of unaffected and unap- 
 prehensive ease and simplicity, yielding her- 
 self to the graceful whim of the moment, and 
 as willing to be pleased as desirous of plea- 
 sing. There are minds which may be still 
 more affected by gazing on beauty in sorrow, 
 and feeling that pity, that desire of comfort- 
 ing the lovely mourner, which the poet has 
 described as so nearly akin to love. But to 
 a spirit of that romantic and adventurous cast 
 which the Middle Ages frequently produced, 
 the sight of a young and amiable person evident- 
 ly in a state of terror and suffering, which had 
 no visible cause, was perhaps still more im- 
 pressive than beauty, in her pride, her tender- 
 ness, or her sorrow. Such sentiments, it must 
 7
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 217 
 
 be remembered, were not confined to the high- 
 est ranks only, but might then be found in all 
 classes of society which were raised above the 
 mere peasant or artizan. Young Philipson ga- 
 zed on Anne of Geierstein with such intense cu- 
 riosity, mingled with pity and tenderness, that 
 the bustling scene around him seemed to vanish 
 from his eyes, and leave no one in the noisy hall 
 save himself and the object of his interest. 
 
 What could it be that so evidently oppressed 
 and almost quailed a spirit so well balanced, and 
 a courage so well tempered, when, being guard- 
 ed by the swords of the bravest men perhaps to 
 be found in Europe, and lodged in a place of 
 strength, even the most timid of her sex might 
 have found confidence ? Surely if an attack 
 were to be made upon them, the clamour of a 
 conflict in such circumstances could scarce be 
 more terrific than the roar of those cataracts 
 which he had seen her despise ? At least, he 
 thought, she ought to be aware that there is one, 
 who is bound by friendship and gratitude to 
 fight to the death in her defence. Would to 
 heaven, he continued in the same reverie, it 
 
 vol. i, o
 
 218 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 were possible to convey to her, without 6ign or 
 speech, the assurance of my unalterable reso- 
 lution to protect her in the worst of perils ! — 
 As such thoughts streamed through his mind, 
 Anne raised her eyes in one of those fits of deep 
 feeling which seemed to overwhelm her ; and, 
 while she cast them round the hall, with a look 
 of apprehension, as if she expected to see amid 
 the well-known companions of her journey some 
 strange and unwelcome apparition, they en- 
 countered the fixed and anxious gaze of young 
 Philipson. They were instantly bent on the 
 ground, while a deep blush showed how much 
 she was conscious of having attracted his atten- 
 tion by her previous deportment. 
 
 Arthur, on his part, with equal conscious- 
 ness, blushed as deeply as the maiden herself, 
 and drew himself back from her observation. 
 But when Anne rose up, and was escorted by 
 her uncle to her bed-chamber, in the manner we 
 have already mentioned, it seemed to Philipson 
 as if she had carried with her from the apart- 
 ment the lights with which it was illuminated, 
 and left it in the twilight melancholy of some
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 219 
 
 funeral hall. His deep musings were pursuing 
 the subject which occupied them thus anxiously, 
 when the manly voice of Donnerhugel spoke 
 close in his ear — 
 
 " What, comrade, has our journey to-day 
 fatigued you so much that you go to sleep upon 
 your feet ?" 
 
 " Now Heaven forbid, Hauptman," said the 
 Englishman, starting from his reverie, and ad- 
 dressing Rudolf by this name, (signifying Cap- 
 tain, or literally Head-man, ) which the youth of 
 the expedition had by unanimous consent be- 
 stowed on him, — "Heaven forbid I should sleep, 
 if there be aught like action in the wind." 
 
 " Where dost thou purpose to be at cock- 
 crow ?" said the Swiss. 
 
 " Where duty shall call me, or your expe- 
 rience, noble Hauptman, shall appoint," replied 
 Arthur. " But, with your leave, I purposed to 
 take Sigismund's guard on the bridge till mid- 
 night or morning dawn. He still feels the sprain 
 which he received in his spring after yonder 
 chamois, and I persuaded him to take some 
 uninterrupted rest, as the best mode of resto- 
 ring his strength."
 
 220 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " He will do well to keep his counsel, then,'' 
 again whispered Donnerhugel ; " the old Lan- 
 damman is not a man to make allowances for 
 mishaps, when they interfere with duty. Those 
 who are under his orders should have as few 
 brains as a bull, as strong limbs as a bear, and 
 be as impassible as lead or iron to all the casual- 
 ties of life, and all the weaknesses of humanity." 
 
 Arthur replied in the same tone : — " I have 
 been the Landamman's guest for some time, and 
 have seen no specimens of any such rigid disci- 
 pline." 
 
 " You are a stranger," said the Swiss, " and 
 the old man has too much hospitality to lay 
 you under the least restraint. You are a volun- 
 teer, too, in whatever share you choose to take in 
 our sports or our military duty ; and therefore, 
 when I ask you to walk abroad with me at the 
 first cock-crowing, it is only in the event that 
 such exercise shall entirely consist with your 
 own pleasure." 
 
 " I consider myself as under your command 
 for the time," said Philipson; " but, not to bandy 
 courtesy, at cock-crow I shall be relieved from
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 221 
 
 my watch on the draw-bridge, and will be by 
 that time glad to exchange the post for a more 
 extended walk." 
 
 " Do you not choose more of this fatiguing, 
 and probably unnecessary duty, than may befit 
 your strength ?" said Rudolf. 
 
 " I take no more than you do," said Arthur, 
 " as you propose not to take rest till morning." 
 
 " True," answered Donnerhugel, "but I am 
 a Swiss." 
 
 " And I," answered Philipson quickly, " am 
 an Englishman." 
 
 " I did not mean what I said in the sense you 
 take it," said Rudolf, laughing ; " I only meant, 
 that I am more interested in this matter than 
 you can be, who are a stranger to the cause in 
 which we are personally engaged." 
 
 " I am a stranger, no doubt," replied Ar- 
 thur ; " but a stranger who has enjoyed your 
 hospitality, and who, therefore, claims a right, 
 while with you, to a share in your labours and 
 dangers." 
 
 " Be it so," said Rudolf Donnerhugel. " I 
 shall have finished my first rounds at the hour
 
 222 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 when the sentinels at the castle are relieved, 
 and shall be ready to recommence them in your 
 good company." 
 
 " Content," said the Englishman. " And now 
 I will to my post, for I suspect Sigismund is 
 blaming me already, as oblivious of my pro- 
 mise." 
 
 They hastened together to the gate, where 
 Sigismund willingly yielded up his weapon and 
 his guard to young Philipson, confirming the 
 idea sometimes entertained of him, that he was 
 the most indolent and least spirited of the fa- 
 mily of Geierstein. Rudolf could not suppress 
 his displeasure. , 
 
 " What would the Landamman say," he de- 
 manded, M if he saw thee thus quietly yield up 
 post and partizan to a stranger ?" 
 
 " He would say I did well," answered the 
 young man, nothing daunted ; " for he is for 
 ever reminding us to let the stranger have his 
 own way in every thing ; and English Arthur 
 stands on this bridge by his own wish, and no 
 asking of mine. — Therefore, kind Arthur, since 
 thou wilt barter warm straw and a sound sleep
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 223 
 
 for frosty air and a clear moon-light, I make thee 
 welcome with all my heart. Hear your duty. 
 You are to stop all who enter, or attempt to en- 
 ter, till they give the pass-word. If they are 
 strangers, you must give alarm. But you will 
 suffer such of our friends as are known to you 
 to pass outwards, without challenge or alarm, 
 because the deputation may find occasion to send 
 messengers abroad." 
 
 " A murrain on thee, thou lazy losel !" said 
 Rudolf — " Thou art the only sluggard of thy 
 kin." 
 
 " Then am I the only wise man of them all," 
 said the youth. — " Hark ye, brave Hauptman, 
 ye have supped this evening, — have ye not ?" 
 
 " It*is a point of wisdom, ye owl," answered 
 tbe Bernese, " not to go into the forest fasting." 
 
 " If it is wisdom to eat when we are hungry," 
 answered Sigismund, " there can be no folly 
 in sleeping when we are weary." So saying, 
 and after a desperate yawn or two, the relieved 
 sentinel halted off, giving full effect to the sprain 
 of which he complained. 
 
 " Yet there is strength in those loitering
 
 224f ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 limbs, and valour in that indolent and sluggish 
 spirit," said Rudolf to the Englishman. " But 
 it is time that I, who censure others, should be- 
 take me to my own task. — Hither, comrades of 
 the watch, hither." 
 
 The Bernese accompanied these words with 
 a whistle, which brought from within six young 
 men, whom he had previously chosen for the 
 duty, and who, after a hurried supper, now wait- 
 ed his summons. One or two of them had large 
 bloodhounds or lyme-dogs, which, though more 
 usually employed in the pursuit of animals of 
 chase, were also excellent for discovering am- 
 buscades, in which duty their services were now 
 to be employed. One of these animals was held 
 in a leash, by the person who, forming the ad- 
 vance of the party, went about twenty yards 
 in front of them ; a second was the property 
 of Donnerhugel himself, who had the crea- 
 ture singularly under command. Three of his 
 companions attended him closely, and the two 
 others followed, one of whom bore a horn of 
 the Bernese wild bull, by way of bugle. This 
 little party crossed the moat by the temporary
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 225 
 
 bridge, and moved on to the verge of the fo- 
 rest, which lay adjacent to the castle, and the 
 skirts of which were most likely to conceal any 
 ambuscade that could be apprehended. The 
 moon was now up, and near the full, so that 
 Arthur, from the elevation on which the castle 
 stood, could trace their slow, cautious march, 
 amid the broad silver light, until they were lost 
 in the depths of the forest. 
 
 When this object had ceased to occupy his 
 eyes, the thoughts of his lonely watch again re- 
 turned to Anne of Geierstein, and to the singu- 
 lar expression of distress and apprehension which 
 had that evening clouded her beautiful features. 
 Then the blush which had chased, for the mo- 
 ment, paleness and terror from her countenance, 
 at the instant his eyes encountered hers — was 
 it anger — was it modesty — was it some softer 
 feeling, more gentle than the one, more tender 
 than the other ? Young Philipson, who, like 
 Chaucer's Squire, was " as modest as a maid," 
 almost trembled to give to that look the favour- 
 able interpretation, which a more self-satisfied 
 gallant would have applied to it without scru- 
 o 2
 
 226 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 pie. No hue of rising or setting day was ever 
 so lovely in the eyes of the young man, as that 
 blush was in his recollection ; nor did ever en- 
 thusiastic visionary, or poetical dreamer, find 
 out so many fanciful forms in the clouds, as Ar- 
 thur divined various interpretations from the 
 indications of interest which had passed over the 
 beautiful countenance of the Swiss maiden. 
 
 In the meantime, the thought suddenly burst 
 on his reverie, that it could little concern him 
 what was the cause of the perturbation she had 
 exhibited. They had met at no distant period 
 for the first time, — they must soon part for ever* 
 She could be nothing more to him than the re- 
 membrance of a beautiful vision, and he could 
 have no other part in her memory save as a 
 stranger from a foreign land, who had been a 
 sojourner for a season in her uncle's house, but 
 whom she could never expect to see again. 
 When this idea intruded on the train of roman- 
 tic visions which agitated him, it was like the 
 sharp stroke of the harpoon, which awakens the 
 whale from torpidity into violent action. The 
 gateway in which the young soldier kept his
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 227 
 
 watch seemed suddenly too narrow for him. He 
 rushed across the temporary bridge, and hastily 
 traversed a short space of ground in front of 
 the tete-du~po?it, or defensive work, on which its 
 outer extremity rested. 
 
 Here for a time he paced the narrow extent 
 to which he was confined by his duty as a sen- 
 tinel, with long and rapid strides, as if he had 
 been engaged by vow to take the greatest pos- 
 sible quantity of exercise upon that limited 
 space of ground. His exertion, however, pro- 
 duced the effect of in some degree composing 
 his mind, recalling him to himself, and remind- 
 ing him of the numerous reasons which prohi- 
 bited his fixing his attention, much more his af- 
 fections, upon this young person, however fas- 
 cinating she was. 
 
 I have surely, he thought, as he slackened his 
 pace and shouldered his heavy partizan, sense 
 enough left to recollect my condition and my 
 duties — to think of my father, to whom I am all 
 in all — and to think also on the dishonour which 
 must accrue to me, were I capable of winning 
 the affections of a frank-hearted and confiding
 
 228 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIX. 
 
 girl, to whom I could never do justice by dedi- 
 cating my life to return them. " No," he said 
 to himself, ^ she will soon forget me, and I will 
 study to remember her no otherwise than I 
 would a pleasing dream, which hath for a mo- 
 ment crossed a night of perils and dangers, such 
 as my life seems doomed to be." 
 
 As he spoke, he stopped short in his beat, and, 
 as he rested on his weapon, a tear rose unbidden 
 to his eye, and stole down his cheek without be- 
 ing wiped away. But he combated this gentler 
 mood of passion, as he had formerly battled with 
 that which was of a wilder and more desperate 
 character. Shaking off the dejection and sink- 
 ing of spirit which he felt creeping upon him, he 
 resumed, at the same time, the air and attitude 
 of an attentive sentinel, and recalled his mind to 
 the duties of his watch, which, in the tumult 
 of his feelings, he had almost forgotten. But 
 what was his astonishment, when, as he looked 
 out on the moonlight landscape, there passed 
 from the bridge towards the forest, crossing him 
 in the broad moonlight, the living and moving 
 likeness of Anne of Geierstein !
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 229 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 We know not when we sleep nor when we wake. 
 
 Visions distinct and perfect cross our eye, 
 
 Which to the slumberer seem realities ; 
 
 And while they waked, some men have seen such sights 
 
 As set at nought the evidence of sense, 
 
 And left them well persuaded they were dreaming. 
 
 Anonymous. 
 
 The apparition of Anne of Geierstein crossed 
 her lover — her admirer, at least we must call 
 him — within shorter time than we can tell the 
 story. But it was distinct, perfect, and undoubt- 
 ed. In the very instant when the young Eng- 
 lishman, shaking off his fond despondency, rai- 
 sed his head to look out upon the scene of his 
 watch, she came from the nearer end of the 
 bridge, crossing the path of the sentinel, upon 
 whom she did not even cast a look, and passed 
 with a rapid yet steady pace towards the verge 
 of the woodland.
 
 230 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 It would have been natural, though Arthur 
 had been directed not to challenge persons who 
 left the castle, but only such as might approach 
 it, that he should nevertheless, had it only been 
 in mere civility, have held some communication, 
 however slight, with the maiden as she crossed 
 his post. But the suddenness of her appearance 
 took from him for the instant both speech and 
 motion. It seemed as if his own imagination 
 had raised up a phantom, presenting to his out- 
 ward senses the form and features which en- 
 grossed his mind ; and he was silent, partly at 
 least from the idea, that what he gazed upon 
 was immaterial and not of this world. 
 
 It would have been no less natural that Anne 
 of Geierstein should have in some manner ac- 
 knowledged the person who had spent a con- 
 siderable time under the same roof with her, 
 had been often her partner in the dance, and 
 her companion in the field; but she did not 
 evince the slightest token of recognition, nor 
 even look towards him as she passed ; her eye 
 was on the wood, to which she advanced swift- 
 ly and steadily, and she was hidden by its boughs 
 11
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 231 
 
 ere Arthur had recollected himself sufficiently 
 to determine what to do. 
 
 His first feeling was anger at himself for suf- 
 fering her to pass unquestioned, when it might 
 well chance, that upon any errand which called 
 her forth at so extraordinary a time and place, he 
 might have been enabled to afford her assistance, 
 or at least advice. This sentiment was for a short 
 time so predominant, that he ran towards the 
 place where he had seen the skirt of her dress 
 disappear, and whispering her name as loud as 
 the fear of alarming the castle permitted, con- 
 jured her to return, and hear him but for a few 
 brief moments. No answer, however, was re- 
 turned ; and when the branches of the trees be- 
 gan to darken over his head and to intercept the 
 moonlight, he recollected that he was leaving his 
 post, and exposing his fellow-travellers, who 
 were trusting in his vigilance, to the danger of 
 surprise. 
 
