Part 4

Excited by the success of his raid, a few minutes later the 15 child reëntered the hall, and with equal coolness laid hands upon the emperor's cup, full of rich wine. Challenged by Charlemagne, the boy then boldly declared that he wanted the meat and wine for his mother, a lady of high degree. In answer to the emperor's bantering questions, he declared that he was his mother's cupbearer, her page, and her gallant knight, which answers so amused Charlemagne 5 that he sent for her. He saw her to be his own sister, and, stricken with remorse, he asked for her forgiveness and treated her with kindness as long as she lived, and took her son into his service.

Another legend relates that Charlemagne, hearing that 10 the robber knight of the Ardennes had a priceless jewel set in his shield, called all his bravest noblemen together, and bade them sally forth separately, with only a page as escort, in quest of the knight. Once found, they were to challenge him in true knightly fashion, and at the point of 15 the lance win the jewel he wore. A day was appointed when, successful or not, the courtiers were to return, and, beginning with the lowest in rank, were to give a truthful account of their adventures while on the quest.

All the knights departed and scoured the forest of the 20 Ardennes, each hoping to meet the robber knight and win the jewel. Among them was Milon, accompanied by his son Roland, a lad of fifteen, whom he had taken as page and armor-bearer. Milon had spent many days in vain search for the knight, when, exhausted by his long ride, he dismounted, 25 removed his heavy armor, and lay down under a tree to sleep, bidding Roland keep close watch during his slumbers.

For a while Roland watched faithfully; then, fired by a desire to distinguish himself, he donned his father's armor, 30 sprang on his steed, and rode off into the forest in search of adventures. He had not gone very far when he saw a gigantic horseman coming to meet him, and by the dazzling glitter of a large stone set in his shield he recognized him to be the invincible knight of the Ardennes. Afraid of nothing, however, he laid his lance in rest when challenged to fight, and charged so bravely that he unhorsed 5 his opponent. A fearful battle on foot ensued, each striving hard to accomplish the death of the other. But at last the fresh young energy of Roland conquered, and his terrible foe fell to the ground in agony. A minute later his corpse lay stiff on the field, leaving the victory in the hands of 10 Roland.

Hastily wrenching the coveted jewel from the shield of the dead warrior, the boy hid it in his breast. Then, riding rapidly back to his sleeping father, he laid aside the armor and removed all traces of a bloody encounter. Soon after, 15 Milon awoke and resumed the quest, when he came upon the body of the dead knight. He was disappointed indeed to find that another had won the jewel, and rode sadly back to court, to be present on the appointed day.

In much pomp Charlemagne ascended his throne amid 20 the deafening sound of trumpets. Then, seating himself, he bade the knights appear before him and relate their adventures. One after another strode up the hall, followed by an armor-bearer holding his shield. Each in turn told of finding the knight slain and the jewel gone. Last of all 25 came Milon. Gloomily he made his way to the throne to repeat the story that had already been told so often. But as he went, there followed behind him, with a radiant face, young Roland, proudly bearing his father's shield, in the center of which shone the precious jewel. At the 30 sight of this all the nobles started, and whispered to one another that Milon had done the deed. Then when he dismally told how he too had found the knight dead a shout of incredulity greeted him. Turning his head, he saw to his amazement that his own shield bore the dazzling gem. At the sight of it he appeared so amazed that Charlemagne set himself to question Roland and thus soon 5 learned how it had been obtained. In reward for his bravery in this encounter Roland was knighted, and allowed to take his place among the paladins of the emperor. Nor was it long before he further distinguished himself, becoming, to his father's delight, the most renowned of that famous 10 company.

--_Myths and Legends of the Middle Ages._

1. Explain fully the relationship between Charlemagne and Roland.

2. How did Roland first attract the emperor's attention? What do these early acts of the youth show about the life and living of the times?

3. When did Charlemagne live? Over what country did he rule? Explain the difference between an emperor and a king; a page and a knight.

4. What feat did Roland perform when he was yet a page? One of the characteristics of a legend is its overstatement of fact. Is there anything improbable in Roland's overthrow of the knight? In a series of legendary stories, statements often conflict. What conflict of statement about Roland's father is there in this story?

5. Any encyclopedia and many books of legends will tell you more about Roland. See what you can find, make brief notes of what you read, and report your findings from your notes to the class.

