FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34  
35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   >>   >|  
complicated. It is easy to do right in the one, and exceedingly difficult not to do wrong in the other. If your crop is blighted, you can take off your bonnet and say, 'God's will be done'; but if the prince meets with a reverse, he may have to blame himself for the attempt. And, perhaps, if all the kings in Europe were to confine themselves to innocent amusement, the subjects would be the better off." "Ay," said the young man Fritz, "you are in the right of it there. That was a true word spoken. And I see you are like me, a good patriot and an enemy to princes." Otto was somewhat abashed at this deduction, and he made haste to change his ground. "But," said he, "you surprise me by what you say of this Prince Otto. I have heard him, I must own, more favourably painted. I was told he was, in his heart, a good fellow, and the enemy of no one but himself." "And so he is, sir," said the girl, "a very handsome, pleasant prince; and we know some who would shed their blood for him." "O! Kuno!" said Fritz. "An ignoramus!" "Ay, Kuno, to be sure," quavered the old farmer. "Well, since this gentleman is a stranger to these parts, and curious about the Prince, I do believe that story might divert him. This Kuno, you must know, sir, is one of the hunt servants, and a most ignorant, intemperate man: a right Gruenewalder, as we say in Gerolstein. We know him well, in this house; for he has come as far as here after his stray dogs; and I make all welcome, sir, without account of state or nation. And, indeed, between Gerolstein and Gruenewald the peace has held so long that the roads stand open like my door; and a man will make no more of the frontier than the very birds themselves." "Ay," said Otto, "it has been a long peace--a peace of centuries." "Centuries, as you say," returned Killian: "the more the pity that it should not be for ever. Well, sir, this Kuno was one day in fault, and Otto, who has a quick temper, up with his whip and thrashed him, they do say, soundly. Kuno took it as best he could, but at last he broke out, and dared the Prince to throw his whip away and wrestle like a man; for we are all great at wrestling in these parts, and it's so that we generally settle our disputes. Well, sir, the Prince did so; and, being a weakly creature, found the tables turned; for the man whom he had just been thrashing like a negro slave, lifted him with a back grip and threw him heels overhead." "He broke his bridle
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34  
35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Prince

 

Gerolstein

 

prince

 

thrashing

 

Gruenewald

 

nation

 
wrestle
 

account

 

settle

 
lifted

wrestling

 

turned

 

thrashed

 

overhead

 
weakly
 

temper

 
disputes
 

soundly

 

centuries

 

tables


Centuries
 

generally

 

frontier

 

bridle

 

Killian

 
returned
 

creature

 

subjects

 

amusement

 

innocent


Europe

 

confine

 

princes

 

abashed

 

deduction

 
patriot
 

spoken

 
difficult
 

exceedingly

 

complicated


blighted

 
reverse
 

attempt

 

bonnet

 

gentleman

 

stranger

 
curious
 

farmer

 
ignoramus
 
quavered