 He hastened, therefore, back to the castle 
 gate, with matter for deeper and more inextri- 
 cable doubt and anxiety, than had occupied him 
 during the commencement of his watch. He ask-
 
 232 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ed himself in vain, with what purpose that mo- 
 dest young maiden, whose manners were frank? 
 but whose conduct had always seemed so deli- 
 cate and reserved, could sally forth at midnight 
 like a damsel-errant in romance, when she was 
 in a strange country and suspicious neighbour- 
 hood ; yet he rejected, as he would have shrunk 
 from blasphemy, any interpretation which could 
 have thrown censure upon Anne of Geier stein. 
 No, nothing was she capable of doing for which 
 a friend could have to blush. But connecting 
 her previous agitation with the extraordinary 
 fact of her leaving the castle, alone and de- 
 fenceless, at such an hour, Arthur necessarily 
 concluded it must argue some cogent reason, 
 and, as was most likely, of an unpleasant na- 
 ture. — " I will watch her return," he internally 
 uttered, " and, if she will give me an oppor- 
 tunity, I will convey to her the assurance that 
 there is one faithful bosom in her neighbour- 
 hood, which is bound in honour and gratitude 
 to pour out every drop of its blood, if by doing 
 so it can protect her from the slightest inconve- 
 nience. This is no silly flight of romance, for
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 233 
 
 which common sense has a right to reproach 
 me ; it is only what I ought to do, what I must 
 do, or forego every claim to be termed a man 
 of honesty or honour.' ' 
 
 Yet scarce did the young man think himself 
 anchored on a resolution which seemed unob- 
 jectionable, than his thoughts were again adrift. 
 He reflected that Anne might have a desire to 
 visit the neighbouring town of Bale, to which 
 she had been invited the day before, and where 
 her uncle had friends. It was indeed an un- 
 common hour to select for such a purpose ; but 
 Arthur was aware, that the Swiss maidens 
 feared neither solitary walks nor late hours, and 
 that Anne would have walked among her own 
 hills by moonlight much farther than the dis- 
 tance betwixt their place of encampment and 
 Bale, to see a sick friend, or for any similar 
 purpose. To press himself on her confidence, 
 then, might be impertinence, not kindness ; 
 and as she had passed him without taking the 
 slightest notice of his presence, it was evident 
 she did not mean voluntarily to make him her 
 confident ; and probably she was involved in no
 
 234- ANXE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 difficulties where Lis aid could be useful. In 
 that case, the duty of a gentleman was to per- 
 mit her to return as she had gone forth, unno- 
 ticed and unquestioned, leaving it with herself 
 to hold communication with him or not as she 
 should choose. 
 
 Another idea proper to the age also passed 
 through his mind, though it made no strong im- 
 pression upon it. This form, so perfectly re- 
 sembling Anne of Geierstein, might be a decep- 
 tion of the sight, or it might be one of those fan- 
 tastic apparitions, concerning which there were 
 so many tales told in all countries, and of which 
 Switzerland and Germany had, as Arthur well 
 knew, their full share. The internal and undefi- 
 nable feelings which restrained him from accost- 
 ing the maiden, as might have been natural for 
 him to have done, are easily explained, on the 
 supposition that his mortarframe shrunk from 
 an encounter with a being of a different nature. 
 There had also been some expressions of the ma- 
 gistrate of Bale, which might apply to the castle's 
 being liable to be haunted by beings from an- 
 other world. But though the general belief in
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 235 
 
 such ghostly apparitions prevented the Eng- 
 lishman from being positively incredulous on 
 the subject, yet the instructions of his father, a 
 man of great intrepidity and distinguished good 
 sense, had taught him to be extremely unwilling 
 to refer any thing to supernatural interferences, 
 which was capable of explanation by ordinary 
 rules ; and he therefore shook off, without diffi- 
 culty, any feelings of superstitious fear, which 
 for an instant connected itself with his noctur- 
 nal adventure. He resolved finally to suppress 
 all disquieting conjecture on the subject, and to 
 await firmly, if not patiently, the return of the 
 fair vision, which, if it should not fully explain 
 the mystery, seemed at least to afford the only 
 chance of throwing light upon it. 
 
 Fixed, therefore, in purpose, he traversed the 
 walk which his duty permitted, with his eyes 
 fixed on the part of the forest where he had 
 seen the beloved form disappear, and forgetful 
 for the moment that his watch had any other 
 purpose than to observe her return. But from 
 this abstraction of mind he was roused by a 
 distant sound in the forest, which seemed the
 
 236 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 clash of armour. Recalled at once to a sense 
 of his duty, and its importance to his father and 
 his fellow-travellers, Arthur planted himself 
 on the temporary bridge, where a stand could 
 best be made, and turned both eyes and ears 
 to watch for approaching danger. The sound 
 of arms and footsteps came nearer — spears and 
 helmets advanced from the greenwood glade, 
 and twinkled in the moonlight. But the state- 
 ly form of Rudolf Donnerhugel, marching in 
 front, was easily recognised, and announced to 
 our sentinel the return of the patrol. Upon 
 their approach to the bridge, the challenge, and 
 interchange of sign and countersign, which is 
 usual on such occasions, took place in due form ; 
 and as Rudolf's party filed off one after an- 
 other into the castle, he commanded them to 
 wake their companions, with whom he intend- 
 ed to renew the patrol, and at the same time 
 to send a relief to Arthur Philipson, whose 
 watch on the bridge was now ended. This last 
 fact was confirmed by the deep and distant 
 toll of the Minster clock from the town of 
 Bale, which, prolonging its sullen sound over
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 237 
 
 field and forest, announced that midnight was 
 past. 
 
 " And now, comrade,'' continued Rudolf to 
 the Englishman, " have the cold air and long 
 watch determined thee to retire to food and 
 rest, or dost thou still hold the intention of par- 
 taking our rounds ?" 
 
 In very truth it would have been Arthur's 
 choice to have remained in the place where he 
 was, for the purpose of watching Anne of Geier- 
 stein's return from her mysterious excursion. 
 He could not easily have found an excuse for 
 this, however, and he was unwilling to give the 
 haughty Donnerhugel the least suspicion that 
 he was inferior in hardihood, or in the power 
 of enduring fatigue, to any of the tall moun- 
 taineers, whose companion he was for the pre- 
 sent. He did not, therefore, indulge even a 
 moment's hesitation ; but while he restored the 
 borrowed partizan to the sluggish Sigismund, 
 who came from the castle yawning and stretch- 
 ing himself like one whose slumbers had been 
 broken by no welcome summons, when they 
 were deepest and sweetest, he acquainted Ru-
 
 238 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 dolf that he retained his purpose of partaking 
 in his reconnoitring duty. They were speedily 
 joined by the rest of the patroling party, amongst 
 whom was Rudiger, the eldest son of the Lan- 
 damman of Unterwalden ; and when, led by the 
 Bernese champion, they had reached the skirts 
 of the forest, Rudolf commanded three of them 
 to attend Rudiger Biederman. 
 
 " Thou wilt make thy round to the left side," 
 said the Bernese ; " I will draw off to the right 
 — see thou keepest a good look-out, and we will 
 meet merrily at the place appointed. Take one 
 of the hounds with you. I will keep Wolf-fanger, 
 who will open on a Burgundian as readily as on 
 a bear." 
 
 Rudiger moved off with his party to the left, 
 according to the directions received ; and Ru- 
 dolf, having sent forward one of his number in 
 front, and stationed another in the rear, com- 
 manded the third to follow himself and Arthur 
 Philipson, who thus constituted the main body 
 of the patrol. Having intimated to their imme- 
 diate attendant to keep at such distance as to 
 allow them freedom of conversation, Rudolf ad-
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 239 
 
 dressed the Englishman with the familiarity 
 which their recent friendship had created. — 
 " And now, King Arthur, what thinks the Ma- 
 jesty of England of our Helvetian youth ? Could 
 they win guerdon in tilt or tourney, thinkest 
 thou, noble prince ? Or would they rank but 
 amongst the coward knights of Cornouailles ?" 
 
 " For tilt and tourney I cannot answer," said 
 Arthur, summoning up his spirits to reply, " be- 
 cause I never beheld one of you mounted on a 
 steed, or having spear in rest. But if strong 
 limbs and stout hearts are to be considered, I 
 would match you Swiss gallants with those of 
 any country in the universe, where manhood is 
 to be looked for, whether it be in heart or 
 hand." 
 
 " Thou speakest us fair ; and, young English- 
 man," said Rudolf, " know that we think as 
 highly of thee, of which I will presently afford 
 thee a proof. Thou talked'st but now of horses. 
 I know but little of them; yet I judge thou 
 wouldst not buy a steed which thou hadst only 
 seen covered with trappings, or encumbered with 
 saddle and bridle, but wouldst desire to look at
 
 240 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 liim when stripped, and in his natural state of 
 freedom ?" 
 
 " Ay, marry, would I," said Arthur. " Thou 
 hast spoken on that as if thou hadst been born 
 in a district called Yorkshire, which men call 
 the merriest part of Merry England." 
 
 " Then I tell thee," said Rudolf Donnerhugel, 
 " that thou hast seen our Swiss youth but half, 
 since thou hast seen them as yet only in their 
 submissive attendance upon the elders of their 
 Cantons, or, at most, in their mountain-sports, 
 which, though they may show men's outward 
 strength and activity, can throw no light on the 
 spirit and disposition by which that strength and 
 activity are to be guided and directed in matters 
 of high enterprise." 
 
 The Swiss probably designed that these re- 
 marks should excite the curiosity of the stranger. 
 But the Englishman had the image, look, and 
 form of Anne of Geier stein, as she had passed him 
 in the silent hours of his watch, too constantly 
 before him, to enter willingly upon a subject of 
 conversation totally foreign to what agitated his 
 mind. He, therefore, only compelled himself
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 241 
 
 to reply in civility, that he had no doubt his 
 esteem for the Swiss, both aged and young, 
 would increase in proportion with his more 
 intimate knowledge of the nation. 
 
 He was then silent ; and Donnerhugel, dis- 
 appointed, perhaps, at having failed to excite 
 his curiosity, walked also in silence by his side. 
 Arthur, meanwhile, was considering with him- 
 self whether he should mention to his compa- 
 nion the circumstance which occupied his own 
 mind, in the hope that the kinsman of Anne of 
 Geierstein, and ancient friend of her house, 
 might be able to throw some light on the sub- 
 ject. 
 
 But he felt within his mind an insurmount- 
 able objection to converse with the Swiss on a 
 subject in which Anne was concerned. That 
 Rudolf made pretensions to her favour, could 
 hardly be doubted; and though Arthur, had 
 the question been put to him, must in common 
 consistency have resigned all competition on 
 the subject, still he could not bear to think on 
 the possibility of his rival's success, and would 
 
 vol. i. o
 
 242 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 not willingly have endured to hear him pro- 
 nounce her name. 
 
 Perhaps it was owing to this secret irritabi- 
 lity that Arthur, though he made every effort 
 to conceal and to overcome the sensation, still 
 felt a secret dislike to Rudolf Donnerhugel, 
 whose frank, but somewhat coarse familiarity, 
 was mingled with a certain air of protection 
 and patronage, which the Englishman thought 
 was by no means called for. He met the open- 
 ness of the Bernese, indeed, with equal frank- 
 ness, but he was ever and anon tempted to re- 
 ject or repel the tone of superiority by which it 
 was accompanied. The circumstances of their 
 duel had given the Swiss no ground for such 
 triumph ; nor did Arthur feel himself included 
 in the roll of the Swiss youth, over whom Ru- 
 dolf exercised domination, by general consent. 
 So little did Philipson relish this affectation of 
 superiority, that the poor jest, that termed him 
 King Arthur, although quite indifferent to him 
 when applied by any of the Biedermans, was 
 rather offensive when Rudolf took the same 
 liberty ; so that he often found himself in the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIX. 243 
 
 awkward condition of one who is internally 
 irritated, without having any outward manner 
 of testifying it with propriety. Undoubtedly, 
 the root of all this tacit dislike to the young 
 Bernese was a feeling of rivalry; but it was 
 a feeling which Arthur dared not avow even 
 to himself. It was sufficiently powerful, how- 
 ever, to suppress the slight inclination he had 
 felt to speak with Rudolf on the passage of the 
 night, which had most interested him ; and as 
 the topic of conversation introduced by his com- 
 panion had been suffered to drop, they walk- 
 ed on side by side in silence, " with the beard 
 on the shoulder," as the Spaniard says, looking 
 around, — that is, on all hands; and thus per- 
 forming the duty of a vigilant watch. 
 
 At length, after they had walked nearly a 
 mile through forest and field, making a circuit 
 around the ruins of Graffs-lust, of such an ex- 
 tent as to leave no room for an ambush betwixt 
 them and the place, the old hound, led by the 
 vidette who was foremost, stopped, and uttered 
 a low growl. 
 
 " How, now, Wolf-fanger !" said Rudolf, ad-
 
 244 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 vancing, — " What, old fellow ! dost thou not 
 know friends from foes ? Come, what sayest 
 thou, on better thoughts? — Thou must not lose 
 character in thy old age — try it again." 
 
 The dog raised his head, snuffed the air all 
 around, as if he understood what his master had 
 said, then shook his head and tail, as if answer- 
 ing to his voice. 
 
 " Why, there it is now," said Donnerhugel, 
 patting the animal's shaggy back; " secoLd 
 thoughts are worth gold ; thou seest it is a friend 
 after all." 
 
 The dog again shook his tail, and moved for- 
 ward with the same unconcern as before; Rudolf 
 fell back into his place, and his companion said 
 to him — 
 
 "We are about to meet Rudiger and our com- 
 panions, I suppose, and the dog bears their foot- 
 steps, though we cannot." 
 
 " It can scarcely yet be Rudiger," said the 
 Bernese; " his walk around the castle is of a 
 wider circumference than ours. Some one ap- 
 jx-oaches, however, for Wolf-fanger is again dis- 
 satisfied — Look sharply out on all sides."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 245 
 
 As Rudolf gave his party the word to be on 
 the alert, they reached an open glade, in which 
 were scattered, at considerable distance from 
 each other, some old pine trees of gigantic size, 
 which seemed yet huger and blacker than or- 
 dinary, from their broad sable tops and shat- 
 tered branches being displayed against the clear 
 and white moonlight. "We shall here, at least," 
 said the Swiss, " have the advantage of seeing 
 clearly whatever approaches. But I judge," 
 said he, after looking around for a minute, " it 
 is but some wolf or deer that has crossed our 
 path, and the scent disturbs the hound — Hold 
 — stop — yes, it must be so ; he goes on." 
 
 The dog accordingly proceeded, after having 
 given some signs of doubt, uncertainty, and even 
 anxiety. Apparently, however, he became re- 
 conciled to what had disturbed him, and pro- 
 ceeded once more in the ordinary manner. 
 
 " This is singular !" said Arthur Philipson ; 
 " and, to my thinking, I saw an object close by 
 yonder patch of thicket, where, as well as I can 
 guess, a few thorn and hazle bushes surround 
 the stems of four or five large trees."
 
 246 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " My eye has been on that very thicket for 
 these five minutes past, and I saw nothing," said 
 Rudolf. 
 
 " Nay, but," answered the young English- 
 man, " I saw the object, whatever it was, while 
 you were engaged in attending to the dog. And 
 by your permission, I will forward and examine 
 the thicket." 
 