6. Pronounce, spell, and define: amused; attracted; acute; interfere; triumph; gallant; separately; courtiers; distinguish; gigantic; opponent; disappointed; paladin.

KEEPING THE BRIDGE

BY THOMAS BABINGTON MACAULAY

Ancient Rome stood on seven hills on the south shore of the Tiber 5 River, which formed a part of the inner defensive works of the city. Only one bridge--a wooden affair--spanned the river. Across the Tiber was the Janiculum, a hill fortified as an outer post of defense.

When Lars Porsena (P[)o]r´s[)e] na), king of Etruria, declared sudden war on Rome, he marched on the city so rapidly that the Janiculum was carried by storm. Nothing stood between him and the City of the Seven Hills--unless the bridge were destroyed. 10

Horatius and two others elected to hold the bridgehead opposite the city against Porsena's entire army while the Romans cut down the bridge. The best of the Etruscan warriors came against the powerful three, only to be slain. Just before the bridge fell into the river, Horatius sent his two comrades back across the bridge to safety. He held his foes at bay single-handed till the structure fell into the 15 water. Then he plunged into the Tiber with his heavy fighting gear on, and swam to the Roman side. Thus was the city saved.

Out spake the Consul roundly: "The bridge must straight go down; For since Janiculum is lost, 20 Naught else can save the town." Then out spake brave Horatius, 5 The Captain of the Gate: "To every man upon this earth Death cometh soon or late. And how can man die better 25 Than facing fearful odds, 10 For the ashes of his fathers And the temples of his gods?

"Hew down the bridge, Sir Consul, With all the speed ye may; I, with two more to help me, Will hold the foe in play. In yon strait path a thousand 5 May well be stopped by three. Now, who will stand on either hand, And keep the bridge with me?"

Then out spake Spurius Lartius,-- A Ramnian proud was he: 10 "Lo, I will stand on thy right hand, And keep the bridge with thee." And out spake strong Herminius,-- Of Titian blood was he: "I will abide on thy left side, 15 And keep the bridge with thee."

"Horatius," quoth the Consul, "As thou say'st, so let it be." And straight against that great array Forth went the dauntless three. 20 For Romans, in Rome's quarrel, Spared neither land nor gold, Nor son nor wife, nor limb nor life, In the brave days of old.

The three stood calm and silent, 25 And looked upon the foes, And a great shout of laughter From all the vanguard rose. . . .

But soon Etruria's noblest Felt their hearts sink to see On the earth the bloody corpses, In the path the dauntless three!

Meanwhile the ax and lever 5 Have manfully been plied; And now the bridge hangs tottering Above the boiling tide. "Come back, come back, Horatius!" Loud cried the Fathers all; 10 "Back, Lartius! back, Herminius! Back, ere the ruin fall!"

Back darted Spurius Lartius; Herminius darted back; And, as they passed, beneath their feet 15 They felt the timbers crack. But when they turned their faces, And on the farther shore Saw brave Horatius stand alone, They would have crossed once more. 20

But, with a crash like thunder, Fell every loosened beam, And, like a dam, the mighty wreck Lay right athwart the stream; And a long shout of triumph 25 Rose from the walls of Rome, As to the highest turret tops Was splashed the yellow foam.

Alone stood brave Horatius, But constant still in mind; Thrice thirty thousand foes before, And the broad flood behind. "Down with him!" cried false Sextus, 5 With a smile on his pale face. "Now yield thee!" cried Lars Porsena, "Now yield thee to our grace."

Round turned he, as not deigning Those craven ranks to see; 10 Naught spake he to Lars Porsena, To Sextus naught spake he; But he saw on Palatinus The white porch of his home; And he spake to the noble river 15 That rolls by the towers of Rome:

"O Tiber! Father Tiber! To whom the Romans pray! A Roman's life, a Roman's arms, Take thou in charge this day!" 20 So he spake, and speaking, sheathed The good sword by his side, And with his harness on his back, Plunged headlong in the tide.

No sound of joy or sorrow 25 Was heard from either bank; But friends and foes, in dumb surprise, With parted lips and straining eyes, Stood gazing where he sank;

And when above the surges They saw his crest appear, All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry, And even the ranks of Tuscany Could scarce forbear to cheer. 5

"Curse on him!" quoth false Sextus; "Will not the villain drown? But for this stay, ere close of day We should have sacked the town!" "Heaven help him!" quoth Lars Porsena, 10 "And bring him safe to shore; For such a gallant feat of arms Was never seen before."

