Part 15 (1/2)
”With us the son always stands behind the father,” growled Helmdag.
”Peace! both of you,” commanded Vestralp, ”fill your mouths with Roman wine. Bring the skin, Crispus, thou Roman hero! Do not untie it! A stroke with the sword. So! It spouts like red blood out of wounds! Now the helmets and hollow s.h.i.+elds, until the n.o.ble Roman in the buck's skin is exhausted. And as concerns the strife about the two stone steps, I think that a good man honours everything that is sacred to another. Therefore, brothers, we will all draw back from those steps.”
”But the gold and silver on the walls, on the pillars and stone coffers?” said Helmdag, the Arian.
”Perhaps that is to stay for the plundering slaves?” said Rando the Catholic.
”No!” cried the enlightened pagan, who had spoken for peace--it was Vestralp, the vanquisher of the helmeted Crispus--”that would be a pity. We will divide it amongst us all: for the G.o.d Ziu, for the Romish Bishops, and for the followers of Arius.”
And they immediately set to work with the bronze helmet, or deer-skin cap, full of red wine in the left hand, the battle-axe in the right.
Drinking heartily during their work, they broke away from the sarcophagi, holy shrines, and even from the columns, all that was valuable of the metal ornaments and jewels, and also the stones that pleased the eye by their variegated colours.
Garizo, a young, slim, tall Bajuvaren, lifted from the neck of a Saint Anne her necklace of heavy gold and sapphires, giving at the same time a deep bow, and saying:
”With thy permission, holy G.o.ddess, or whatever else thou mayest be; but thou art horribly ugly, and of dead stone. What one sees of thy bosom is yellow; but my bride Albrun is alive and young, and wonderfully beautiful; and very pretty will these stones look on her white neck.”
”Yes, but where are they then, your women and children, and unarmed folk?” asked Vestralp of the busy bridegroom.
”They will come to-morrow down the eastern mountains,” answered Garizo.
”For this we have at last found out, 'slow-moving' as we are, as thy hasty-tongued comrade just now said--this we have now learnt: to send the men forwards into the battle, and let the unarmed come afterwards when the victory and land is won.”
”There must be something in it,” laughed Vestralp, ”in this name 'slow-moving,' because it vexes you so. If one called you a coward, you would only laugh and strike him down. You are a strange people! No other race so calm, and at the same time so terrible in anger.”
”I will tell thee,” spoke thoughtfully Helmbert, the white-bearded. ”We are like the mountains; they stand quiet, whatever goes on round about them. But if the tumult within gets too vexatious, they overturn in rocks and fire.”
”You have shown this time that you also can be cunning and crafty,”
cried Suomar. ”With what artful care did you prevent the enemy getting scent of your approach! So sharply did you watch all the roads, and even the mule-tracks and the paths of the chamois-hunters, that no intelligence from the east could reach Juvavum.”
”And not to make the Romans suspicious at the absence of all news,”
added Helmbert, ”we sent our own Roman settlers disguised like peasants and workmen, as if they were the people from Ovilava and Laureac.u.m, into the town, there to buy and sell.”
”And if these had revealed all?” asked Suomar.
”Their relatives left behind would have been put to death. That was said plainly enough to them. But besides this, the poor people would rather support us than their Roman tormentors.”
”The burghers of the town soon gave up the contest; they find themselves under a new rule; as they see, we do not eat them,” said Helmdag, laughing.
”Yes; _only_ the cavalry and foot-soldiers of the Tribune fought bravely, and with exasperation,” said Rando.
”Tell us about it,” urged Vestralp. ”We, who fought on the other side of the river, do not know yet exactly what happened within the walls, or how the citadel fell so quickly.”
”By the sword of Ziu, it was wonderful!” began Rando. ”There, on the great square, where the Christian saint stands with lion's skin and club”----
”_That_ a saint! That is a heathen G.o.d!”
”No; a demi-G.o.d.”
”All the same to me,” continued Rando; ”he did not help the Romans, whether saint, or G.o.d, or demi-G.o.d. But we were surprised on that market-place. After we, some twenty Alemanni, with the Bajuvaren--they can climb like cats, these mountain huntsmen of Bajuhemum--had clambered over the walls, we thought all was over. But when we came to the open market, there came galloping towards us, in close order, with the cras.h.i.+ng sounds of the tuba, the cavalry of the Tribune. He himself was not to be seen; it was said, he lay ill in the citadel; but he was not taken prisoner there. We were at first very few, and it was only with difficulty that we could stand against them. But we gradually pressed them back; step by step they were forced upwards towards the Capitol. But then came the Isaurian infantry to their help, and it was now a fearful struggle--man against man. Ah! I have again seen them fight with their Wotan's fury, these Bajuvaren.”