 " Were you properly under my command," 
 said Donnerhugel, " I would command you to 
 keep your place. If they be foes, it is essential 
 that we should remain together. But you are a 
 volunteer in our watch, and therefore may use 
 your freedom." 
 
 " I thank you," answered Arthur, and sprung 
 quickly forward. 
 
 He felt, indeed, at the moment, that he was 
 not acting courteously as an individual, or per- 
 haps correctly as a soldier ; and that he ought 
 to have rendered obedience, for the time, to the 
 captain of the party in which he had enlisted 
 himself. But, on the other hand, the object 
 which he had seen, though at a distance and 
 imperfectly, seemed to bear a resemblance to
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 247 
 
 the retiring form of Anne of Geierstein, as she 
 had vanished from his eyes, an hour or two be- 
 fore, under the cover of the forest; and his un- 
 governable curiosity to ascertain whether it 
 might not be the maiden in person, allowed 
 him to listen to no other consideration. 
 
 Ere Rudolf had spoken out his few words 
 of reply, Arthur was half-way to the thicket. 
 It was, as it had seemed at a distance, of small 
 extent, and not fitted to hide any person who 
 did not actually couch down amongst the dwarf 
 bushes and underwood. Any thing white, also, 
 which bore the human size and form, must, 
 he thought, have been discovered among the 
 dark red stems and swarthy bushes which were 
 before him. These observations were min- 
 gled with other thoughts. If it was Anne of 
 Geierstein whom he had a second time seen, 
 she must have left the more open path, desirous 
 probably of avoiding notice ; and what right or 
 title had he to direct upon her the observation 
 of the patrol ? He had, he thought, observed, 
 that, in general, the maiden rather repelled than 
 encouraged the attentions of Rudolf Donnerhu-
 
 248 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 gel ; or, where it would have been discourteous 
 to have rejected them entirely, that she endured 
 without encouraging them. What, then, could 
 he the propriety of his intruding upon her pri- 
 vate walk, singular, indeed, from time and place, 
 but which, on that account, she might be more 
 desirous to keep secret from the observation of 
 one who was disagreeable to her ? Nay, was it 
 not possible that Rudolf might derive advantage 
 to his otherwise unacceptable suit, by possessing 
 the knowledge of something which the maiden 
 desired to be concealed ? 
 
 As these thoughts pressed upon him, Arthur 
 made a pause, with his eyes fixed on the thicket, 
 from which he was now scarce thirty yards dis- 
 tant ; and although scrutinizing it with all the 
 keen accuracy which his uncertainty and anxie- 
 ty dictated, he was actuated by a strong feeling 
 that it would be wisest to turn back to his com- 
 panions, and report to Rudolf that his eyes had 
 deceived him. 
 
 But while he was yet undecided whether to 
 advance or return, the object which he had 
 seen became again visible on the verge of the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 249 
 
 thicket, and advanced straight towards him, 
 bearing, as on the former occasion, the exact 
 dress and figure of Anne of Geierstein ! This 
 vision — for the time, place, and suddenness of 
 the appearance, made it seem rather an illusion 
 than a reality — struck Arthur with surprise, 
 which amounted to terror. The figure passed 
 within a spear's-length, unchallenged by him, 
 and giving not the slightest sign of recognition ; 
 and, directing its course to the right hand of 
 Rudolf, and the two or three who were with 
 him, was again lost among the broken ground 
 and bushes. 
 
 Once more the young man was reduced to a 
 state of the most inextricable doubt; nor was 
 he roused from the stupor into which he was 
 thrown, till the voice of the Bernese sounded 
 in his ear, — " Why, how now, King Arthur — 
 art thou asleep, or art thou wounded ?" 
 
 " Neither,'* said Philipson, collecting him- 
 self; " only much surprised." 
 
 " Surprised ! and at what, most royal " 
 
 " Forbear foolery," said Arthur, somewhat 
 S2
 
 250 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 sternly, " arid answer as thou art a man — Did 
 she not meet thee ? — didst thou not see her ?" 
 
 " See her ! — see whom ?" said Donnerhugel. 
 " I saw no one. And I could have sworn you 
 had seen no one either, for I had you in my eye 
 the whole time of your absence, excepting two 
 or three moments. If you saw aught, why gave 
 you not the alarm?" 
 
 " Because it was only a woman," answered 
 Arthur, faintly. 
 
 " Only a woman !" repeated Rudolf, in a tone 
 of contempt. " By my honest word, King Ar- 
 thur, if I had not seen pretty flashes of valour 
 fly from thee at times, I should be apt to think 
 that thou hadst only a woman's courage thyself. 
 Strange, that a shadow by night, or a precipice 
 in the day, should quell so bold a spirit as thou 
 hast often shown " 
 
 " And as I will ever show, when occasion 
 demands it," interrupted the Englishman, with 
 recovered spirit. M But I swear to you, that if 
 I be now daunted, it is by no merely earthly 
 fears that my mind hath been for a moment 
 subdued."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 251 
 
 " Let us proceed on our walk," said Rudolf; 
 " we must not neglect the safety of our friends. 
 This appearance, of which thou speakest, may be 
 but a trick to interrupt our duty." 
 
 They moved on through the moonlight glades. 
 A minute's reflection restored young Philipsou 
 to his full recollection, and with that to the 
 painful consciousness that he had played a ridi- 
 culous and unworthy part in the presence of 
 the person, whom (of the male sex, at least) he 
 would the very last have chosen as a witness of 
 his weakness. 
 
 He ran hastily over the relations which stood 
 betwixt himself, Donnerhugel, theLandamman, 
 his niece, and the rest of that family ; and, 
 contrary to the opinion which he had entertain- 
 ed but a short while before, settled in his own 
 mind that it was his duty to mention to the 
 immediate leader under whom he had placed 
 himself, the appearance which he had twice 
 observed in the course of that night's duty. 
 There might be family circumstances, — the pay- 
 ment of a vow, perhaps, or some such reason, 
 — which might render intelligible to her con-
 
 252 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 nexions the behaviour of this young lady. Be- 
 sides, he was for the present a soldier on duty, 
 and these mysteries might be fraught with evils 
 to be anticipated or guarded against ; in either 
 case, his companions were entitled to be made 
 aware of what he had seen. It must be supposed 
 that this resolution was adopted when the sense 
 of duty, and of shame for the weakness which 
 he had exhibited, had for the moment subdued 
 Arthur's personal feelings towards Anne of 
 Geierstein, — feelings, also, liable to be chilled 
 by the mysterious uncertainty which the events 
 of that evening had cast, like a thick mist, around 
 the object of them. 
 
 While the Englishman's reflections were ta- 
 king this turn, his captain or companion, after 
 a silence of several minutes, at length address- 
 ed him. 
 
 " I believe," he said, " my dear comrade, 
 that, as being at present your officer, I have 
 some title to hear from you the report of what 
 you have just now seen, since it must be some- 
 thing of importance which could so strongly 
 agitate a mind so firm as yours. But if, in
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 253 
 
 your own opinion, it consists with the general 
 safety to delay your report of what yon have 
 been until we return to the castle, and then to 
 deliver it to the private ear of the Landamman, 
 you have only to intimate your purpose ; and, 
 far from urging you to place confidence in me 
 personally, though I hope I am not undeserving 
 of it, I will authorize your leaving us, and re- 
 turning instantly to the castle. " 
 
 This proposal touched him to whom it was 
 made exactly in the right place. An absolute 
 demand of his confidence might perhaps have 
 been declined ; the tone of moderate request 
 and conciliation fell presently in with the Eng- 
 lishman's own reflections. 
 
 " I am sensible," he said, " Hauptman, that 
 I ought to mention to you that which I have 
 seen to-night ; but on the first occasion, it did 
 not fall within my duty to do so ; and now that 
 I have a second time witnessed the same ap- 
 pearance, I have felt for these few seconds so 
 much surprised at what I have seen, that even 
 yet I can scarce find words to express it." 
 
 " As I cannot guess what you may have to
 
 254 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 say," replied the Bernese, "I must beseech 
 you to be explicit. We are but poor readers of 
 riddles, we thick-headed Switzers." 
 
 " Yet it is but a riddle which I have to place 
 before you, Rudolf Donnerhugel," answered 
 the Englishman, " and a riddle which is far 
 beyond my own guessing at." He then proceed- 
 ed, though not without hesitation, " While you 
 were performing your first patrol amongst the 
 ruins, a female crossed the bridge from within 
 the castle, walked by my post without saying a 
 single word, and vanished under the shadows of 
 the forest." 
 
 " Ha !" exclaimed Donnerhugel, and made 
 no further answer. 
 
 Arthur proceeded. " Within these five mi- 
 nutes, the same female form passed me a second 
 time, issuing from the little thicket and clump 
 of firs, and disappeared, without exchanging a 
 word. Know further, this apparition bore the 
 form, face, gait, and dress of your kinswoman, 
 Anne of Geierstein." 
 
 " Singular enough," said Rudolf, in a tone 
 of incredulity. " I must not, I suppose, dis-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 255 
 
 pute your word, for you would receive doubt 
 on my part as a mortal injury — such is your 
 northern chivalry. Yet, let me say, I have eyes 
 as well as you, and I scarce think they quitted 
 you for a minute. We were not fifty yards from 
 the place where I found you standing in amaze- 
 ment. How, therefore, should not we also have 
 seen that which you say and think you saw ?" 
 
 " To that I can give no answer," said Ar- 
 thur. " Perhaps your eyes were not exactly 
 turned upon me during the short space in which 
 I saw this form — Perhaps it might be visible 
 — as they say fantastic appearances sometimes 
 are — to only one person at a time." 
 
 " You suppose, then, that the appearance was 
 imaginary, or fantastic ?" said the Bernese. 
 
 " Can I tell you ?" replied the Englishman. 
 " The Church gives its warrant that there are 
 such things; and surely it is more natural to 
 believe this apparition to be an illusion, than to 
 suppose that Anne of Geierstein, a gentle and 
 well-nurtured maiden, should be traversing the 
 woods at this wild hour, when safety and pro-
 
 256 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 priety so strongly recommend her being within 
 doors." 
 
 " There is much in what you say," said Ru- 
 dolf; " and yet there are stories afloat, though 
 few care to mention them, which seem to allege 
 that Anne of Geierstein is not altogether such 
 as other maidens ; and that she has been met 
 with, in body and spirit, where she could hardly 
 have come by her own unassisted efforts." 
 
 " Ha !" said Arthur ; " so young, so beauti- 
 ful, and already in league with the destroyer of 
 mankind ! It is impossible." 
 
 " I said not so," replied the Bernese ; " nor 
 have I leisure at present to explain my meaning 
 more fully. As we return to the castle of Graffs- 
 lust, I may have an opportunity to tell you more. 
 But I chiefly brought you on this patrol to in- 
 troduce you to some friends, whom you will be 
 pleased to know, and who desire your acquaint- 
 ance; and it is here I expect to meet them." 
 
 So saying, he turned round the projecting 
 corner of a rock, and an unexpected scene was 
 presented to the eyes of the young Englishman. 
 
 In a sort of nook, or corner, screened by the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 257 
 
 rocky projection, there burned a large fire of 
 wood, and around it sat, reclined, or lay, twelve 
 or fifteen young men in the Swiss garb, but 
 decorated with ornaments and embroidery, 
 which reflected back the light of the fire. The 
 same red gleam was returned by silver wine- 
 cups, which circulated from hand to hand with 
 the flasks which filled them. Arthur could also 
 observe the relics of a banquet, to which due 
 honour seemed to have been lately rendered. 
 
 The revellers started joyfully up at the sight 
 of Donnerhugel and his companions, and salu- 
 ted him, easily distinguished as he was by his 
 stature, by the title of Captain, warmly and 
 exultiogly uttered, while, at the same time, 
 every tendency to noisy acclamation was cau- 
 tiously suppressed. The zeal indicated that 
 Rudolf came most welcome — the caution that 
 he came in secret, and was to be received with 
 mystery. 
 
 To the general greeting he answered, — " I 
 thank you, my brave comrades. Has Rudiger 
 yet reached you ?" 
 
 " Thou see'st he has not," said one of the
 
 258 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 party ; " had it been so, we would have detain- 
 ed him here till your coming, brave Captain." 
 
 " He has loitered on his patrol," said the 
 Bernese. " We too were delayed, yet we are 
 here before him. I bring with me, comrades, the 
 brave Englishman, whom I mentioned to you as 
 a desirable associate in our daring purpose." 
 
 .?' He is welcome, most welcome to us," said 
 a young man, whose richly embroidered dress 
 of azure blue gave him an air of authority : 
 " most welcome is he, if he brings with him a 
 heart and a hand to serve our noble task." 
 
 " For both I will be responsible," said Ru- 
 dolf. " Pass the wine-cup, then, to the success 
 of our glorious enterprise, and the health of 
 this our new associate !" 
 
 While they were replenishing the cups with 
 wine of a quality far superior to any which 
 Arthur had yet tasted in these regions, he 
 thought it right, before engaging himself in the 
 pledge, to learn the secret object of the asso- 
 ciation which seemed desirous of adopting him. 
 
 " Before I engage my poor services to you, 
 fair sirs, since it pleases you to desire them.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 259 
 
 permit me," he said, " to ask the purpose and 
 character of the undertaking in which they are 
 to be employed ?" 
 
 " Shouldst thou have brought him hither," 
 said the cavalier in blue to Rudolf, " without 
 satisfying him and thyself on that point ?" 
 
 " Care not thou about it, Lawrenz," replied 
 the Bernese, " I know my man. — Be it known, 
 then, to you, my good friend," he continued, 
 addressing the Englishman, " that my comrades 
 and I are determined at once to declare the 
 freedom of the Swiss commerce, and to resist 
 to the death, if it be necessary, all unlawful and 
 extortionate demands on the part of our neigh- 
 bours." 
 
 " I understand so much," said the young 
 Englishman, " and that the present deputation 
 proceeds to the Duke of Burgundy with re- 
 monstrances to that effect." 
 
 " Hear me," replied Rudolf. " The ques- 
 tion is like to be brought to a bloody determi- 
 nation long ere we see the Duke of Burgundy's 
 most august and most gracious countenance. 
 That his influence should be used to exclude
 
 260 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN'. 
 
 us from Bale, a neutral town, and pertaining 
 to the empire, gives us cause to expect the worst 
 reception when we enter his own dominions. 
 We have even reason to think that we might 
 have suffered from his hatred already, but for 
 the vigilance of the ward which we have kept. 
 Horsemen, from the direction of La Ferette, 
 have this night reconnoitred our posts; and had 
 they not found us prepared, we had, without 
 question, been attacked in our quarters. But 
 since we have escaped to-night, we must take 
 care for to-morrow. For this purpose, a num- 
 ber of the bravest youth of the city of Bale, 
 incensed at the pusillanimity of their magi- 
 strates, are determined to join u«s, in order to 
 wipe away the disgrace which the cowardly in- 
 hospitality of their magistracy has brought on 
 their native place." 
 
 " That we will do ere the sun, that will rise 
 two hours hence, shall sink into the western 
 sky," said the cavalier in blue; and those around 
 joined him in stern assent. 
 
 " Gentle sirs," replied Arthur, when there 
 was a pause, " let me remind you that the em-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 261 
 
 bassy which you attend is a peaceful one, and 
 that those who act as its escort ought to avoid 
 any thing which can augment the differences 
 which it comes to reconcile. You cannot ex- 
 pect to receive offence in the Duke's dominions, 
 the privileges of envoys being respected in all 
 civilized countries ; and you will, I am sure, de- 
 sire to offer none." 
 
 " We may be subjected to insult, however," 
 replied the Bernese, " and that through your 
 concerns, Arthur Philipson, and those of thy 
 father." 
 
 " I understand you not," replied Philipson. 
 
 " Your father," answered Donnerhugel, "is a 
 merchant, and bears with him wares of small 
 bulk but high value ?" 
 
