Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1912-06-25

chest. and De Bresse tall and sien-
der. no superfiuous fat mingled with
his hard muscles. At the signal the
two. posing their lances. made dash
at each other.
At this first onset neither was I'M
horsed. neither wounded Again and
again their lances came together, and
ct last in one of these encounters De
Dresses lance was shiyered, and he
was left defenseless. The married
knight had won.
the queen. dismounted, knelt and
with hanging head cried for mercy.
He repeated the ceremony to the other
ladies to whom the terms of the tour
ney compelled him to subject himself
and then rode away TO Vevay to bend
the knee to the wife of his conqueror
Now, in those days there were no
telephones or telegraphs in that land
Indeed. there were no regular mails.
One afternoon Nine. de Blonay, who
was ignorant of the tournament, was
sitting on her castle terrace with her
baby on her lap, looking out on the
placid waters of Lake Leman. A mail
ed horseman assembled the hill and,
dismounting below where the lady sat,
came up on to the terrace and, bending
the knee. said:
Mime. de Blonay, cry you mercy"
you cry me mercy!' exclaimed the
astonished woman. you. an armed
knight, cry mercy of me, not only with
out weapons, but incumbered with my
baby"
"Yes. madam. l am Corsant de
Bresse. | have met your husband in
battle. he the champion Of the married
knights of Turin, | representing the
single knights / have been conquered
by him, and by the terms of the tour
nament have come to cry mercy from
his wife,
AS soon as Nine de Blonay under
stood the situation. recognizing the
fact that her husband had won vic
tory for marriage, she conceived the
idea of winning a second victory, not
with lance or battleax, but with wo-
mans own weapons.
arise Sir knight" she said. 81
grant you mercy on one condition"
Name it, good lady"
''That you be my guest at a feast
which | shall give in your honor with
the mobiles living around about"
&Ia%
pany your mercy with boon instead
of a penance. / will be your guest
most willingly"
Immediately Nine. de Blonay dis
patched messengers to those to be In
vited to the feast, including her young
and beautiful cousin, Yolande de VII
/ Iette. When all were assembled Nine.
de Blonay placed Yolande beside her,
seating Corsant de Bresse where he
could feast his eyes on her beauty.
There was a clinking of glasses and
many a word of good natured derision
fred at the bachelor cause in the re-
cent contest.
"Alasr he said. Would that / had
a wife to defend me against this rail-
leryp'
He accompanied the words with 2
look of appeal at Yolande, who blush
ed and lowered her eyes.
Cries of "Deserter!" "Renegade"
and the like were hurled at him from
the bachelors present, while Come
overi "Welcome to our ranks" and
| oin,fto, Ia5fnoon oapaa frnu, tho mar.
ried persons.
| After the guests were gone De
Bresse declared to Nine. de Blonay
that he had had enough of the unmar-
ried side and. since he had become
smitten with her niece, begged that
she would intercede for him with Yo-
lande.
How, now, Sir Knight" said the
lady. Having been beaten at feats
of arms by a married man, do you
now beg the assistance Of married
woman
by my spurs, madame! / am more
afraid of the girl than of either you
or your husband"
"Well, then, you must either win
your matrimonial spurs as you have
already won those Of knighthood or
remain craven"
With that she opened a door and
ushered him Into a room with Yo-
lande. What took place there has not
been handed down, except that after
awhile De Bresse came out, strutting
like q peacock, and Informed his host
ess that he had won this fight far
more easily than her husband had
vanquished him in the tourney.
i After a brief courtship the young
fance rode back to Turin. He bore q
scrap of paper from Nine. Blonay to
her husband. on which she had writ
ten: "You have conquered with mans
have gained a victory for the same
cause with woman's weapons. You
fenced with an insensible lance, with
a beautiful girl"
Corsant de Bresse, returning an az
famed husband. excited a great deal
of merriment in Turin. The married
knights welcomed him among theiI
number, and the single knights talked
Of another tournament in which the
renegade should defend his newly
chosen side against one Of their mum
Der, who should punish him for his de
sertion But the Count Of Savoy for
babe any further fighting. and. there
| being Generalization among the bach