Connecticut western news., 1893-12-28
KNIGHT AND PILGRIM

My ancestor was a knight and the owner of vast realms. His domains in- cluded several small towns, great forests and farms and other gilt edge col lateral, and his vassals were numbered by hundreds.
 The management of his real estate he left to an agent, who boomed it to his lords advantage, while my ances- tor spent his time in tourneying and other knightly diversions, rescuing fe- males in distress, storming castles and drinking wassail with the other lords when in funds.
 He was & man of medium height, who wore eyeglasses and sandy whis- kers, but when he was inside of his Damascus inlaid suit of chilled steel armor he was a person of imposing ap- pearance, and he had deep, bass voice, which gave it's hearers a lasting impress sion of his greatness.
 In battle he was a terror. Many were the infidels who bit the dust before his two handed sword, and many were the trophies of the field stacked up in his castle. He was fond of riding unat- tended through his domains and feeling the public pulse, as it were, and in this manner met with many adventures we'll worth recording. In an old black let ter manuscript, dated 1246, there is an account of one of these adventures, which have rendered into modern Eng fish, and goes to show how the life of knight of old was subject to strange vicissitudes.
 He was riding through forest one day, when his steed suddenly reared and threw my ancestor to the ground with dull thud. The knight, incum- bered by hls weighty armor, was unable to rise when he recovered from the shock, but he managed to crawl to the roadside and brace himself up against tree. It was a lonely road, and few people traversed it. Thus he lay two days without food or drink, unable to get out of his arJnor or walk home. On the morning of the third day, man in shabby garb approached with slow, leisurely steps. Coming up to my an- cestor, he halted in surprise, and then opening the grating in the knight 's visor he said:
 "Hellot Hello!'
 My ancestor replied:
 "Good morrow, friend. pray thee give me food and drink, or perish.' "Who are you and what are you do- ing here?" quoth the man. My ancestor informed him of his name and station, repeating his request for sustenance and concluding by inquir- | ing his savior's name.
 II am Aimless Walker, the pilgrim, he replied, just from the Holy Land on foot, but I have no fodder for you. Yet methinks, he unused, "that in g distant farmyard espied a wheelbar- l row left by some careless yokel. Hith. | CT will hie me, and in two shakes will I return to thee and trundle thee to thy castle.'
 So speaking, he hied and in short time returned with the barrow. First however, he removed the knights hel met, and filling it with water at spring near by he brought the warrior drink which cheered him nightly. Then placing him in the barrow, he began tt trundle him along the road toward ths far distant town. They cheered tn,
 weary way by reciting their strange ad
 ventures to each other, and my ancestor
 has recorded in his diary that he nevel
 met more cheerful and variegated lial
 in all his travels, and he was no sloucl
 himself, it is said.
 Toward noon Aimless grew fatigued | orl crIIoy1xy he oo;d. | "What do get out of this anyway?'
 "Why, fellow" "quoth the knight, ii
 it not enough to know that thou ar
 serving thy lord?''
 Lord, nothingl" said Walker. "Per
 haps you are not aware that I'm the in
 ventor of the existence without labo
 system and high archchancellor of tn
 lodge of Knights of the Road? I
 strikes me that I'm getting it wher
 Mark got the mumps-in the neck.
 "Hurry on," replied my ancestor
 "or darkness will again befall us CT
 we reach my castle.
 eff you were out of those iron gar
 ments and did little walking yourself
 the job would be easier" said Walker
 and suiting the action to the words h
 turned the knight over, and with mon key wrench which the warrior wore h began to undo his armor.
 'l In few minutes the knight appear cd in his buckslxin pajamas, and Wake was surprised to find him such smal
 and in fact insignificant person. See
 ing that he outclassed him when he WE l out Of his armor. he began to bull