 " He does so," answered Arthur ; " and what 
 of that ?" 
 
 " Marry," answered Rudolf, " that if it be 
 not better looked to, the Bandog of Burgundy 
 is like to fall heir to a large proportion of your 
 silks, satins, and jewellery work." 
 
 " Silks, satins, and jewels!" exclaimed ano- 
 ther of the revellers ; " such wares will not
 
 262 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 pass toll-free where Archibald of Hagenbach 
 hath authority." 
 
 " Fair sirs," resumed Arthur, after a mo- 
 ment's consideration, " these wares are my fa- 
 ther's property, not mine ; and it is for him, not 
 me, to pronounce how much of them he might 
 be content to part with in the way of toll, ra- 
 ther than give occasion to a fray, in which his 
 companions, who have received him into their 
 society, must be exposed to injury as well as 
 himself. I can only say, that he has weighty 
 affairs at the court of Burgundy, which must 
 render him desirous of reaching it in peace with 
 all men ; and it is my private belief, that rather 
 than incur the loss and danger of a broil with 
 the garrison of La Ferette, he would be con- 
 tented to sacrifice all the property which he has 
 at present with him. Therefore, I must request 
 of you, gentlemen, a space to consult his plea- 
 sure on this occasion ; assuring you, that if it 
 be his will to resist the payment of these du- 
 ties to Burgundy, you shall find in me one who 
 is fully determined to fight to the last drop of 
 his blood."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 263 
 
 " Good, King Arthur," said Rudolf; " thou 
 art a dutiful observer of the Fourth Command- 
 ment, and thy days shall be long in the land. 
 Do not suppose us neglectful of the same du- 
 ty, although, for the present, we conceive our- 
 selves bound, in the first place, to attend to the 
 weal of our country, the common parent of our 
 fathers and ourselves. But as you know our 
 deep respect for the Landamman, you need not 
 fear that we shall willingly offer him offence, by 
 rashly engaging in hostilities, or without some 
 weighty reason ; and an attempt to plunder his 
 guest would have been met, on his part, with 
 resistance to the death. I had hoped to find 
 both you and your father prompt enough to 
 resent such a gross injury. Nevertheless, if 
 your father inclines to present his fleece to be 
 shorn by Archibald of Hagenbach, whose scis- 
 sors, he will find, clip pretty closely, it would 
 be unnecessary and uncivil in us to interpose. 
 Meantime, you have the advantage of knowing, 
 that in case the governor of La Ferette should 
 be disposed to strip you of skin as well as fleece, 
 there are close at hand more men than you
 
 264> ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 looked for, whom you will find both able and 
 willing to render you prompt assistance." 
 
 " On these terms," said the Englishman, " I 
 make my acknowledgments to these gentle- 
 men of Bale, or whatever other country hath 
 sent them forth, and pledge them in a brother- 
 ly cup to our farther and more intimate ac- 
 quaintance." 
 
 " Health and prosperity to the United Can- 
 tons, and their friends !" answered the Blue 
 Cavalier. " And death and confusion to all 
 besides !" 
 
 The cups were replenished ; and instead of a 
 shout of applause, the young men around tes- 
 tified their devoted determination to the cause 
 which was thus announced, by grasping each 
 other's hands, and then brandishing their wea- 
 pons with a fierce yet noiseless gesture. 
 
 " Thus," said Rudolf Donnerhugel, " our il- 
 lustrious ancestors, the fathers of Swiss inde- 
 pendence, met in the immortal field of Rutli, 
 between Uri and Unterwalden. Thus tiiey 
 swore to each other, under the blue firmament 
 of heaven, that they would restore the liberty 
 10
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 265 
 
 of their oppressed country ; and history can tell 
 how well they kept their word." 
 
 " And she shall record," said the Blue Ca- 
 valier, " how well the present Switzers can pre- 
 serve the freedom which their fathers won. — 
 Proceed in your rounds, good Rudolf, and be 
 assured, that at the signal of the Hauptman, 
 the soldiers will not be far absent ; — all is ar- 
 ranged as formerly, unless you have new orders 
 to give us." 
 
 " Hark thee hither, Lawrenz," said Rudolf 
 to the Blue Cavalier, — and Arthur could hear 
 him say, — " Beware, my friend, that the Rhine 
 wine be not abused ; — if there is too much pro- 
 vision of it, manage to destroy the flasks ; — a 
 mule may stumble, thou knowest, or so. Give 
 not way to Rudiger in this. He is grown a 
 wine-bibber since he joined us. We must bring 
 both heart and hand to what may be done to- 
 morrow." — They then whispersd so low, that 
 Arthur could hear nothing of their farther con- 
 ference, and bid each other adieu, after clasping 
 hands, as if they were renewing some solemn 
 pledge of union. 
 
 VOL. I. R
 
 266 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 Rudolf and his party then moved forward, 
 and were scarce out of sight of their new asso- 
 ciates, when the vidette, or foremost of their 
 patrol, gave the signal of alarm. Arthur's heart 
 leaped to his lips — " It is Anne of Geierstein !" 
 he said internally. 
 
 " The dogs are silent," said the Bernese. 
 " Those who approach must be the companions 
 of our watch." 
 
 They proved, accordingly, to be Rudiger and 
 his party, who, halting on the appearance of 
 their comrades, made and underwent a formal 
 challenge ; such advance had the Swiss already 
 made in military discipline, which was but little 
 studied by the infantry in other parts of Eu- 
 rope. Arthur could hear Rudolf take his friend 
 Rudiger to task for not meeting him at the halt- 
 ing place appointed. " It leads to new revel- 
 ry, on your arrival," he said, " and to-morrow 
 must find us cool and determined." 
 
 " Cool as an icicle, noble Hauptman," an- 
 swered the son of the Landamman, " and deter- 
 mined as the rock it hangs upon." 
 
 Rudolf again recommended temperance, and
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 267 
 
 the young Biederman promised compliance. The 
 two parties passed each other with friendly 
 though silent greeting ; and there was soon a 
 considerable distance between them. 
 
 The country was more open on the side of 
 the castle, around which their duty now led 
 them, than where it lay opposite to the princi- 
 pal gate. The glades were broad, the trees thin- 
 ly scattered over pasture land, and there were 
 no thickets, ravines, or similar places of ambush, 
 so that the eye might, in the clear moonlight, 
 well command the country. 
 
 " Here," said Rudolf, " we may judge our- 
 selves seeure enough for some conference ; and 
 therefore may I ask thee, Arthur of England, 
 now thou hast seen us more closely, what think- 
 est thou of the Switzer youth ? If thou hast 
 learned less than I could have wished, thank 
 thine own uncommunicative temper, which re- 
 tired in some degree from our confidence." 
 
 u Only in so far as I could not have answer- 
 ed, and therefore ought not to have received it," 
 said Arthur. " The judgment I have been en- 
 abled to form amounts, in i'ew words, to this :
 
 268 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 Your purposes are lofty and noble as your 
 mountains ; but the stranger from the low coun- 
 try is not accustomed to tread the circuitous 
 path by which you ascend them. My foot has 
 been always accustomed to move straight for- 
 ward upon the greensward." 
 
 " You speak in riddles," answered the Ber- 
 nese. 
 
 " Not so," returned the Englishman. " I 
 think you ought plainly to mention to your 
 seniors, (the nominal leaders of young men 
 who seem well disposed to take their own road,) 
 that you expect an attack in the neighbourhood 
 of La Ferette, and hope for assistance from some 
 of the townsmen of Bale." 
 
 " Ay, truly," answered Donnerhugel ; " and 
 the Landamman would stop his journey till he 
 dispatched a messenger for a safe-conduct to 
 the Duke of Burgundy; and should he grant 
 it, there were an end of all hope of war." 
 
 " True," replied Arthur ; " but the Landam- 
 man would thereby obtain his own principal 
 object, and the sole purpose of the mission — 
 that is, the establishment of peace."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 269 
 
 " Peace — peace ?" answered the Bernese has- 
 tily : " Were my wishes alone to be opposed to 
 those of Arnold Biederraan, I know so much of 
 his honour and faith, I respect so highly his 
 valour and patriotism, that at his voice I would 
 sheathe my sword, even if my most mortal ene- 
 my stood before me. But mine is not the single 
 wish of a single man ; the whole of my canton, 
 and that of Soleure, are determined on war. It 
 was by war, noble war, that our fathers came 
 forth from the house of their captivity — it was 
 by war, successful and glorious war, that a race, 
 who had been held scarce so much worth think- 
 ing on as the oxen which they goaded, emerged 
 at once into liberty and consequence, and were 
 honoured because they were feared, as much as 
 they had been formerly despised because they 
 were unresisting." 
 
 " This may be all very true," said the young 
 Englishman ; " but, in my opinion, the object 
 of your mission has been determined by your 
 Diet or House of Commons. They have re- 
 solved to send you with others as messengers 
 of peace ; but you are secretly blowing the coals
 
 270 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of war ; and while all, or most of your senior 
 colleagues, are setting out to-morrow in expec- 
 tation of a peaceful journey, you stand pre- 
 pared for a combat, and look for the means of 
 giving cause for it." 
 
 " And is it not well that I do stand so pre- 
 pared ?" answered Rudolf. " If our reception 
 in Burgundy's dependencies be peaceful, as you 
 say the rest of the deputation expect, my pre- 
 cautions will be needless ; but at least they can 
 do no harm. If it prove otherwise, I shall be 
 the means of averting a great misfortune from 
 my colleagues, my kinsman Arnold Biederman, 
 my fair cousin Anne, your father, yourself — 
 from all of us, in short, who are joyously tra- 
 velling together." 
 
 Arthur shook his head. " There is some- 
 thing in all this," he said, " which I understand 
 not, and will not seek to understand. I only 
 pray that you will not make my father's con- 
 cerns the subject of breaking truce ; it may, as 
 you hint, involve the Landamman in a quarrel, 
 which he might otherwise have avoided. I am 
 sure my father will never forgive it."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 271 
 
 " I have pledged my word," said Rudolf, 
 " already to that effect. But if he should like 
 the usage of the Bandog of Burgundy less than 
 you seem to apprehend he will, there is no 
 harm in your knowing, that, in time of need, he 
 may be well and actively supported." 
 
 " I am greatly obliged by the assurance," re- 
 plied the Englishman. 
 
 " And thou mayst thyself, my friend," con- 
 tinued Rudolf, " take a warning from what 
 thou hast heard : Men go not to a bridal in 
 armour, nor to a brawl in a silken doublet." 
 
 " I will be clad to meet the worst," said Ar- 
 thur ; " and for that purpose I will don a light 
 hauberk of well-tempered steel, proof against 
 spear or arrow ; and I thank you for your kind- 
 ly counsel." 
 
 "Nay, thank not me," said Rudolf; " I were 
 ill deserving to be a leader did I not make those 
 who are to follow me — more especially so trusty 
 a follower as thou art — aware of the time when 
 they should buckle on their armour, and pre- 
 pare for hard blows." 
 
 Here the conversation paused for a moment
 
 272 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 or two, neither of the speakers being entirely 
 contented with his companion, although neither 
 pressed any further remark. 
 
 The Bernese, judging from the feelings which 
 he had seen predominate among the traders of 
 his own country, had entertained little doubt 
 that the Englishman, finding himself powerfully 
 supported in point of force, wotild have caught 
 at the opportunity to resist paying the exorbi- 
 tant imposts with which he was threatened at 
 the next town, which would probably, without 
 any effort on Rudolf's part, have led to break- 
 ing off the truce on the part of Arnold Bie- 
 derman himself, and to an instant declaration 
 of war. On the other hand, young Philipson 
 could not understand or approve of Donner- 
 hugel's conduct, who, himself a member of a 
 peaceful deputation, seemed to be animated with 
 the purpose of seizing an opportunity to kindle 
 the flames of war. 
 
 Occupied by these various reflections, they 
 walked side by side for some time without speak- 
 ing together, until Rudolf broke silence. 
 
 " Your curiosity is then ended, Sir English-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 273 
 
 man," said he, " respecting the apparition of 
 Anne of Geierstein ?" 
 
 " Far from it," replied Philipson ; " but I 
 would unwillingly intrude any questions on you 
 while you are busy with the duties of your pa- 
 trol." 
 
 " That may be considered as over," said the 
 Bernese, " for there is not a bush near us to co- 
 ver a Burgundian knave, and a glance around 
 us from time to time is all that is now needful 
 to prevent surprise. And so, listen while I tell 
 a tale, never sung or harped in hall or bower, 
 and which, I begin to think, deserves as much 
 credit, at least, as is due to the Tales of the 
 Round Table, which ancient troubadours and 
 minne-singers dole out to us as the authentic 
 chronicles of your renowned namesake. 
 
 " Of Anne's ancestors on the male side of 
 the house," continued Rudolf, " I dare say you 
 have heard enough, and are well aware how 
 they dwelt in the old walls at Geierstein be- 
 side the cascade, grinding their vassals, devour- 
 ing the substance of their less powerful neigh- 
 bours, and plundering the goods of the travel- 
 r2
 
 274t ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 lers whom ill luck sent within ken of the vul- 
 ture's eyry, the one year ; and in the next, 
 wearying the shrines for mercy for their tres- 
 passes, overwhelming the priests with the wealth 
 which they showered upon them, and, finally, 
 vowing vows, and making pilgrimages, some- 
 times as palmers, sometimes as crusaders, as far 
 as Jerusalem itself, to atone for the iniquities 
 which they had committed without hesitation or 
 struggle of conscience." 
 
 " Such, I have understood," replied the young 
 Englishman, iC was the history of the house of 
 Geierstein, till Arnold, or his immediate ances- 
 tors, exchanged the lance for the sheep-hook." 
 
 " But it is said," replied the Bernese, " that 
 the powerful and wealthy Barons of Arnheim, of 
 Swabia, whose only female descendant became 
 the wife to Count Albert of Geierstein, and the 
 mother of this young person, whom Swiss call 
 simply Anne, and Germans Countess Anne of 
 Geierstein, were nobles of a different caste. 
 They did not restrict their lives within the limits 
 of sinning and repenting, — of plundering harm- 
 less peasants, and pampering fat monks ; but 
 were distinguished for something more than
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 275 
 
 building castles with dungeons and torture- 
 chambers, and founding monasteries with Gali- 
 lees and Refectories, 
 
 " These same Barons of Arnheim were men 
 who strove to enlarge the boundaries of human 
 knowledge, and converted their castle into a 
 species of college, where there were more an- 
 cient volumes than the monks have piled toge- 
 ther in the library of St Gall. Nor were their 
 studies in books alone. Deep buried in their 
 private laboratories, theyattained secrets whicli 
 were afterwards transmitted through the race 
 from father to son, and were supposed to have 
 approached nearly to the deepest recesses of al- 
 chemy. The report of their wisdom and their 
 wealth was often brought to the Imperial foot- 
 stool ; and in the frequent disputes which the 
 Emperors maintained with the Popes of old, it 
 is said they were encouraged, if not instigated, 
 by the counsels of the Barons of Arnheim, and 
 supported by their treasures. It was, perhaps, 
 such a course of politics, joined to the unusual 
 and mysterious studies which the family of Arn- 
 heim so long pursued, that excited against them
 
 216 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 the generally received opinion, that they were 
 assisted in their superhuman researches by su- 
 pernatural influences. The priests were active 
 in forwarding this cry against men, who, per- 
 haps, had no other fault than that of being wiser 
 than themselves. 
 