And now the ground he touches, Now on dry earth he stands; 15 Now round him throng the Fathers, To press his gory hands; And now, with shouts and clapping, And noise of weeping loud, He enters through the River Gate, 20 Borne by the joyous crowd.

--_Horatius._

1. This is one of the famous legends of Roman history, and it loses nothing in Macaulay's brilliant telling. Lord Macaulay (1800-1859) was an English statesman, essayist, historian, and poet. He reveled in the romance of history. Read and report on his life.

2. What was the situation when this extract takes up the tale? How many soldiers had Porsena?

3. Imagine yourself in Horatius's place. Read aloud his brave speech in the first and second stanzas.

4. If you were dramatizing this whole situation, what scenes would you have? What would be the climax?

_PIONEER DAYS_

_In these days of the automobile, the swift express train, the telephone, the telegraph, and the airplane, it is hard for us to realize that our country did not always possess the conveniences and comforts we now enjoy. We are too apt to forget the struggles the pioneer fathers of our nation had in their frontier life. To them we owe a debt of gratitude not only for what we have and are, but also for the deeds of heroism they have bequeathed us as a part of our national heritage._

[Illustration: MOLLY PITCHER SALUTES WASHINGTON

(_See following page_)]

THE STORY OF MOLLY PITCHER

BY FRANK R. STOCKTON

The battle of Monmouth, N. J., was fought June 29, 1778. It was the first battle the Americans had with the British after the terrible winter at Valley Forge. It would have been a signal victory for Washington's troops had General Charles Lee obeyed Washington's orders. Notwithstanding Lee's acts, the American troops held their ground till nightfall, when the British quietly retreated.

At the battle of Monmouth, a young Irishwoman, wife of an artilleryman, played a very notable part in the working of the American cannon on that eventful day in June.

Molly was born with the soul of a soldier, and although 5 she did not belong to the army she much preferred going to war to staying at home and attending to domestic affairs. She was in the habit of following her husband on his various marches, and on the day of the Monmouth battle she was with him on the field. 10

The day was very hot. The rays of the sun came down with such force that many of the soldiers were taken sick and some died; and the constant discharges of musketry and artillery did not make the air any cooler. Molly devoted herself to keeping her husband as comfortable as 15 possible, and she made frequent trips to a spring not far away to bring him water; and on this account he was one of the freshest and coolest artillerymen on the ground. In fact, there was no man belonging to the battery who was able to manage one of these great guns better than Pitcher. 20 Returning from one of her trips to the spring, Molly had almost reached the place where her husband was stationed when a bullet from the enemy struck the poor man and stretched him dead, so that Molly had no sooner caught sight of her husband than she saw him fall. She 5 ran to the gun, but scarcely had reached it before she heard one of the officers order the cannon to be wheeled back out of the way, saying that there was no one there who could serve it as it had been served.

Now Molly's eyes flashed fire. One might have thought 10 that she would have been prostrated with grief at the loss of her husband, but as we have said, she had within her the soul of a soldier. She had seen her husband, who was the same to her as a comrade, fall, and she was filled with an intense desire to avenge his death. She cried out to 15 the officer not to send the gun away but to let her serve it; and scarcely waiting to hear what he would say, she sprang to the cannon and began to load it and fire it. She had so often attended her husband and even helped him in his work that she knew all about this sort of thing, and her 20 gun was managed well and rapidly.

It might be supposed that it would be a very strange thing to see a woman on the battlefield firing a cannon; but even if the enemy had watched Molly with a spyglass, they would not have noticed anything to excite their surprise. 25 She wore an ordinary skirt, like other women of the time; but over this was an artilleryman's coat and on her head was a cocked hat with some jaunty feathers stuck in it, so that she looked almost as much like a man as the rest of the soldiers of the battery. 30

During the rest of the battle Molly bravely served her gun; and if she did as much execution in the ranks of the redcoats as she wanted to do, the loss in the regiments in front of her must have been very great. Of course all the men in the battery knew Molly Pitcher, and they watched her with the greatest interest and admiration. She would not allow anyone to take her place, but kept on loading and 5 firing until the work of the day was done. Then the officers and men crowded about her with congratulations and praise.

