Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1882-02-15

virtue more than gallantry.
One day at his fathers table some gal
liant knig hts whom he had overthrown
in the lists spoke much of the court of
the King of Naples, and of the exquisite
beauty of Maguelonne, the daughter of
the king. Pierre was suddenly infiamed
with the desire of seeing her and playing
knights part in the Journeys OF such
court. With difficulty he obtained per-
mission of his parents to go in search of
adventures When he departed his in
consolable mother presented him with
three precious rings. With small fol-
lowing of servants, he reached Naples,
where he took retired lodgings and re-
NAMED unknown. At the first proclama-
ton of the tournament, he entered the
lists as a nameless knight. Needless to
say that he overturned everyone who
opposed him. He saw la belle Mague-
Tonne, and was ravished with her beauty
and her sweetness. She, on her part,
was eqnaIly enamOred of him. He was
sigually honored by the king, and in
vited to banquet at the palace. There
he exchanged words with the idol of his
eyes, who was most gracious to the
young knight. But he refused all
solicitations to disclose his name and
rank.
Tournament followed tournament. He
was always victorious, and was advanced
more and more in the favor of the king
and queen. But the hewlett passion of
| love tormented him. 1t tormented also
the fair Maguelonne, who had never felt
it before. And with fresh and sweet
sincerity, which cannot be too much COM
mended, she sent him word by her maid
of her state of mind. Themaid arranged
an interview in her apartment in the
palace. The two lovers, whose love was
as pure as snow, vowed never to love or
to marry other man or woman. On her
entreaty he disclosed his name. But
there were political reasons why he could
not ask her hand of her father. 1t is
curious to note, in story of that age,
that she did not care for rank; birth, she
said, was only an accident, and she
wished she had been simple peasant
girl, only then she would have liked him
to have lived on the next farm, SO that
they could have married without leave of
anybody.
Obstacles to their union were m any;
she feared that some day her father
would compel her to accept for hus-
band disagreeable knight whom she
hated. The lovers took the bold resolve
to escape together. Taking her per-
sonal jewels they sailed forth at night
ON horseback, with few faithful attend
ants. At dawn they stopped in lonely
wood by the sea-shore to repose. The
| tired girl, trusting always the honor of
her pure lover, slept reclining in his
arms. AS she slept, little wooden box,
which contained the three rings of his
mother that Pierre had given her,
slipped from her pocket. A sea-bird,
seeing it, swooped down and carried it
off. Pierre, folding his cloak for Mague-
Tonne to rest her head upon, gently laid
her down and went in pursuit of the
bird, who dropped the box into the sea.
Pierre jumped into leaky fshing-boat
which had no oars, and pushed out to
recover it. A wind blew the boat from
the shore further and further. Pierre
was in despair. The one accomplish
ment he lacked was swimming
Result. The boat was blown out at
sea. Pierre was picked up by some
Moorish pirates, sold as a slave to the
sultan of Alexandria, became great
favorite with the sultan, assisted him in
council and in war. The sultan would
make him his son, and give him his
daughter. Pierre said it was not the
manner of his religion to have more than
one wife, and that he was betrothed al
ready. The sultan thought the more
wives the better. He attempted to con-
vert his slave, but Pierre resisted all the
arguments of the dervishes and all the
Establishments of the seducing Oda-
isques. At last after eight years of captiv-
WITTY, the sultan gave Pierre his liberty,
embarked him on vessel bound to Pro
vence, and enriched him with loads of
jewels and fine stuffs, which for security
were placed in fourteen barrels covered
with salt at each end.
The vessel stopped for water at little
island. Pierre wandered ashore and
was left, while the vessel sailed on and
by chance came to Aigues-Mortes, and
left the barrels of salt at a hospital on
little island near by, in charge of the
superior, who stored them away, having
learned that they were the property of a
passenger left behind. And in this pas
senger, for some reason, she took an I'M
common interest. Pierre, after as many
adventures as Ulysses, came at last him
self to Argues Mortes, sick and forlorn,
and sought the shelter of the hospital,
over which presided charming young
superior, who always wore her veil,
whose name was concealed, and who was
only known by her bountiful charity and
her loving, tender spirit to all the I'M
fortunate.
The story of Maguelonne, after her
abandonment, is equally romantic. She
dared not go back to Naples, for fear of
involving her attendants in dire punish
ment. Instead, she made pilgrimage
to Rome in company with an honest and
lively family who were going there to
get dispensation from the pope for the
marriage of their daughter to hercousin.
From Rome she sought Provence, the
country of her lover. There she found
that the story of her fight was known,
and from what she heard of the anger
of his parents against her, she did not
dare to present herself to them. She
| l.