 " * Look what guests,' they said, ' are re- 
 ceived in the halls of Arnheim ! Let a Chris- 
 tian knight, crippled in war with the Saracens, 
 present himself on the drawbridge, he is guer- 
 doned with a crust and a cup of wine, and re- 
 quired to pass on his way. If a palmer, redo- 
 lent of the sanctity acquired by his recent visits 
 to the most holy shrines, and by the sacred 
 relics which attest and reward his toil, ap- 
 proach the unhallowed walls, the warder bends 
 his crossbow, and the porter shuts the gate, as 
 if the wandering saint brought the plague with 
 him from Palestine. But comes there a grey- 
 bearded, glib-tongued Greek, with his parch- 
 ment scrolls, the very letters of which are painful 
 to Christian eyes — comes there a Jewish Rabbin, 
 with his Talmud and Cabala — comes there a 
 swarthy sun-burnt Moor, who can boast of ha-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 277 
 
 ving read the language of the Stars in Chaldea, 
 the cradle of astrological science — Lo, the wan- 
 dering impostor or sorcerer occupies the highest 
 seat at the Baron of Arnheim's board, shares 
 with him the labours of the alembic and the fur- 
 nace, learns from him mystic knowledge, like 
 that of which our first parents participated to the 
 overthrow of their race, and requites it with les- 
 sons more dreadful than he receives, till the pro- 
 fane host has added to his hoard of unholy wis- 
 dom, all that the pagan visitor can communi- 
 cate. And these things are done in Almain, 
 which is called the Holy Roman Empire, of 
 which so many priests are princes ! — they are 
 done, and neither ban nor monition is issued 
 against a race of sorcerers, who, from age to age, 
 go on triumphing in their necromancy V 
 
 " Such arguments, which were echoed from 
 mitred Abbots to the cell of Anchorites, seem, 
 nevertheless, to have made little impression on 
 the Imperial council. But they served to excite 
 the zeal of many a Baron and Free Count of the 
 Empire, who were taught by them to esteem a 
 war or feud with the Barons of Arnheim as par-
 
 278 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 taking of the nature, and entitled to the immuni- 
 ties, of a crusade against the enemies of the Faith, 
 and to regard an attack upon these obnoxious 
 potentates, as a mode of clearing off their deep 
 scores with the Christian church. But the Lords 
 of Arnheim, though not seeking for quarrel, were 
 by no means unwarlike, or averse to maintain- 
 ing their own defence. Some, on the contrary, 
 belonging to this obnoxious race, were not the 
 less distinguished as gallant knights and good 
 men-at-arms. They were besides wealthy, secu- 
 red and strengthened by great alliances, aud in 
 an eminent degree wise and provident. This the 
 parties who assailed them learned to their cost. 
 " The confederacies formed against the Lords 
 of Arnheim were broken up ; the attacks which 
 their enemies meditated were anticipated and 
 disconcerted ; and those who employed actual 
 violence were repelled with signal loss to the as- 
 sailants : until at length an impression was pro- 
 duced in their neighbourhood, that by their ac- 
 curate information concerning meditated vio- 
 lence, and their extraordinary powers of resist- 
 ing and defeating it, the obnoxious Barons must
 
 ANNE OF GEIEKSTEIN. 279 
 
 have brought to their defence means, which 
 merely human force was incapable of overthrow- 
 ing ; so that, becoming as much feared as hated, 
 they were suffered for the last generation to re- 
 main unmolested. And this was the rather the 
 case, that the numerous vassals of this great 
 house were perfectly satisfied with their feudal 
 superiors, abundantly ready to rise in their de- 
 fence, and disposed to believe, that, whether 
 their lords were sorcerers or no, their own con- 
 dition would not be mended by exchanging their 
 government, either for the rule of the crusaders 
 in this holy warfare, or that of the churchmen 
 by whom it was instigated. The race of these 
 barons ended in Herman von Arnheim, the ma- 
 ternal grandfather of Anne of Geierstein. He 
 was buried with his helmet, sword, and shield, 
 as is the German custom with the last male of a 
 noble family. 
 
 " But he left an only daughter, Sybilla of 
 Arnheim, to inherit a considerable portion of 
 his estate ; and I never heard that the strong 
 imputation of sorcery which attached to her 
 house, prevented numerous applications, from
 
 280 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 persons of the highest distinction in the Empire, 
 to her legal guardian, the Emperor, for the rich 
 heiress's hand in marriage. Albert of Geierstein, 
 however, though an exile, obtained the prefer- 
 ence. He was gallant and handsome, which re- 
 commended him to Sybilla; and the Emperor, 
 bent at the time on the vain idea of recovering 
 his authority in the Swiss mountains, was desi- 
 rous to show himself generous to Albert, whom 
 he considered as a fugitive from his country for 
 espousing the imperial cause. You may thus see, 
 most noble King Arthur, that Anne of Geier- 
 stein, the only child of their marriage, descends 
 from no ordinary stock ; and that circumstances 
 in which she may be concerned, are not to be 
 explained or judged of so easily, or upon the 
 same grounds of reasoning, as in the case of or- 
 dinary persons." 
 
 " By my honest word, Sir Rudolf of Donner- 
 hugel," said Arthur, studiously labouring to 
 keep a command upon his feelings, " I can see 
 nothing in your narrative, and understand no- 
 thing from it, unless it be, that, because in Ger- 
 many, as in other countries, there have been fools
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 281 
 
 who have annexed the idea of witchcraft and 
 sorcery to the possession of knowledge and wis- 
 dom, you are therefore disposed to stigmatize a 
 young maiden, who has always been respected and 
 beloved by those around her, as a disciple of arts 
 which, I trust, are as uncommon as unlawful." 
 
 Rudolf paused ere he replied. 
 
 M I could have wished," he said, " that you 
 had been satisfied with the general character of 
 Anne of Geierstein's maternal family, as offering 
 some circumstances which may account for what 
 you have, according to your own report, this 
 night witnessed, and I am really unwilling to 
 go into more particular details. To no one can 
 Anne of Geierstein's fame be so dear as to me. 
 I am, after her uncle's family, her nearest rela- 
 tive, and had she remained in Switzerland, or 
 should she, as is most probable, return thither, 
 perhaps our connexion might be drawn yet 
 closer. This has, indeed, only been prevented by 
 certain prejudices of her uncle's respecting her 
 father's authority, and the nearness of our rela- 
 tionship, which, however, comes within reach of 
 a license very frequently obtained. But I only
 
 282 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 mention these thing?, to show you how much 
 more tender I must necessarily hold Anne of 
 Geierstein's reputation, than it is possible for 
 you to do, being a stranger, known to her but a 
 short while since, and soon to part with her, as I 
 understand your purpose, for ever." 
 
 The turn taken in this kind of apology irri- 
 tated Arthur so highly, that it required all the 
 reasons which recommended coolness, to enable 
 him to answer with assumed composure. 
 
 " I can have no ground, Sir Hauptman," he 
 said, " to challenge any opinion which you may 
 entertain of a young person with whom you are 
 so closely connected, as you appear to be with 
 Anne of Geierstein. I only wonder, that, with 
 such regard for her as your relationship im- 
 plies, you should be disposed to receive, on po- 
 pular and trivial traditions, a belief which must 
 injuriously affect your kinswoman, more espe- 
 cially one with whom you intimate a wish to 
 form a still more close connexion. Bethink you, 
 sir, that in all Christian lands, the imputation 
 of sorcery is the most foul which can be thrown 
 on Christian man or woman,"
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 283 
 
 " And I am so far from intimating such an 
 imputation," said Rudolf, " that, by the good 
 sword I wear, he that dared give breath to such 
 a thought against Anne of Geierstein, must un- 
 dergo my challenge, and take my life, or lose 
 his own. But the question is not whether the 
 maiden herself practises sorcery, which he who 
 avers had better get ready his tomb, and pro- 
 vide for his soul's safety ; the doubt lies here, 
 whether, as the descendant of a family whose 
 relations with the unseen world are reported to 
 have been of the closest degree, elvish and fan- 
 tastical beings may not have power to imitate 
 her form, and to present her appearance where 
 she is not personally present — in fine, whether 
 they have permission to play at her expense fan- 
 tastical tricks, which they cannot exercise over 
 other mortals, whose forefathers have ever re- 
 gulated their lives by the rules of the church, 
 and died in regular communion with it. And 
 as I sincerely desire to retain your esteem, I 
 have no objection to communicate to you more 
 particular circumstances respecting her genea- 
 logy, confirming the idea I have now expressed.
 
 284 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 But you will understand they are of the most 
 private nature, and that I expect secrecy under 
 the strictest personal penalty." 
 
 " I shall be silent, sir," replied the young 
 Englishman, still struggling with suppressed 
 passion, u on every thing respecting the cha- 
 racter of a maiden whom I am bound to respect 
 so highly. But the fear of no man's displeasure 
 can add a feather's weight to the guarantee of 
 my own honour." 
 
 " Be it so," said Rudolf; " it is not my wish 
 to awake angry feelings; but I am desirous, 
 both for the sake of your good opinion, which 
 I value, and also for the plainer explanation of 
 what I have darkly intimated, to communicate 
 to you what otherwise I would much rather 
 have left untold." 
 
 " You must be guided by your own sense of 
 what is necessary and proper in the case," an- 
 swered Philipson ; " but remember I press not 
 on your confidence for the communication of 
 any thing that ought to remain secret, far less 
 where that young lady is the subject." 
 
 Rudolf answered, after a minute's pause, —
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 285 
 
 " Thou hast seen and heard too much, Arthur, 
 not to learn the whole, or at least all that I 
 know, or apprehend, on the mysterious subject. 
 It is impossible but the circumstances must at 
 times recur to your recollection, and I am desi- 
 rous that you should possess all the information 
 necessary to understand them as clearly as the 
 nature of the facts will permit. We have yet, 
 keeping leftward to view the bog, nearly a mile 
 to make ere the circuit of the castle is accom- 
 plished. It will afford leisure enough for the 
 tale I have to tell." 
 
 " Speak on — I listen !" answered the Eng- 
 lishman, divided between his desire to know all 
 that it was possible to learn concerning Anne 
 of Geierstein, his dislike to hear her name 
 pronounced with such pretensions as those of 
 Donnerhugel, and the revival of his original 
 prejudices against the gigantic Swiss, whose 
 manners, always blunt, nearly to coarseness, 
 seemed now marked by assumed superiority 
 and presumption. He listened, however, to his 
 wild tale, and the interest which he took in it 
 soon overpowered all other sensations.
 
 286 ANNE OF GEJERSTEIN, 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 iBonireviwgtl'S $amttbe. 
 
 These be the adept's doctrines — every element 
 Is peopled with its separate race of spirits ; 
 The airy sylphs on the blue ether float; 
 Deep in the earthy cavern skulks the gnome ; 
 The sea-green Naiad skims the ocean-billow, 
 And the fierce fire is yet a friendly home 
 To its peculiar sprite — the Salamander. 
 
 I told you, (said Rudolf,) that the Lords of 
 Arnheim, though from father to son they were 
 notoriously addicted to secret studies, were, ne- 
 vertheless, like the other German nobles, fol- 
 lowers of war and the chase. This was pecu- 
 liarly the case with Anne's maternal grandfa- 
 ther, Herman of Arnheim, who prided himself 
 on possessing a splendid stud of horses, and one 
 steed in particular, the noblest ever known in 
 these circles of Germany. I should make wild 
 8
 
 ANNE OF GE1ERSTEIN. 287 
 
 work were I to attempt the description of such 
 an animal, so I will content myself with saying 
 his colour was jet-black, without a hair of white 
 either on his face or feet. For this reason, and 
 the wildness of his disposition, his master had 
 termed him Apollyon ; a circumstance which 
 was secretly considered as tending to sanction 
 the evil reports which touched the house of 
 Arnheim, being, it was said, the naming of a fa- 
 vourite animal after a foul fiend. 
 
 It chanced, one November day, that the Ba- 
 ron had been hunting in the forest, and did 
 not reach home till nightfall. There were no 
 guests with him, for, as I hinted to you before, 
 the castle of Arnheim seldom received any other 
 than those from whom its inhabitants hoped to 
 gain augmentation of knowledge. The Baron 
 was seated alone in his hall, illuminated with 
 cressets and torches. His one hand held a 
 volume covered with characters unintelligible 
 to all save himself. The other rested on the 
 marble table, on which was placed a flask of 
 Tokay wine. A pnge stood in respectful at- 
 tendance near the bottom of the hirge and dim
 
 288 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 apartment, and no sound was heard save that 
 of the night wind, when it sighed mournfully 
 through the rusty coats of mail, and waved the 
 tattered banners which were the tapestry of the 
 feudal hall. At once the footstep of a person 
 was heard ascending the stairs in haste and tre- 
 pidation ; the door of the hall was thrown vio- 
 lently open, and, terrified to a degree of ecstasy, 
 Caspar, the head of the Baron's stable, or his 
 master of horse, stumbled up almost to the foot 
 of the table at which his lord was seated, with 
 the exclamation in his mouth, — 
 
 " My lord, my lord, a fiend is in the stable !" 
 
 " What means this folly ?" said the Baron, 
 arising, surprised and displeased at an inter- 
 ruption so unusual. 
 
 " Let me endure your displeasure," said Cas- 
 par, " if I speak not truth ! Apollyon " 
 
 Here he paused. 
 
 " Speak out, thou frightened fool," said the 
 Baron ; " is my horse sick, or injured ?" 
 
 The master of the stalls again gasped forth 
 the word, " Apollyon !" 
 
 " Say on," said the Baron ; u were Apollyon 
 5
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 289 
 
 in presence personally, it were nothing to shake 
 a brave man's mind." 
 
 " The devil," answered the master of the 
 horse, " is in Apollyon's stall !" 
 
 "Fool !" exclaimed the nobleman, snatching 
 a torch from the wall ; " what is it that could 
 have turned thy brain in such silly fashion ? 
 Things like thee, that are born to serve us, 
 should hold their brains on a firmer tenure, for 
 our sakes, if not for that of their worthless 
 selves." 
 
 As he spoke, he crossed the court- yard of the 
 castle, to visit the stately range of stables 
 which occunied all the lower part of the quad- 
 rangle on one side. He entered, where fifty 
 gallant steeds stood in rows, on each side of the 
 ample hall. At the side of each stall hung the 
 weapons of offence and defence of a man-at-arms, 
 as bright as constant attention could make them, 
 together with the buff-coat which formed the 
 trooper's under garment. The Baron, follow- 
 ed by one or two of the domestics, who had as- 
 sembled full of astonishment at the unusual 
 alarm, hastened up betwixt the rows of steeds. 
 
 vol. i. s
 
 290 ANNE OF GE1EKSTEIN. 
 
 As be approached the stall of his favourite horse, 
 which was the uppermost of the right-hand row, 
 the good steed neither neighed, nor shook his 
 head, nor stamped with his foot, nor gave the 
 usual signs of joy at his lord's approach ; a 
 faint moaning, as if he implored assistance, was 
 the only acknowledgment of the Baron's pre- 
 sence. 
 
 Sir Herman held up the torch, and discover- 
 ed that there was indeed a tall dark figure stand- 
 ing in the stall, resting his hando n the horse's 
 shoulder. " Who art thou," said the Baron, 
 " and what dost thou here?" 
 
 " I seek refuge and hospitality," replied tbe 
 stranger ; " and I conjure thee to grant it me, by 
 the shoulder of thy horse, and by the edge of thy 
 sword, and so as they may never fail thee when 
 thy need is at the utmost." 
 
 " Thou art, then, a brother of the Sacred 
 Fire," said Baron Herman of Arnheim ; " and 
 I may not refuse thee the refuge which thou 
 requirest of me, after the ritual of the Persian 
 Magi. From whom, and for what length of time, 
 dost thou crave my protection ?"
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 291 
 
 " From those," replied the stranger, " who 
 shall arrive in quest of me before the morning 
 cock shall crow, and for the full space of a year 
 and a day from this period." 
 
 " I may not refuse thee," said the Baron, 
 " consistently with my oath and my honour. 
 For a year and a day I will be thy pledge, and thou 
 shalt share with me roof and chamber, wine and 
 food. But thou, too, must obey the law of Zo- 
 roaster, which, as it says, Let the Stronger pro- 
 tect the weaker brother, says also, let the Wiser 
 instruct the brother who hath less knowledge. 
 I am the stronger, and thou shalt be safe under 
 ray protection ; but thou art the wiser, and must 
 instruct me in the more secret mysteries." 
 