The next day General Greene went to Molly--whom he found in very much the condition in which she had left 10 the battlefield, stained with dirt and powder, with her fine feathers gone and her cocked hat dilapidated--and conducted her, just as she was, to General Washington. When the commander in chief heard what she had done, he gave her warm words of praise. He determined to 15 bestow upon her a substantial reward; for anyone who was brave enough and able enough to step in and fill an important place, as Molly had filled her husband's place, certainly deserved a reward. It was not according to the rules of war to give a commission to a woman; but as 20 Molly had acted the part of a man, Washington considered it right to pay her for her services as if she had been a man. He therefore gave her the commission of a sergeant and recommended that her name be placed on the list of half-pay officers for life. 25

--_Stories of New Jersey._

1. How did Molly come to be on the battlefield? Describe her as she looked in an artilleryman's garb. Relate briefly her deed of heroism. How was it rewarded?

2. What other heroines of history can you recall?

3. Frank R. Stockton (1834-1902) is a well-known name in American literature. He wrote many books, among which _Rudder Grange_ stands high. His short stories, however, are his best work.

KING PHILIP TO THE WHITE SETTLERS

BY EDWARD EVERETT

For thirty years Massasoit was the firm friend of the early settlers in New England. But when his son Philip came to rule over the Indian tribe their former friendship for the whites was broken. In 1675 Philip led his 10,000 warriors against the white settlers. King Philip's War lasted into 1676 when Philip was captured and slain. The following is a supposed speech of defiance that Philip delivered to the colonists.

White man, there is eternal war between thee and me! I quit not the land of my fathers but with my life. In those woods where I bent my youthful bow, I will still hunt the deer. Over yonder waters I will still glide unrestrained in my bark canoe. By those dashing waterfalls 5 I will still lay up my winter's store of food. On these fertile meadows I will still plant my corn. Stranger, the land is mine! I understand not these paper rights. I gave not my consent when, as thou sayest, these broad regions were purchased, for a few baubles, of my fathers. They 10 could sell what was theirs; they could sell no more. How could my fathers sell that which the Great Spirit sent me into the world to live upon? They knew not what they did. The stranger came, a timid suppliant, few and feeble, and asked to lie down on the red man's bearskin, and 15 warm himself at the red man's fire, and have a little piece of land to raise corn for his women and children; and now he is become strong, and mighty, and bold, and spreads out his parchment over the whole, and says, "It is mine!" Stranger, there is not room for us both. The Great Spirit has not made us to live together. There is poison in the white man's cup; the white man's dog barks at the red man's heels.

If I should leave the land of my fathers, whither shall I 5 fly? Shall I go to the south, and dwell among the graves of the Pequots? Shall I wander to the west?--the fierce Mohawk, the man-eater, is my foe. Shall I fly to the east?--the great water is before me. No, stranger, here I have lived, and here I will die! And if here thou abidest, there 10 is eternal war between thee and me. Thou hast taught me thy arts of destruction. For that alone I thank thee; and now take heed to thy steps; the red man is thy foe. When thou goest forth by day, my bullet shall whistle by thee; when thou liest down at night, my knife is at thy 15 throat. The noonday sun shall not discover thy enemy, and the darkness of midnight shall not protect thy rest. Thou shalt plant in terror, and I will reap in blood; thou shalt sow the earth with corn, and I will strew it with ashes; thou shalt go forth with the sickle, and I will follow after 20 with the scalping knife; thou shalt build, and I will burn, till the white man or the Indian shall cease from the land. Go thy way, for this time, in safety; but remember, stranger, there is eternal war between me and thee.

1. What reasons did Philip give for declaring war? To what extent were his reasons good?

2. What did he mean by "paper rights"; "a timid suppliant"; "poison in the white man's cup"; "arts of destruction"?

3. Edward Everett (1794-1865) was an American statesman, orator, and scholar. He served as a member of Congress, and afterwards was president of Harvard College. He was the leading orator of his day.

PIONEER LIFE IN OHIO

BY WILLIAM DEAN HOWELLS

William Dean Howells (1837-1920) long held a position of leadership among American writers of prose. In his many years of authorship he produced novels, essays, criticism, plays, travel, and biography. For ten years he was editor of the _Atlantic Monthly_; and he was connected at various times with _Harper's Magazine_, _The Nation_, and other journals. His writings excel in the truthfulness of the descriptions.