Los Angeles herald., 1906-07-22


lN seilles, so long ago as the yeal
1191, tall, fair-haired man
XM1 dressed very gorgeously in spark
ling mail, and having a mantle Of
silver stuff over his broad shoul
ders, stopped and turned to man of slghter
physique, who had accompanied him to the
boat that was to bear him to his galliot in
the harbor.
Fare thee. we'll Blondel, my sweet min
strel! he said may not see thee again.
! shall miss thy, lays in Paynim lands, but
glad am ! that thou risketh not thy life and
fair face in Holy Land"
Yea, but if thou shouldst fall into the
hands OF those heather dogs, there lives not
troubsdour," answered Blondel. ~ nAe 'Ae
~ know thy faithful heart of old, but
hlcnard needs not thy services. Fear not.
And now one touch of thy harpstrings ere /
90, that the memory of the song may linger
long IN the breast of thy king
II would rather weep than sing" said the
troubadour But, to please thee, / obey"
and Blondel assumed a graceful attitude
and touching the strings Of the harp, sang
the first stanza of Provencal ballad
"The ssLs swallow flies home to the fair northern
The ,storks have forsaken the reeds Of the
The rose breathes greeting to hail the new
Sweet summerl fair summerl dear summer,
~ h Ilst to to thy twtter and bask in the smile
of the hfe-glVing sun Of sweet summer!'
"Ah! ,Tis the ballad thou taught me when
/ was i'll at Bordeaux" said the king. II
can yet recall every line, and thinkest thou
said no other one could sing it but thee and
me-"
"'Of a truth said so, your Majesty and if
l heard the song in Holy Land or in our
Heart who sang it,"
"Prouder is Richard of that need than of
all his fame in arms!' cried the mighty war
rior. st. George and our Lady keep thee!''
:, AS ne murmured the benediction, the great
English king and leader Of the third Crusade
turned away and stepped into the gorgeous
craft that was waiting for him.
Blondel de Nesle watched the tall form of
the monarch till he saw him mount the high
deck of the war-vessel, with its carpets of
painted cloths, its waving banners and its
crowds of panopied knights.
Brightly the morning sun shone on the
scene, the breeze kissed the white sails, and
with music and merry shouts, like festal
slowly out of the harbor toward the Holy
Land.
After many months there came tidines of
the brave king back to France, tales OF saw |
age battles with the Saracen, and of deeds |
Of high emprise and daring wrought upon the |
Paynim hosts.
Then came other tales-of victories lost. |
Of dissensions of bitter disappointment, and |
how the great KING held his round shield be-
fore his face, and turned from Jerusalem,
with tears in his eyes, declaring that he was
unworthy to gaze upon the city that he was
unable to conquer
At last they heard that the fleet had
sailed from Acre, and that Richard was
coming back with his crusading hosts, or
what was left of them.
Months and months went by, but the Lion
Heart did not come to his kingdom.
The kings feet had been wrecked in the |
Adriatic, and despairing of reaching his own |
dominions any other way, Richard assumed
the disguise Of a Templar, and, like a com
mon pilgrim, took his way on foot through |
Germany. With palmer's gown over his |
armor and a palmers staff in his strong
hand, he began what was for him perilous
journey.
1t was a foolhardy undertaking; but peo-
pie did many foolish things in those days
Richard happened to be in bad repute
among the German princes. A murder had
been committed in the Holy Land while he |
was there, Of which many believed that he !
was the nstgator
The victim was Conrad, Marquis of Mont
ferrat, between whom and Richard there