 " You mock your servant," said the strange 
 visitor ; " but if aught is known to Dannischc- 
 raend which can avail Herman, his instructions 
 shall be as those of a father to a son." 
 
 " Come forth then from thy place of refuge," 
 said the Baron of Arnheim. " I swear to thee 
 by the sacred fire which lives without terrestrial 
 fuel, and by the fraternity which is betwixt us, 
 and by the shoulder of my horse, and the edge
 
 292 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 of my good sword, I will be thy warrand for a 
 year and a day, if so far my power shall extend." 
 The stranger came forth accordingly ; and 
 those who saw the singularity of his appearance, 
 scarce wondered at the fears of Caspar, the stall- 
 master, when he found such a person in the 
 stable, by what mode of entrance he was unable 
 to conceive. When he reached the lighted hall 
 to which the Baron conducted him, as he would 
 have done a welcome and honoured guest, the 
 stranger appeared to be very tall, and of a dig- 
 nified aspect. His dress was Asiatic, being a 
 long black caftan, or gown, like that worn by 
 Armenians, and a lofty square cap, covered with 
 the wool of Astracan lambs. Every article of 
 the dress was black, which gave relief to the 
 long white beard, that flowed down over his 
 bosom. His gown was fastened by a sash of 
 black silk net-work, in which, instead of a po- 
 niard or sword, was stuck a silver case, contain- 
 ing writing materials, and a roll of parchment. 
 The only ornament of his apparel consisted in 
 a large ruby of uncommon brilliancy, which, 
 when he approached the light, seemed to glow
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 293 
 
 with such liveliness, as if the gem itself had 
 emitted the rays which it only reflected back. 
 To the offer of refreshment, the stranger re- 
 plied, " Bread I may not eat, water shall not 
 moisten my lips, until the avenger shall have pas- 
 sed by the threshold." 
 
 The Baron commanded the lamps to be trim- 
 med, and fresh torches to be lighted, and sending 
 his whole household to rest, remained seated in 
 the hall along with the stranger, his suppliant. 
 At the dead hour of midnight, the gates of the 
 castle were shaken as by a whirlwind, and a 
 voice, as if of a herald, was heard to demand his 
 lawful prisoner, Dannischemend, the son of Hali. 
 The warder then heard a lower window of the 
 hall thrown open, and could distinguish his 
 master's voice addressing the person who had 
 thus summoned the castle. But the night was so 
 dark that he might not see the speakers, and the 
 language which they used was either entirely fo- 
 reign, or so largely interspersed with strange 
 words, that he could not understand a syllable 
 which they said. Scarce five minutes had elapsed, 
 when he who was without again elevated his voice
 
 294 ANNE OF GEIERSTEiN. 
 
 as before, and said in German, " For a year and 
 a day, then, I forbear my forfeiture; — but coming 
 for it when that time shall elapse, I come for my 
 right, and will no longer be withstood. " 
 
 From that period Dannischemend, the Persian, 
 was a constant guest at the castle of Arnheim, 
 and, indeed, never for any purpose crossed the 
 drawbridge. His amusements, or studies, seem- 
 ed centred in the library of the castle, and in 
 the laboratory, where the Baron sometimes toil- 
 ed in conjunction with him for many hours to- 
 gether. The inhabitants of the castle could find 
 no fault in the Magus, or Persian, excepting his 
 apparently dispensing with the ordinances of re- 
 ligion, since he neither went to mass nor con- 
 fession, nor attended upon other religious cere- 
 monies. The chaplain did indeed profess him- 
 self satisfied with the state of the stranger's con- 
 science ; but it had been long suspected, that the 
 worthy ecclesiastic held his easy office on the 
 very reasonable condition, of approving the prin- 
 ciples, and asserting the orthodoxy, of all guests 
 whom the Baron invited to share his hospita- 
 lity.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 295 
 
 It was observed thatDannischemend was rigid 
 in paying his devotions, by prostrating himself 
 in the first rays of the rising sun, and that he 
 constructed a silver lamp of the most beautiful 
 proportions, which he placed on a pedestal, re- 
 presenting a truncated column of marble, having 
 its base sculptured with hieroglyphical imagery. 
 With what essences he fed this flame was an- 
 known to all, unless perhaps to the Baron ; 
 but the flame was more steady, pure, and lus- 
 trous, than any which was ever seen, excepting 
 the sun of heaven itself, and it was generally 
 believed that Dannischemend made it an object 
 of worship in the absence of that blessed lumi- 
 nary. Nothing else was observed of him, unless 
 that his morals seemed severe, his gravity ex- 
 treme, his general mode of life very temperate, 
 and his fasts and vigils of frequent recurrence. 
 Except on particular occasions, he spoke to no 
 one of the castle but the Baron ; but, as he had 
 money and was liberal, he was regarded by the 
 domestics with awe indeed, but without fear or 
 dislike. 
 
 Winter was succeeded by spring, summer
 
 296 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 brought her flowers, and autumn her fruits, 
 which ripened -and were fading", when a foot- 
 page, who sometimes attended them in the labo- 
 ratory to render manual assistance when requi- 
 red, heard the Persian say to the Baron of Arn- 
 heim, " You will do well, my son, to mark my 
 words ; for my lessons to you are drawing to an 
 end, and there is no power on earth which can 
 longer postpone my fate." 
 
 " Alas, my master !" said the Baron, " and 
 must I then lose the benefit of your direction, 
 just when your guiding hand becomes necessary 
 to place me on the very pinnacle of the temple 
 of wisdom ?" 
 
 " Be not discouraged, my son," answered 
 the sage ; " I will bequeath the task of perfect- 
 ing you in your studies to my daughter, who 
 will come hither on purpose. But remember, if 
 you value the permanence of your family, look 
 not upon her as aught else than a helpmate in 
 your studies; for if you forget the instructress 
 in the beauty of the maiden, you will be buried 
 with your sword and your shield, as the last 
 male of your house ; and farther evil, believe mr,
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 297 
 
 will arise ; for such alliances never come to a 
 happy issue, of which my own is an example. 
 — But hush, we are observed. " 
 
 The household of the castle of Arnheim ha- 
 ving but few things to interest them, were the 
 more eager observers of those which came under 
 their notice ; and when the termination of the 
 period when the Persian was to receive shelter 
 in the castle began to approach, some of the in- 
 mates, under various pretexts, but which resol- 
 ved into very terror, absconded, while others 
 held themselves in expectation of some striking 
 and terrible catastrophe. None such, however, 
 took place ; and, on the expected anniversary, 
 long ere the witching hour of midnight, Dan*- 
 nischemend terminated his visit in the castle of 
 Arnheim, by riding away from the gate in the 
 guise of an ordinary traveller. The Baron had 
 meantime taken leave of his tutor with many 
 marks of regret, and some which amounted even 
 to sorrow. The sage Persian comforted him by 
 a long whisper, of which the last part only was 
 heard, — " By the first beam of sunshine she will 
 be with you. Be kind to her, but not over kind." 
 s2
 
 298 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 
 
 He then departed, and was never again 6een or 
 heard of in the vicinity of Arnheim. 
 
 The Baron was observed during all the day 
 after the departure of the stranger to be parti- 
 cularly melancholy. He remained, contrary to 
 his custom, in the great hall, and neither visit- 
 ed the library nor the laboratory, where he could 
 no longer enjoy the company of his departed in- 
 structor. At dawn of the ensuing morning, Sir 
 Herman summoned his page, and, contrary to 
 his habits, which used to be rather careless in 
 respect of apparel, he dressed himself with great 
 accuracy ; and, as he was in the prime of life, 
 and of a noble figure, he had reason to be sa- 
 tisfied with his appearance. Having perform- 
 ed his toilet, he waited till the sun had just 
 appeared above the horizon, and, taking from 
 the table the key of the laboratory, which the 
 page believed must have lain there all night, 
 he walked thither, followed by his attendant. 
 At the door the Baron made a pause, and seem- 
 ed at one time to doubt whether he should not 
 send away the page, at another to hesitate whe- 
 ther he should open the door, as one might do
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 299 
 
 who expected some strange sight within. He 
 pulled up resolution, however, turned the key, 
 threw the door open, and entered. The page 
 followed close behind his master, and was as- 
 tonished to the point of extreme terror at what 
 he beheld, although the sight, however extraor- 
 dinary, had in it nothing save what was agree- 
 able and lovely. 
 
 The silver lamp was extinguished, or remo- 
 ved from its pedestal, where stood in place of it 
 a most beautiful female figure in the Persian 
 costume, in which the colour of pink predomi- 
 nated. But she wore no turban or head-dress 
 of any kind, saving a blue ribband drawn 
 through her auburn hair, and secured by a gold 
 clasp, the outer side of which was ornamented 
 by a superb opal, which, amid the changing 
 lights peculiar to that gem, displayed a slight 
 tinge of red like a spark of fire. 
 
 The figure of this young person was rather 
 under the middle size, but perfectly well formed ; 
 the Eastern dress, with the wide trowsers gather- 
 ed round the ankles, made visible the smallest
 
 300 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 and most beauti f ul feet which had ever been seen, 
 while hands and arms of the most perfect sym- 
 metry were partly seen from under the folds of 
 the robe. The little lady's countenance was of 
 a lively and expressive character, in which spirit 
 and wit seemed to predominate ; and the quick 
 dark eye, with its beautifully formed eye-brow, 
 seemed to presage the arch remark, to which 
 the rosy and half-smiling lip appeared ready to 
 give utterance. 
 
 The pedestal on which she stood, or rather 
 was perched, would have appeared unsafe had 
 any figure heavier than her own been placed 
 there. But, however she had been transported 
 thither, she seemed to rest on it as lightly and 
 safely as a linnet, when it has dropped from the 
 sky on the tendril of a rose-bud. The first beam 
 of the rising sun, falling through a window di- 
 rectly opposite to the pedestal, increased the 
 effect of this beautiful figure, which remained as 
 motionless as if it had been carved in marble. 
 She only expressed her sense of the Baron of 
 Arnheim's presence by something of a quicker
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 301 
 
 respiration, and a deep blush, accompanied by a 
 slight smile. 
 
 Whatever reason the Baron of Arnheim might 
 have for expecting to see some such object as 
 now presented its actual presence, the degree 
 of beauty which it exhibited was so much be- 
 yond his expectation, that for an instant he 
 stood without breath or motion. At once, how- 
 ever, he seemed to recollect that it was his 
 duty to welcome the fair stranger to his cas- 
 tle, and to relieve her from her precarious si- 
 tuation. He stepped forward accordingly with 
 the words of welcome on his tongue, and was 
 extending his arms to lift her from the pedestal, 
 which was nearly six feet high ; but the light 
 and active stranger merely accepted the support 
 of his hand, and descended on the floor as light 
 and as safe as if she had been formed of gossa- 
 mer. It was, indeed, only by the momentary 
 pressure of her little hand, that the Baron of 
 Arnheim was made sensible that he had to do 
 with a being of flesh and blood. 
 
 " I am come as I have been commanded," 
 she said, looking around her. " You must ex-
 
 302 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 pect a strict and diligent mistress, and I hope 
 for the credit of an attentive pupil." 
 
 After the arrival of this singular and interest- 
 ing being in the castle of Arnheim, various al- 
 terations took place within the interior of the 
 household. A lady of high rank and small for- 
 tune, the respectable widow of a Count of the 
 Empire, who was the Baron's blood relation, re- 
 ceived and accepted an invitation to preside 
 over her kinsman's domestic affairs, and remove, 
 by her countenance, any suspicions which might 
 arise from the presence of Hermione, as the 
 beautiful Persian was generally called. 
 
 The Countess Waldstetten carried her com- 
 plaisance so far, as to be present on almost all 
 occasions, whether in the laboratory or library, 
 when the Baron of Arnheim received lessons 
 from, or pursued studies with, theyoungandlove- 
 ly tutor who had been thus strangely substituted 
 for the aged Magus. If this lady's report was to 
 be trusted, their pursuits were of a most extraor- 
 dinary nature, and the results which she some- 
 times witnessed, were such as to create fear as 
 well as surprise. But she strongly vindicated
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 303 
 
 them from practising unlawful arts, or over- 
 stepping the boundaries of natural science. 
 
 A better judge of such matters, the Bishop of 
 Bamberg himself, made a visit to Arnheim, on 
 purpose to witness the wisdom of which so 
 much was reported through the whole Rhine- 
 country. He conversed with Hermione, and 
 found her deeply impressed with the truths of 
 religion, and so perfectly acquainted with its 
 doctrines, that he compared her to a doctor of 
 theology in the dress of an Eastern dancing-girl. 
 When asked regarding her knowledge of lan- 
 guages and science, he answered, that he had been 
 attracted to Arnheim by the most extravagant 
 reports on these points, but that he must return 
 confessing " the half thereof had not been told 
 unto him." 
 
 In consequence of this indisputable testi- 
 mony, the sinister reports which had been oc- 
 casioned by the singular appearance of the fair 
 stranger, were in a great measure lulled to 
 sleep, especially as her amiable manners won the 
 involuntary good- will of every one that ap- 
 proached her.
 
 301 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 Meantime a marked alteration began to take 
 place in the interviews between the lovely tutor 
 and her pupil. These were conducted with the 
 same caution as before, and never, so far as could 
 be observed, took place without the presence 
 of the Countess of Waldstetten, or some other 
 third person of respectability. But the scenes 
 of these meetings were no longer the scholar's li- 
 brary, or the chemist's laboratory; — the gardens, 
 the groves, were resorted to for amusement, 
 and parties of hunting and fishing, with evenings 
 spent in the dance, seemed to announce that the 
 studies of wisdom were for a time abandoned 
 for the pursuits of pleasure. It was not difficult 
 to guess the meaning of this ; the Baron of Arn- 
 heim and his fair guest, speaking a language 
 different from all others, could enjoy their pri- 
 vate conversation, even amid all the tumult of 
 gaiety around them ; and no one was surprised 
 to hear it formally announced, after a few weeks 
 of gaiety, that the fair Persian was to be wed- 
 ded to the Baron of Arnheim. 
 
 The manners of this fascinating young per- 
 son were so pleasing, her conversation so ani-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTE1N. 305 
 
 mated, her wit so keen, yet so well tempered 
 with good nature and modesty, that, notwith- 
 standing her unknown origin, her high fortune 
 attracted less envy than might have been ex- 
 pected in a case so singular. Above all, her ge- 
 nerosity amazed and won the hearts of all the 
 young persons who approached her. Her wealth 
 seemed to be measureless, for the jewels which 
 she distributed among her fair friends would 
 otherwise have left her without ornaments for 
 herself. These good qualities, her liberality 
 above all, together with a simplicity of thought 
 and character, which formed a beautiful contrast 
 to the depth of acquired knowledge which she 
 was well known to possess, — these, and her total 
 want of ostentation, made her superiority be 
 pardoned among her companions. Still there 
 was notice taken of some peculiarities, exagge- 
 rated perhaps by envy, which seemed to draw a 
 mystical distinction between the beautiful Her- 
 mione and the mere mortals with whom she 
 lived and conversed. 
 
 In the merry dance she was so unrivalled in 
 lightness and agility, that her performance seem-
 
 306 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ed that of an aerial being. She could, without 
 suffering from her exertion, continue the plea- 
 sure till she had tired out the most active revel- 
 lers ; and even the young Duke of Hochsprin- 
 gen, who was reckoned the most indefatigable at 
 that exercise in Germany, having been her part- 
 ner for half an hour, was compelled to break off 
 the dance, and throw himself, totally exhausted, 
 on a couch, exclaiming, he had been dancing not 
 with a woman, but with an ignis fatuus. 
 
