Year: 1870

carOuSerS, arrant SWaShbucklerS, thaI
: went about with clanking armour anG


jingling spurs. When the people o


Toledo beheld the vaunting and dis


courteous appearance of these knights


they We're more anxious than ever fol


the success of the gentle dutchess; but


at the same time, the sturdy and stal.


" art frames of these warriors, showed


that whoever Won the victory from


them, must do it at the cost of many q


bitter blow.


AS the nephew and his riotous crew
rode in at one side of the field, the fail


widow appeared at the other, with hel


suite of grave, gray-headed courtiers
her ancient duennas and dainty demoi-
selles, and the little dwarf toiling along


under the weight of her train. Every
lone made way for her as she passed
and blessed her beautiful face, and
prayed for success to her cause. She
took her seat in a lower balcony, not
far from the sovereign's; and her pale
face, set off by her mourning weeds,


was as the moon shining forth from
among the clouds of night.


The trumpets sounded for the combat.
The warriors were just entering the
lists, when stranger knight, armed
in panOply, and followed by two pages
and an esquire, came gaHoping into the
field, and riding up to the royal bal
cony, and claimed the combat as a
matter of right.


" In me" #" cried he, behold the cav
alier who had the happiness to rescue
! the beautiful dutchess from the peril of
! the forest, and the misfortune to bring
on her this grievOus calumny. 1t was
but recently, in the course of my er-
rantry, that tidings of her wrongs have
reached my ears, and l have urged
hither at all speed, to stand forth in her
vindication."


No sooner did the dutchess hear the
accents of the knight, than she recog-
nized his voice, and joined her prayers
with his that he might enter the lists.
Ise difficulty was to determine which
of the three champions already appOin-
ted should yield his place, each insist
ing Sn the honor of the combat. The
stranger knight would have settled the
point, by taking the whole contest
upon himself; but this the other
knights would not permk- 1t was at
length determined as before, by lot,
and the cavalier who lost tie chance,
retired murmuring and disconsolate.


The trumpets again sounded-the
lists were opened. The arrogant neph-
ew and his drawcansir uncles appeared
so completely cased in steel, that they
and their steeds were like moving mas
seS OfirOn. When they understood the
stranger knightto be the same that had
rescued the dutchess from her peril,
they greeted him with most boisterous
derisiOn.


go, no, sir knight of the dragon ~
said they; "yOu who pretend to cham
pion &pr fair widows in the dark, come
on, and Yindicate NR'lr deeds of dark
ness in the omen daV'i


The only reply of the cavalier was to
put his lance in rest, and brace himself
forifne encounter. Needless is it to re-
late the particulars of a battle, which
was like so many hundred combats
that have been said and sung in prose
and verse. Who is there but musthave
foreseen the event of contest, where
heaven had to decide on the guilt or in
nOcence of the most beautiful and i'm
maculate of widows?


Tic sagaciOus reader, deeply read in
this kind of judicial combats, can imag-
inc the encounter of the graceless neph-
ew and the stranger knight. He sees
their conclusion, man to man, and
horse to horse, in mid career, and in
that Sir Graceless hurled to the ground
and slain. He will not wonder that
the assailaE of the brawny uncIes
were< dccessful in their rue en-
counter; but he will picture to himself
the stout stranger squirting to their res
cue in the very critical moment; he
will see him transfXing one With his
lance, and cleaving the Ather to the
chime with back stroke Of his sword,
leaving the trio of accusers dead upon
the field, and establishing the immacu:
late fidelity of the dutchess, and her
title to the dukedOm, beyond the shad.
OW of a doubt.


The air rangwith acclamations; moth
ing was heard but praises of the beauty
and virtue of the dutchess, and the
prOWess of the stranger knight but the
public joy was still more increased
when the champion raised his visor,
and revealed the cOuntenance of one of
the bravest cavaliers in Spain, renown-
ed for his gallantry in the service of the
sex, who had long been absent in quest
of similar adventures.


That WOFthy knight, however, was
severely wounded in the battle, and re-
manned for long time very i'll of his
wounds. The lovely dutchess, CRATE
full for having twice owed her pTOtec-
ton to his arm, attended him daily
during his illness. a tender passion
grew up between them, and she finally
rewarded his gallantry by giving him
her hand.


The king would fain have had the
knight establish his title to such high
advancement by farther deeds of arms;
but his cOurtiers declared that he had
already merited the lady, by thus vim
.dicating her fame and fortune i'll
deadly combat to Outrance; and the
lady herself limited that she was per-
fectJy satisfied of his prowess in arms,
from the proofs she received in his
achievement in the forest


Their nuptials were celebrated with
great magnificence. The present hus-
band of the dutchess did N " and
fast like his predecessor, FndIbert the
wife-ridden; yethe found greater favor
in the eyes of heaven, for their union
was blessed with q numerous progeny;
the daughters chaste and beauteOus as
their mother; the sons all stout and
valiant as theirsire, and all renowned,
like him, for relieving disconsolate
damsels and desolate widows.