Part 25 (1/2)

”Ah! that is better,” laughed Sir Tho thee like a rotten apple and then hurling thee from my lance's point”

”Verily thou speakest from experience,” returned Sir Frederick; ”thou hast, no doubt, been in the habit of spitting rotten apples, and nothing row yon ponderous paunch, next to thy speech, the most forhter he rode back to where I waited Here he handed to his squire the lance he carried, and in its place he chose another, very heavy and unwieldy, as I thought; but to balance these defects it did have a ed

The two knights now took their places, and the trunal for the contest

Both horses dashed forward as though they had been connected, in some invisible ith the voice of the truht at Harleston's visor; evidently for the double purpose of exhibiting his skill and ad a severe blow to his opponent

Sir Frederick, tomore at his adversary's horse than at the rider I could not believe that he did intend co such a breach of the rules of chivalry; and yet it was clear his point was not directed to the rider

A heavy blow;--a clatter;--and a cloud of dust, and h a lance without a point; and here, racing madly towards the northern end, doth come Sir Thomas's steed, without its rider or its saddle

Harleston had, at the lastthe other's point; thus he had escaped unharmed

But how did Sir Thomas's horse come to be without a saddle as well as riderless?

It happened thus, as , he rode back to where I sat wavingwith the others

He had aimed, not at his adversary's horse, as had appeared, but at that part of his saddle where the lance doth lie in rest This mark he did hit fairly, and the fury of the onset, aided by the heavy spear, caused his opponent's saddle girths to break; and thus Sir Thos heaped upon hiame to play; for had Harleston so much as scratched, with his lance, his adversary's steed, he had then been disgraced

Harleston was satisfied with the punish, and did not further ht And indeed there had been but little honour in pressing his victory to a coreat difficulty that Sir Thorooms were able to lift up their bulky master and assist hi in the centre of the lists, I openedup in my stirrups, I called out at the full power of hts here assembled to take part in this noble joust, that I, Walter Bradley, hereby challenge any true knight a ye, which doth desire so to do, to break a lance, with or without a point, as the aforesaid knight doth desire”

For the space of whilst one ht tell an hundred no one appeared At the end of this tih in haste, dashed into the lists and, riding with the ease of an accoently touched my shi+eld with the butt of his lance

On his shi+eld was no device; but his rich inlaid ar of its wearer, seeh this were not the first time they had beheld this unknown chaer, in a hurried voice, whose accent told e for thee, Sir Walter May I see thee in thy tent?”

There was no time for more

”Yes,” I answered, in the same low tone

As I rode back to take upme in its desire to recall where and when I had before heard that voice The atte nal

Loud did they blow

A rushi+ng rattle, followed by a clattering, tearing sound, and both spears burst into a thousand slivers, as though some foul fiend had been confined within the shaft of each, and at the instant of encounter they spread apart their arms and threw their frail wooden prisons from them with the contee Both his horse and mine oere forced back on their haunches; but we both kept our seats full firm

And thus in succession did we break three pairs of lances' without either being able to unhorse, or gain any perceptible advantage over the other Therefore our contest was declared to be a fair and equal one, without a victor