 Other whispers averred, that, while she played 
 with her young companions in the labyrinth and 
 mazes of the castle gardens at hide-and-seek, or 
 similar games of activity, she became animated 
 with the same supernatural alertness which was 
 supposed to inspire her in the dance. She ap- 
 peared amongst her companions, and vanished 
 from them, with a degree of rapidity which was 
 inconceivable ; and hedges, treillage, or such 
 like obstructions, were surmounted by her in a 
 manner which the most vigilant eye could not 
 detect ; for, after being observed on the other 
 side of the barrier at one instant, in another 
 she was beheld close beside the spectator.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 307 
 
 In such moments, when her eyes sparkled, her 
 cheeks reddened, and her whole frame became 
 animated, it was pretended that the opal clasp 
 amid her tresses, the ornament which she ne- 
 ver laid aside, shot forth the little spark, or 
 tongue of flame, which it always displayed, 
 with an increased vivacity. In the same man- 
 ner, if in the twilight hall the conversation of 
 Hermione became unusually animated, it was 
 believed that the jewel became brilliant, and 
 even displayed a twinkling and flashing gleam 
 which seemed to be emitted by the gem itself, 
 and not produced in the usual manner, by the 
 reflection of some external light. Her maid- 
 ens were also heard to surmise, that when their 
 mistress was agitated by any hasty or brief re- 
 sentment, (the only weakness of temper which 
 she was ever observed to display,) they could 
 observe dark-red sparks flash from the mystic 
 brooch, as if it sympathized with the wearer's 
 emotions. The women who attended on her 
 toilette farther reported, that this gem was ne- 
 ver removed but for a few minutes, when the 
 Baroness's hair was combed out ; that she was
 
 308 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 unusually pensive and silent during the time it 
 was laid aside, and particularly apprehensive 
 when any liquid was brought near it. Even in 
 the use of holy water at the door of the church, 
 she was observed to omit the sign of the cross 
 on the forehead, for fear, it was supposed, of 
 the water touching the valued jewel. 
 
 These singular reports did not prevent the 
 marriage of the Baron of Arnheim from pro- 
 ceeding as had been arranged. It was celebra- 
 ted in the usual form, and with the utmost splen- 
 dour, and the young couple seemed to com- 
 mence a life of happiness rarely to be found on 
 earth. In the course of twelve months, the 
 lovely Baroness presented her husband with a 
 daughter, which was to be christened Sybilla, 
 after the Count's mother. As the health of the 
 child was excellent, the ceremony was postpo- 
 ned till the recovery of the mother from her 
 confinement ; many were invited to be present 
 on the occasion, and the castle was thronged 
 with company. 
 
 It happened, that amongst the guests was an 
 old lady, notorious for playing in private so-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 309 
 
 ciety the part of a malicious fairy in a min- 
 strel's talc. This was tbs Baroness of Stein- 
 feldt, famous in the neighbourhood for her in- 
 satiable curiosity and overweening pride. She 
 had not been many days in the castle, ere, by 
 the aid of a female attendant, who acted as an 
 intelligencer, she had made herself mistress of 
 all that was heard, said, or suspected concern- 
 ing the peculiarities of the Baroness Hermione. 
 It was on the morning of the day appointed for 
 the christening, while the whole company were 
 assembled in the hall, and waiting till the Ba- 
 roness should appear, to pass with them to the 
 chapel, that there arose between the censorious 
 and haughty dame whom we have just mention- 
 ed, and the Countess Waldstetten, a violent dis- 
 cussion concerning some point of disputed pre- 
 cedence. It was referred to the Baron von Arn- 
 heim, who decided in favour of the Countess. 
 Madame de Steinfeldt instantly ordered her pal- 
 frey to be prepared, and her attendants to mount. 
 " I leave this place," she said, " which a good 
 Christian ought never to have entered; I leave a 
 house of which the master is a sorcerer, the mis-
 
 310 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 tress a demon who dares not cross her brow with 
 holy water, and their trencher companion one, 
 who for a wretched pittance is willing to act as 
 match- maker between a wizard and an incar- 
 nate fiend !" 
 
 She then departed, with rage in her counte- 
 nance, and spite in her heart. 
 
 The Baron of Arnheim then stepped forward, 
 and demanded of the knights and gentlemen 
 around, if there were any among them who 
 would dare to make good with his sword the 
 infamous falsehoods thrown upon himself, his 
 spouse, and his kinswoman. 
 
 There was a general answer, utterly refusing 
 to defend the Baroness of Steinfeldt's words in 
 so bad a cause, and universally testifying the 
 belief of the company that she spoke in the spi- 
 rit of calumny and falsehood. 
 
 " Then let that lie fall to the ground, which 
 no man of courage will hold up," said the Baron 
 of Arnheim; " only, all who are here this morn- 
 ing shall be satisfied whether the Baroness Her- 
 mione doth or doth not share the rites of Chris- 
 tianity."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIX. 311 
 
 The Countess of Waldstetten made anxious 
 signs to him while he spoke thus; and when 
 the crowd permitted her to approach near him, 
 she was heard to whisper, " O, he not rash ! 
 try no experiment ! there is something myste- 
 rious about that opal talisman ; he prudent, and 
 let the matter pass by." 
 
 The Baron, who was in a more towering pas- 
 sion than well became the wisdom to which he 
 made pretence — although it will be perhaps 
 allowed, that an affront so public, and in such a 
 time and place, was enough to shake the pru- 
 dence of the most staid, and the philosophy of 
 the most wise — answered sternly and briefly, 
 " Are you, too, such a fool ?" and retained his 
 purpose. 
 
 The Baroness of Arnheim at this moment en- 
 tered the hall, looking just so pale from her late 
 confinement, as to render her lovely counte- 
 nance more interesting, if less animated, than 
 usual. Having paid her compliments to the as- 
 sembled company, with the most graceful and 
 condescending attention, she was beginning to 
 inquire why Madame de Steinfeldt was not pre-
 
 312 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 sent, when her husband made the signal for the 
 company to move forward to the chapel, and 
 lent the Baroness his arm to bring up the rear. 
 The chapel was nearly filled by the splendid 
 company, and all eyes were bent on their host 
 and hostess, as they entered the place of devo- 
 tion immediately after four young ladies, who 
 supported the infant babe in a light and beau- 
 tiful litter. 
 
 As they passed the threshold, the Baron dipt 
 his finger in the font-stone, and offered holy 
 water to his lady, who accepted it, as usual, by 
 touching his finger with her own. But then, 
 as if to confute the calumnies of the malevolent 
 lady of Steinfeldt, with an air of sportive fami- 
 liarity which was rather unwarranted by the 
 time and place, he flirted on her beautiful fore- 
 head a drop or two of the moisture which remain- 
 ed on his own hand. The opal, on which one 
 of these drops had lighted, shot out a brilliant 
 spark like a falling star, and became the instant 
 afterwards lightless and colourless as a com- 
 mon pebble, while the beautiful Baroness sunk 
 on the floor of the chapel with a deep sigh of 
 
 10
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 313 
 
 pain. All crowded around her in dismay. The 
 unfortunate Hermione was raised from the 
 ground, and conveyed to her chamber ; and 
 so much did her countenance and pulse alter, 
 within the short time necessary to do this, that 
 those who looked upon her pronounced, her a 
 dying woman. She was no sooner in her own 
 apartment than she requested to be left alone 
 with her husband. He remained an hour in 
 the room, and when he came out he locked and 
 double locked the door behind him. He then 
 betook himself to the chapel, and remained 
 there for an hour or more, prostrated before the 
 altar. 
 
 In the meantime, most of the guests had dis- 
 persed in dismay; though some abode out of 
 courtesy or curiosity. There was a general 
 sense of impropriety in suffering the door of the 
 sick lady's apartment to remain locked; but, 
 alarmed at the whole circumstances of her ill- 
 ness, it was some time ere any one dared dis- 
 turb the devotions of the Baron. At length 
 medical aid arrived, and the Countess of Wald- 
 stetten took upon her to demand the key. She 
 
 vol. I. T
 
 314 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 spoke more than once to a man, who seem- 
 ed incapable of hearing, at least of understand- 
 ing, what she said. At length he gave her the 
 key, and added sternly, as he did so, that all 
 aid was unavailing, and that it was his pleasure 
 that all strangers should leave the castle. There 
 were few who inclined to stay, when, upon 
 opening the door of the chamber in which the 
 Baroness had been deposited little more than 
 two hours before, no traces of her could be dis- 
 covered, unless that there was about a hand- 
 ful of light grey ashes, like such as might have 
 been produced by burning fine paper, found on 
 the bed where she had been laid. A solemn fu- 
 neral was nevertheless performed, with masses, 
 and all other spiritual rites, for the soul of the 
 high and noble Lady Hermione of Arnheim ; 
 and it was exactly on that same day three years 
 that the Baron himself was laid in the grave of 
 the same chapel of Arnheim, with sword, shield, 
 and helmet, as the last male of his family. 
 
 Here the Swiss paused, for they were ap- 
 proaching the bridge of the castle of Graffs- 
 lust.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 315 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 •Believe me, sir, 
 
 It carries a rare form— But 'tis a spirit. 
 
 The Tempest. 
 
 There was a short silence after the Bernese 
 had concluded his singular tale. Arthur Phi- 
 lipson's attention had been gradually and in- 
 tensely attracted by a story, which was too 
 much in unison with the received ideas of the 
 age to be encountered by the unhesitating in- 
 credulity with which it must have been heard 
 in later and more enlightened times. 
 
 He was also considerably struck by the man- 
 ner in which it had been told by the narrator, 
 whom he had hitherto only regarded in the light 
 of a rude huntsman or soldier ; whereas he now 
 allowed Donnerhugel credit for a more exten- 
 sive acquaintance with the general manners of 
 the world than he had previously anticipated.
 
 316 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 The Swiss rose in his opinion as a man of ta- 
 lent, but without making the slightest progress 
 in his affections. " The swashbuckler," he said 
 to himself, " has brains, as well as brawn and 
 bones, and is fitter for the office of commanding 
 others than I formerly thought him." Then, 
 turning to his companion, he thanked him for the 
 tale, which had shortened the way in so interest- 
 ing a manner. 
 
 " And it is from this singular marriage," he 
 continued, u that Anne of Geierstein derives 
 her origin ?" 
 
 " Her mother," answered the Swiss, " was 
 Sybilla of Arnheim, the infant at whose chris- 
 tening the mother died — disappeared — or what- 
 ever you may list to call it, The barony of 
 Arnheim, being a male fief, reverted to the 
 Emperor. The castle has never been inhabit- 
 ed since the death of the last lord ; and has, as 
 I have heard, become in some sort ruinous. 
 The occupations of its ancient proprietors, and, 
 above all, the catastrophe of its last inhabitant, 
 have been thought to render it no eligible place 
 of residence."
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 317 
 
 " Did there appear anything preternatural," 
 said the Englishman, " about the young Ba- 
 roness, who married the brother of the Lan- 
 damman ?" 
 
 " So far as I have heard," replied Rudolf, 
 ** there were strange stories. It was said that 
 the nurses, at the dead of night, have seen Her- 
 mione, the last Baroness of Arnheim, stand 
 weeping by the side of the child's cradle, and 
 other things to the same purpose. But here I 
 speak from less correct information than that 
 from which I drew my former narrative." 
 
 " And since the credibility of a story, not 
 very probable in itself, must needs be granted, 
 or withheld, according to the evidence on which 
 it is given, may I ask you," said Arthur, " to 
 tell me what is the authority on which you 
 have so much reliance ?" 
 
 " Willingly," answered the Swiss. " Know 
 that Theodore Donnerhugel, the favourite page 
 of the last Baron of Arnheim, was my father's 
 brother. Upon his master's death, he retired to 
 his native town of Berne, and most of his time 
 was employed in training me up to arms and
 
 318 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 martial exercises, as well according to the fa- 
 shion of Germany as of Switzerland, for he was 
 master of all. He witnessed with his own eyes, 
 and heard with his own ears, great part of the 
 melancholy and mysterious events which I have 
 detailed to you. Should you ever visit Berne, 
 you may see the good old man." 
 
 " You think, then," said Arthur, " that the 
 appearance which I have this night seen, is con- 
 nected with the mysterious marriage of Anne of 
 Geierstein's grandfather ?" 
 
 " Nay," replied Rudolf, « think not that I 
 can lay down any positive explanation of a thing 
 so strange. I can only say, that, unless I did 
 you the injustice to disbelieve your testimony 
 respecting the apparition of this evening, I 
 know no way to account for it, except by re- 
 membering that there is a portion of the young 
 lady's blood which is thought not to be derived 
 from the race of Adam, but more or less direct- 
 ly from one of those elementary spirits, which 
 have been talked of both in ancient and modern 
 times. But I may be mistaken. We will see 
 how she bears herself in the morning, and whe-
 
 ANNE OF GEIEItSTEIN. 319 
 
 ther she carries in her looks the weariness and 
 paleness of a midnight watcher. If she doth 
 not, we may be authorized in thinking, either 
 that your eyes have strangely deceived you, or 
 that they have been cheated by some spectral 
 appearance, which is not of this world." 
 
 To this the young Englishman attempted no 
 reply, nor was there time for any; for they 
 were immediately afterwards challenged by the 
 sentinel from the drawbridge. 
 
 The question, " Who goes there ?" was twice 
 satisfactorily answered, before Sigismund would 
 admit the patrol to cross the drawbridge. 
 
 " Ass and mule that thou art," said Rudolf, 
 K what was the meaning of thy delay ?" 
 
 " Ass and mule thyself, Hauptman !" said 
 the Swiss, in answer to this objurgation. " I 
 have been surprised by a goblin on my post 
 once to-night already, and I have got so much 
 experience upon that matter, that I will not 
 easily be caught a second time.' , 
 
 " What goblin, thou fool," said Donnerhugel, 
 " would be idle enough to play his gambols at 
 the expense of so very poor an animal as thou 
 art?"
 
 320 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " Thou art as cross as my father, Haupt- 
 man," replied Sigismund, M who cries fool and 
 blockhead at every word I speak; and yet I 
 have lips, teeth, and tongue to speak with, just 
 like other folk." 
 
 " We will not contest the matter, Sigis- 
 mund," said Rudolf. " It is clear, that if thou 
 dost differ from other people, it is in a particu- 
 lar which thou canst be hardly expected to find 
 out or acknowledge. But what, in the name of 
 simplicity, is it which hath alarmed thee on thy 
 post?" 
 
 " Marry, thus it was, Hauptman," return- 
 ed Sigismund Biederman. " I was something 
 tired, you see, with looking up at the broad 
 moon, and thinking what in the universe it 
 could be made of, and how we came to see it 
 just as well here as at home, this place being so 
 many miles from Geier stein. I was tired, I 
 say, of this and other perplexing thoughts, so I 
 drew my fur cap down over my ears, for I 
 promise you the wind blew shrill ; and then I 
 planted myself firm on my feet, with one of my 
 legs a little advanced, and both my hands rest-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 321 
 
 ing on my partizan, which I placed upright be- 
 fore me to rest upon ; and so I shut mine eyes." 
 " Shut thine eyes, Sigismund, and upon thy 
 watch!" exclaimed Donnerhugel. 
 
 " Care not thou for that," answered Sigis- 
 mund ; " I kept my ears open. And yet it^was 
 to little purpose, for something came upon the 
 bridge with a step as stealthy as that of a mouse. 
 I looked up with a start at the momentpt was 
 opposite to me, and when I looked up — whom 
 think you I saw ?" 
 
 " Some fool like thyself," said Rudolf, at the 
 same time pressing Philipson's foot to make 
 him attend to the answer ; a hint whichwas little 
 necessary, since he waited for it in the utmost 
 agitation. Out it came at last. 
 
 " By Saint Mark, it was our own Anne of 
 Geierstein !" 
 
 " It is impossible !" replied the Bernese. 
 " I should have said so too," quoth Sigis- 
 mund, " for I had peeped into her bed-room 
 before she went thither, and it was so bedizen- 
 ed that a queen or a princess might have slept 
 in it ; and why should the wench get out of 
 t 2
 
 322 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 her good quarters, with all her friends about 
 her to guard her, and go out to wander in the 
 forest ?" 
 
 " May he," said Rudolf, " she only looked 
 from the bridge to see how the night waned." 
 
 " No," said Sigismund ; " she was returning 
 from the forest. I saw her when she reached 
 the end of the bridge, and thought of striking 
 at her, conceiving it to be the devil in her like- 
 ness. But I remembered my halbert is no birch 
 switch to chastise boys and girls with ; and had 
 I done Anne any harm, you would all have been 
 angry with me, and, to speak truth, I should 
 have been ill-pleased with myself ; for although 
 she doth make a jest of me now and then, yet 
 it were a dull house ours were we to lose Anne." 
 " Ass," answered the Bernese, " didst thou 
 speak to this form, or goblin, as you call it ?" 
 
 " Indeed I did not, Captain Wiseacre. My 
 father is ever angry with me when I speak with- 
 out thinking, and I could not at that particu- 
 lar moment think on any thing to the purpose. 
 Neither was there time to think, for she passed 
 me like a snow-flake upon a whirlwind. I march-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 323 
 
 ed into the castle after her, however, calling on 
 her by name ; so the sleepers were awakened, 
 and men flew to their arms, and there was as 
 much confusion as if Archibald of Hagenbach 
 had been amongst us with sword and pike. And 
 who should come out of her little bedroom, as 
 much startled and as much in a bustle as any of 
 us, but Mistress Anne herself ! And as she pro- 
 tested she had never left her room that night, 
 why I, Sigismund Biederman, was made to stand 
 the whole blame, as if I could prevent people's 
 ghosts from walking. But I told her my mind 
 when I saw them all so set against me. c And 
 Mistress Anne,' quoth I, ' it's well known the 
 kindred you come of ; and, after this fair notice, 
 if you send any of your double-gangers to me, let 
 them put iron skull-caps on their heads, for I 
 will give them the length and weight of a Swiss 
 halbert, come in what shape they list.' However, 
 they all cried 6 Shame on me !' and my father 
 drove me out again, with as little remorse as if 
 I had been the old house-dog, which had stolen 
 in from his watch to the fireside." 
 
 The Bernese replied, with an air of coldness
 
 324 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 approaching to contempt, " You have slept on 
 your watch, Sigismund, a high military offence, 
 and you have dreamed while you slept. You were 
 in good luck that the Landamman did not sus- 
 pect your negligence, or, instead of being sent 
 back to your duty like a lazy watch-dog, you 
 might have been scourged back like a faithless 
 one to your kennel at Geierstein, as chanced to 
 poor Ernest for a less matter." 
 
 H Ernest has not yet gone back though," said 
 Sigismund, " and I think he may pass as far 
 into Burgundy as we shall do in this journey. 
 I pray you, however, Hauptman, to treat me 
 not dog-like, but as a man, and send some one 
 to relieve me, instead of prating here in the cold 
 night air. If there be any thing to do to-mor- 
 row, as I well guess there may, a mouthful of 
 food, and a minute of sleep, will be but a fitting* 
 preparative, and I have stood watch here these 
 two mortal hours." 
 
 With that the young giant yawned porten- 
 tously, as if to enforce the reasons of his appeal. 
 
 " A mouthful and a minute ?" said Rudolf, — 
 " a roasted ox, and a lethargy like that of the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 325 
 
 Seven Sleepers, would scarce restore you to the 
 use of your refreshed and waking senses. But I 
 am your friend, Sigismund,and you are secure in 
 my favourable report ; you shall be instantly re- 
 lieved, that you may sleep, if it be possible, with- 
 out disturbances from dreams. — Pass on, young 
 men, (addressing the others, who by this time 
 had come up,) and go to your rest; Arthur of 
 England and I will report to the Landamman 
 and the Banneret the account of our patrol." 
 
 The patrol accordingly entered the castle, and 
 were soon heard joining their slumbering com- 
 panions. Rudolf Donnerhugel seized Arthur's 
 arm, and, while they went towards the hall, 
 whispered in his ear, — 
 
 " These are strange passages ! — How think 
 you we should report them to the Deputation ?" 
 
 " That I must refer to yourself," said Arthur ; 
 " you are the captain of our watch. I have done 
 my duty in telling you what I saw — or thought 
 I saw — it is for you to judge how far it is fitting 
 to communicate it to the Landamman ; only, as 
 it concerns the honour of his family, to his ear 
 alone I think it should be confided."
 
 326 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 " I see no occasion for that," said the Bernese 
 hastily ; " it cannot affect or interest our general 
 safety. But I may take occasion hereafter to 
 speak with Anne on this subject." 
 
 This latter hint gave as much pain to Arthur, 
 as the general proposal of silence on an affair so 
 delicate had afforded him satisfaction. But his 
 uneasiness was of a kind which he felt it ne- 
 cessary to suppress, and he therefore replied 
 with as much composure as he could assume : — 
 
 "You will act, Sir Hauptman, as your sense 
 of duty and delicacy shall dictate. For me, I shall 
 be silent on what you call the strange passages 
 of the night, rendered doubly wonderful by the 
 report of Sigismund Biederman." 
 
 " And also on what you have seen and heard 
 concerning our auxiliaries of Berne ?" said Ru- 
 dolf. 
 
 " On that I shall certainly be silent," said 
 Arthur ; " unless thus far, that I mean to com- 
 municate to my father the risk of his baggage 
 being liable to examination and seizure at La 
 Ferette." 
 
 " It is needless," said Rudolf; " I will an-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 327 
 
 swer with head and hand for the safety of every- 
 thing belonging to him." 
 
 " I thank you in his name," said Arthur ; 
 " but we are peaceful travellers, to whom it 
 must be much more desirable to avoid a broil 
 than to give occasion for one, even when secure 
 of coming out of it triumphantly." 
 
 " These are the sentiments of a merchant, but 
 not of a soldier," said Rudolf, in a cold and dis- 
 pleased tone ; " but the matter is your own, 
 and you must act in it as you think best. Only, 
 remember if you go to La Ferette without us, 
 you hazard both goods and life." 
 
 They entered, as he spoke, the apartment of 
 their fellow travellers. The companions of their 
 patrol had already laid themselves down amongst 
 their sleeping comrades at the lower end of the 
 room. The Landamman and the Bannerman of 
 Berne heard Donnerhugel make a report, that 
 his patrol, both before and after midnight, had 
 been made in safety, and without any encounter 
 which expressed either danger or suspicion. The 
 Bernese then wrapped him in his cloak, and, 
 lying down on the straw, with that happy in-
 
 328 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 difference to accommodation, and promptitude 
 to seize the moment of repose, which is acquired 
 by a life of vigilance and hardship, was in a few 
 minutes fast asleep. 
 
 Arthur remained on foot but a little longer, 
 to dart an earnest look on the door of Anne of 
 Geierstein's apartment, and to reflect on the 
 wonderful occurrences of the evening. But 
 they formed a chaotic mystery, for which he 
 could see no clew, and the necessity of holding 
 instant communication with his father obliged 
 him forcibly to turn his thoughts in that direc- 
 tion. He was obliged to observe caution and 
 secrecy in accomplishing his purpose. For this 
 he laid himself down beside his parent, whose 
 couch, with the hospitality which he had expe- 
 rienced from the beginning of his intercourse 
 with the kind-hearted Swiss, had been arran- 
 ged in what was thought the most convenient 
 place of the apartment, and somewhat apart 
 from all others. He slept sound, but awoke at 
 the touch of his son, who whispered to him in 
 English, for the greater precaution, that he had 
 important tidings for his private ear.
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEXN. 329 
 
 " An attack on our post ?" — said the elder 
 Philipson ; " must we take to our weapons ?" 
 
 " Not now," said Arthur ;- " and I pray of 
 you not to rise or make alarm — this matter con- 
 cerns us aloue." 
 
 " Tell it instantly, my son,'* replied his fa- 
 ther ; " you speak to one too much used to dan- 
 ger to be startled at it." 
 
 " It is a case for your wisdom to consider," 
 said Arthur. " I had information while upon 
 the patrol, that the Governor of La Ferette 
 will unquestionably seize upon your baggage 
 and merchandize, under pretext of levying dues 
 claimed by the Duke of Burgundy. I have also 
 been informed that our escort of Swiss youth 
 are determined to resist this exaction, and con- 
 ceive themselves possessed of the numbers and 
 means sufficient to do so successfully." 
 
 " By St George, that must not be !" said the 
 elder Philipson ; " it would be an evil requital 
 to the true-hearted Landamman, to give the 
 fiery Duke a pretext for that war which the 
 excellent old man is so anxiously desirous to 
 avoid, if it be possible. Any exactions, how-
 
 330 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 ever unreasonable, I will gladly pay. But to 
 have my papers seized on were utter ruin. I 
 partly feared this, and it made me unwilling to 
 join myself to the Landamman's party. We 
 must now break off from it. This rapacious go- 
 vernor will not surely lay hands on the deputa- 
 tion, which seeks his master's court under pro- 
 tection of the law of nations ; but I can easily 
 see how he might make our presence with them 
 a pretext for quarrel, which will equally suit his 
 own avaricious spirit and the humour of these 
 fiery young men, who are seeking for matter of 
 offence. This shall not be taken for our sake. 
 We will separate ourselves from the deputies, 
 and remain behind till they are passed on. If this 
 De Hagenbach be not the most unreasonable of 
 men, I will find a way to content him so far as 
 we are individually concerned. Meanwhile, I 
 will instantly wake the Landamman,' , he said, 
 " and acquaint him with our purpose." 
 
 This was immediately done, for Philipson was 
 not slow in the execution of his resolutions. In 
 a minute he was standing by the side of Arnold 
 Biederman, who, raised on his elbow, was list-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 331 
 
 ening to his communication, while, over the 
 shoulder of the Landamman, rose the head and 
 long beard of the deputy from Schwitz, his 
 large clear blue eyes gleaming from beneath a 
 fur cap, bent on the Englishman's face, but steal- 
 ing a glance aside now and then to mark the 
 impression which what was said made upon his 
 colleague. 
 
 " Good friend and host," said the elder Phi- 
 lipson, " we have heard for a certainty that our 
 poor merchandize will be subjected to taxation 
 or seizure on our passage through La Ferette, 
 and I would gladly avoid all cause of quarrel, for 
 your sake as well as our own." 
 
 " You do not doubt that we can and will 
 protect you ?" replied the Landamman. " I tell 
 you, Englishman, that the guest of a Swiss is 
 as safe by his side as an eaglet under the wing 
 of its dam ; and to leave us because danger ap- 
 proaches, is but a poor compliment to our cou- 
 rage or constancy. I am desirous of peace ; 
 but not the Duke of Burgundy himself should 
 wrong a guest of mine, so far as my power 
 might prevent it."
 
 332 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 At this the deputy from Schwitz clenched a 
 fist like a bull's knuckles, and showed it above 
 the shoulders of his friend. 
 
 " It is even to avoid this, my worthy host," 
 replied Philipson, " that I intend to separate 
 from your friendly company sooner than I de- 
 sire or purposed. Bethink you, my brave and 
 worthy host, you are an ambassador seeking 
 peace, I a trader seeking gain. War, or quar- 
 rels which may cause war, are alike ruinous to 
 your purpose and mine. I confess to you frank- 
 ly, that I am willing and able to pay a large 
 ransom, and when you are departed I will ne- 
 gotiate for the amount. I will abide in the 
 town of Bale till I have made fair terms with 
 Archibald de Hagenbach ; and even if he is the 
 avaricious extortioner you describe him, he will 
 be somewhat moderate with me, rather than run 
 the risk of losing his booty entirely, by my turn- 
 ing back or taking another route." 
 
 " You speak wisely, Sir Englishman," said 
 the Landamman ; " and I thank you for re- 
 calling my duty to my remembrance. But 
 you must not, nevertheless, be exposed to dan-
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 333 
 
 ger. So soon as we move forward, the country 
 will be again open to the devastations of the 
 Burgundian Riders and Lanz-knechts, who 
 will sweep the roads in every direction. The 
 people of Bale are unhappily too timorous to 
 protect you ; they would yield you up upon the 
 Governor's first hint; and for justice or lenity, 
 you might as well expect it in hell as from 
 Hagenbach." 
 
 " There are conjurations, it is said, that can 
 make hell itself tremble," said Philipson ; " and 
 I have means to propitiate even this De Hagen- 
 bach, providing I can get to private speech with 
 him. But I own I can expect nothing from his 
 wild riders, but to be put to death for the value 
 of my cloak." 
 
 " If that be the case," said the Landamman, 
 M and if you must needs separate from us, for 
 which I deny not that you have alleged wise and 
 worthy reasons, wherefore should you not leave 
 Graffs-lust two hours before us ? The roads will 
 be safe, as our escort is expected ; and you will 
 probably, if you traVel early, find De Hagenbach 
 sober, and as capable as he ever is of hearing
 
 3 34 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 reason, — that is, of perceiving his own interest. 
 But, after his breakfast is washed down with 
 Rhine-wein, which he drinks every morning 
 before he hears mass, his fury blinds even his 
 avarice." 
 
 " All I want in order to execute this scheme,' ' 
 said Philipson, a is the loan of a mule to carry 
 my valise, which is packed up with your bag- 
 gage" 
 
 " Take the she-mule," said the Landamman ; 
 " she belongs to my brother here from Schwitz ; 
 he will gladly bestow her on thee." 
 
 " If she were worth twenty crowns, and my 
 comrade Arnold desired me to do so," said the 
 old whitebeard. 
 
 " I will accept her as a loan with gratitude," 
 said the Englishman. " But how can you dis- 
 pense with the use of the creature ? You have 
 only one left." 
 
 " We can easily supply our want from Bale," 
 said the Landamman. " Nay, we can make this 
 little delay serve your purpose, Sir Englishman. 
 I named for our hour of departure, the first 
 hour after daybreak ; we will postpone it to the
 
 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 33& 
 
 second hour, which will give us enough of time 
 to get a horse or mule, and you, Sir Philipson*, 
 space to reach La Ferette, where I trust you 
 will have achieved your business with De Ha- 
 genbach to your contentment, and will join 
 company again with us as we travel through 
 Burgundy." 
 
 " If our mutual objects will permit our tra- 
 velling together, worthy Landamman," answer- 
 ed the merchant, " I shall esteem myself most 
 happy in becoming the partner of your journey. 
 — And now resume the repose which I have 
 interrupted." 
 
 " God bless you, wise and true-hearted man," 
 said the Landamman, rising and embracing the 
 Englishman. " Should we never meet again, I 
 will still remember the merchant who neglected 
 thoughts of gain, that he might keep the path of 
 wisdom and rectitude. I know not another who 
 would not have risked the shedding a lake of blood 
 to save five ounces of gold. — Farewell thou too, 
 gallant young man. Thou hast learned among 
 us to keep thy foot firm while on the edge of 
 a Helvetian crag, but none can teach thee so
 
 336 ANNE OF GEIERSTEIN. 
 
 well as thy father, to keep an upright path among 
 the morasses and precipices of human life." 
 
 He then embraced and took a kind farewell 
 of his friends, in which, as usual, he was imitated 
 by his friend of Schwitz, who swe^with his long 
 beard the right and left cheeks of both the Eng- , 
 lishmen, and again made them heartily welcome 
 to the use of his mule. All then once more 
 composed themselves to rest, for the space which 
 remained before the appearance of the autumnal 
 dawn. 
 
 END OF VOLUME FIRST. 
 
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